Angola - Vasco Da Gama

A colony of Portugal since the 1500s, Angola was part of the Portuguese mail service for centuries. The name Angola was simply inserted on Potuguese stamps. Angola's first stamps date from 1870 depicting the Portuguese crown in a design then common to all Portuguese colonies. A definitive series featuring nstive birds in 1959 and native animals in 1963 were issued - notable as they were the first early stamps to be printed in full colour.