Postage stamps and postal history of Zanzibar Postage stamps and postal history of Zanzibar This is a survey of the postage stamps and postal history of Zanzibar. Zanzibar is a semi-autonomous part of the United Republic of Tanzania, in East Africa. It comprises most of the Zanzibar Archipelago in the Indian Ocean. The islands were once governed by the Zanzibar Sultanate, a sovereign state with a long trading history within the Arab world. In 1964 it united with Tanganyika to form Tanzania. Any Indian stamps or covers used in Zanzibar between 1854 and 1876 are rare. A post office under Indian administration provided postal services from late
Wildlife of Zanzibar Island), to the northwest of Stone Town, has coral rag forests. It is home to the giant tortoises called "changuu" in Kishwahili language, from which the island gets its name. The island is approachable by boat from Forodhani, the main port of Zanzibar. In the past, Arab slave traders used this island to keep troublesome slaves of the African mainland for auctioning in Zanzibar’s slave market. Even though it is called a Prison Island, in fact there was no prison at any time but only a yellow fever quarantine camp or slave transit camp existed here. A trail behind this