2021-07-26 Mon

The postage stamp is a symbol of the history, tradition and development of a country. The Albanian postal journey began with the first stamp issued in the year 1913 – six months after the declaration of Independence. The first Albanian stamp was a hand-stamped seal applied directly to letter envelopes.

An impressive new series of definitive Albania stamps were issued at the end of 1913 which were also the first portrait definitive stamps of Albania. They all featured the portrait of George Castrioti.

George Castrioti was an Albanian nobleman and military commander. He served the Ottoman Empire from 1423 to 1443. The Ottoman Turks likened his military skills to those of Alexander the Great and they gave him the title "Iskender bey" meaning "Lord Alexander". His title has been anglicized into "Skanderbeg". Skanderbeg rebelled against the Ottoman Empire and fought to free his homeland from Ottoman rule.

Albania honoured the national hero on a set of six stamps which come with the denominations ranging from 2 quints to 1 florin. The common design features a helmeted portrait of Skanderbeg in a circular vignette with his name written at the bottom.

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Image Courtesy: stamp-collecting-world.com