Going Bananas for Stamps!

tongo banana stamp

Tonga was the first country to issue peel and stick stamps in 1969! They took the squareness out of stamp collecting by printing this banana shaped franking option. There is no lack of this elongated fruit on the islands or on their letters. 

Tonga is the only surviving monarchy among the island nations of the Pacific Ocean. The late king (Tupou IV) was also listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the heaviest monarch in the world. He must have eaten a few too many bananas!

Load of Bull Stamps

Brazil issued this set of postage stamps in 1843. They are nicked named Bull's Eye.

They were the second country, after England, in the world to start printing this new handy franking system.


it was not until 1866 that Brazil honored Emperor Dom Pedro II with his portrait on stamps. There had been a longstanding objection to obliterating his image with pesky postmarks!


Enjoy this quirky post? Get future vintage postcard updates sent to you for free! Join by email or RSS.
vintage postcards, old postcards , antique postcards

Vintage Peulh tribe postcards from Senegal

This particular vintage postcard's origin is Senegal, Africa. France had boasted an extensive colonial empire in the 19^th until the middle of the 20^th century . Senegal,Africa was the gem of that Empire. French map making explorers,merchants,and soldiers trekked through breathtaking yet dangerous territories reaching from Timbuktu to the Chad lake which lay thousands of miles away.

This card pictures a serene woman from the Peulh tribe. This prominent tribe has links in most West African countries. She is wearing elegant bracelets and necklaces, some of which were probably made with European imported material. France sadly often traded pearls and other precious metals for slaves.

The vintage postcard is franked with a 1 centime Faidherbe and a 4 centime Group stamp . It only cost 5 centime to send a postcard from Senegal to France in the 1900's!

Here are women from the Peuhl tribe doing a traditional African dance. My foot is certainly tapping to this music. The history and culture is so rich! I would certainly like to travel to West Africa! The flag is reminiscent of the French tri colored but now using the vibrant Pan African colors.