Main page and Index of Breeds
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Basenji Index Main page and Index of Breeds |
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stamp is from Abkhazia and it is the only tri-colored Basenji
that has been printed except for the souvenir sheet from the
Sahara below. Secondly, the stamp on the right is called
a Russian Overprint. When the Russian economy got out of hand,
the inflation rose so quickly that the stamps that had been
printed were no longer of enough value to mail a letter. In
a novel move, the government took blocks of four of these stamps
and overprinted them with a new image and new value to sell until
new stamps could be produced. These were issued for a very short
time and were not made for the world market. For this reason, they
will soon be collector's items and very rare in dog collections.
This lovely Basenji overprint comes as a set of five stamps of five
different colors with the same overprint on each. To the right is
a sample of a set of Overprints.
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The stamp is designed to honor animals native to Africa,
including the Maki Catta, the Mau Egyptian cat and the
three breeds of dogs, the Basenji (a great brindle),
the Rhodesian Ridgeback and the Coton de Tulear
from Madagascar. In each case, the animal is shown with
its young. This sheet is collected not just by dog and cat
fanciers, but by Boy Scout collectors too. The man is a Scout
leader and the children on each stamp wear the uniform of a
different level of Scout.
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Guinea is partial heir to the series of west African empires
that, at their height before the arrival of the Europeans,
cast significant political and commercial influence over many
peoples from Guinea's Atlantic coast to the southern edge of
the Sahara. The empires of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai spanned
the period from about the 10th to the 15th centuries.
French military penetration into the area began in the
mid-19th century. Guinea became an independent republic in 1958.
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Democratic Republic of Malagasy, which is the
name for Madagascar, the island to the east of Africa. For a
long time, this was the only Basenji stamp that I had been able to find.
It was on our "Other Sighthounds" page, as the only representative of
the breed. I have done some real searching since then and am proud to have
discovered enough to fill out this impressive page of their own. This stamp
can be purchased by itself but I have found it only in a non-perforated form
and it is too expensive for me to normally carry it.
For some reason, the lovely souvenir sheet is actually less expensive!
This is a copy of the Souvenir Sheet that was issued along with the stamp to the
right. This one can also be mounted with gold leaf nugget style for a piece of
beautiful artwork.
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this incredible Souvenir Sheet from Mali. It was issued in 1996 and
the interesting part is the outstanding brindle Basenji on the right. The Sighthound
on the left is an Azawakh, another unusual sight in stamps. It is actually larger than
shown here since it has a wide white border as well as the mauve.
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I used to think that there were
not many Basenji stamps, but then the Russian states recognized their unique appeal and
issued several stamps in 1999 and 2000 and now, Mozambique has really outdone
everybody. This incredible souvenir sheet was issued in 2000. Mozambique is 106
years old. The country came into existence in its present form as a result of an
Anglo-Portuguese treaty of May 1891 and gained its independence from Portugal in
1975. The Mozambique created in 1891 was not a piece of random map-drawing but an
attempt to make sense of the history of the region in a single colonial state. In
doing so, it accepted a part of the African coast which was established in the
sixteenth century when the Portuguese divided their command in eastern Africa
between the states of Mozambique and Mombassa. This wonderful souvenir sheet is 8 1/2
inches tall by 6 inches wide. In addition to the dogs on the actual stamps, it shows
Bull Terriers, a Border Collie, Bloodhounds and a Portugese Water dog in the stream.
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I love this incredible Souvenir Sheet from Sahara that was
issued on September 26, 1998. They chose as their souvenir sheet,
this outstanding portrait of Basenjis and the breed couldn't be
more honored. The map at the top of the souvenir sheet
highlights the area that the dog is from, in this case, the
Congo. Sahara also issued a set of African dogs (not shown here)
that includes not only the obvious Rhodesian Ridgeback, but also
the Sloughi, the Azawahk and the Coton de Tulear from
Madigascar.
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I am not very fond of most of the stamps issued in this set by Tanzania, but the
Basenji is probably the best of the bunch, (shown on the left) and no collection should be without
one. Update: I guess that they agreed with me, since they have now issued the
Souvenir Sheet for the set and guess what? It is of the Basenji. I like the
treatment that they did with it. So, now you get your choice of the stamp
alone or the Souvenir Sheet instead.
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What is there
to say about this mini sheet from Zambia. Zambia become an independent
nation in 1964, but this is the first time that they have issued a set of dog
stamps. I am not sure the significance of the breeds that they chose, although the
Basenji and Saluki are both African breeds, but the central position for the lovely
Basenji is most appropriate.
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