YUGOSLAVIA, Public Telephone Booth Postage Stamps, 1988 - 1992

In July 1988, the Yugoslavian Post Office printed a 23 x 26 mm stamp depicting a payphone with a woman on a call. It was part of a wider set illustrated by D. Cudov that was issued over a two year period marking the work of the postal services. Other denominations in the series showed mailboxes, computers, envelopes, post women and even carrier pigeons.

The payphone stamp has a range of variants, from a colour change to overprints that reflected the ongoing revaluations of the Dinar due to a chronic inflation in the 1990s, and the independence of nations within former Yugoslavia.

1,000 din. - Yugoslav dinar

0.40 din. - Yugoslav dinar

Overprint 26.6.1991 SLOVENIJA: The Declaration of Slovenian Independence was held at a public event in Republic Square, on June 26th 1991

5 din. - Yugoslav dinar, 1992 overprint

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbian Administration. Overprint issued on 26th October 1992

20 din. - Yugoslav dinar, 1992

SEYCHELLES, Public Telephone Box Postage Stamp, 1986

 

In May 1986, Seychelles in the Western Indian Ocean, issued a four stamp set depicting 'Inter-Island Communications' as part of their commemoration of the AMERIPEX '86 stamp show. Dubbed ''the World's Fair of Stamps", this was the largest philatelic show to be held in America's history with some 150,000 people attending, and over 50 participating countries.

The event took place at the O'Hare Expo Center in Chicago, Illinois between May 22 to June 2, 1986. Dozens of countries across the globe - from the likes of Bhutan, Jamaica, Poland, and Tanzania - issued sets of stamps marking their participation in Ameripex '86. 

The Seychelles 2 Rupee stamp shows a young woman on a call in a 'public telephone kiosk'. 

2 ₨ - Seychellois rupee

GHANA, Public Telephone Box Postage Stamps, 1990

On the 24th October 1988, International Direct Dialling (IDD) was introduced in Ghana, West Africa. Two years later, the Ghana Postal Service issued a four stamp set dedicated to its telephone service. Two of these depicted Ghanaians using a public telephone. 

The lower denomination issue shows a man inserting a telephone card into a pay phone. For the 200 Cedi stamp, three women are congregating around two public telephone boxes.

I've not been able to identify the illustrator of these stamps, so any further information will be much appreciated.

80 ₵ - Ghanaian new cedi

  

200 ₵ - Ghanaian new cedi

FINLAND, Public Telephone Box Postage Stamp, 1988

In 1988, a set of five postage stamps was issued to celebrate the Finnish Postal Service. The key stamp that I'm interested in for my on-going series of 'telephone boxes on stamps', is the one depicting a man in a brightly patterned yellow shirt posting a letter in a post box that's right next to a public telephone box (or 'Puhelin' in Finnish). 

The designer was Victor Torsten Ekström (1926 - 2015), an illustrator of many postage stamps in Finland.

1.80 mk - Finnish markka

It's a wonderful touch that Ekström had not only chosen to include the phone box in his artwork, but he's also illustrated someone who is in mid-conversation inside the box. The stamp was available to buy in a booklet with the other stamps in the set, where it was issued as a se-tenant pair.

  Finland de-activated its very last public telephone box back in 2007 

 

More Public Telephone Boxes on Postage Stamps

I'm hanging on the public telephone theme for a while longer. This time a quick whizz around the globe to highlight another selection of philatelic phonebox curiosities.

First up is a lovely illustration of a roadside scene in Costa Rica that was depicted on its 1999 issue marking the Island's 50th Anniversary of its Electricity Institute. There's a distinct contrast between the rural setting, the pair of cows pulling a cart, and the modern looking phone booth - which is also in use. The stamp was designed by A. Suarez.

75 ₡ - Costa Rican colón

15 din. - Yugoslav dinar

Designed by R.Bojanic, a 2001 issue from Yugoslavia commemorates the centenary of telephone booths in Serbia, and the Ivory Coast's 1989 'Communication' stamp marks the 30th anniversary of CAPTEAO. It's a pity that the group of blue telephone boxes only gets a cameo appearance on the stamp itself. 

155 CFA - West African CFA franc

British Design Classics, 2009

0.63 € - Euro

In 2019, Malta issued their 'Residential Houses' four stamp set. The K6 CARDPHONE is in the foreground of a building in the capital Valletta. The designer is Anthony Xuereb. 

Terrence Millington was the designer of the British 63p stamp in the 1997 'Sub-Post Offices' set.

Issued on 12th August, 1997

30 Botswana thebe

One of a set of four stamps with the theme 'Telecommunications' commemorating the International Stamp Exhibition 'STAMPWORLD' which was held at the Alexandra Palace in London in 1990. The show marked the 150th anniversary of the introduction of the Penny Post in 1840. The stamp is subtitled 'talking', and was designed by M.Kahn.

Nevis - Public Telephone Booth Postage Stamps, 1995

 

In October 1995, the Caribbean island of Nevis commemorated the 10th Anniversary of Skantel (St. Kitts and Nevis Telecommunications Ltd) with a set of two stamps and a souvenir sheet. Nevis had first issued stamps between 1861 and 1890, and only returned to being a separate postal administration as recently as 1980. Saint Kitts and Nevis is the smallest independent country in the Western Hemisphere, being just 267 square kilometres - with the smaller island of Nevis just a 15 minute ferry ride from neighbouring Saint Kitts.

Public phone repairman at work

The $1 stamp is an illustration of a repairman fixing a public telephone - perhaps the only stamp to have ever been issued with such an image. The $1.50 stamp is a rather uninspired photo of a Skantel sign outside their office in Nevis. Again another unusual design, which has unlikely been attempted many times either before or since. But it's already a slice of history as telecommunications on the islands is now administered by a company called Flow, having previously been run by LIME (formerly Cable and Wireless).

Skantel sign, Nevis office

Saving the best stamp in the set for the souvenir sheet, the $5 issue presents a street scene with a photograph showing wall-mounted public telephone booths outside the Skantel office in St Kitts. 

Are they still there?

Skantel, St. Kitts Office