Mayotte is one of those countries that doesn’t quite fit in… it is not exactly a French Colony and not exactly part of the Comoro Islands.
But as far as stamp collectors are concerned, Mayotte is fascinating.
Geographically, Mayotte is indeed one of the Comoro Islands, located in the Indian Ocean off the east coast of Africa near Madagascar.
The first Mayotte stamps were members of the classic French Colonial Navigation and Commerce series, released in 1892. These stamps were surcharged with new values in 1912, and this set was used not only in Mayotte but in the Comoro Islands and in nearby Madagascar.
Then the drought of Mayotte stamps began, a philatelic drought that dragged on for 85 years. In 1997, France Marianne issues were overprinted, and original Mayotte stamps were put on sale.
Why did Mayotte go for 85 years without its own stamps? Mayotte’s political status is murky. It is technically an overseas department of France, but is aligned, in a bit of an unclear fashion, with the Comoro islands. After the 1912 surcharges Mayotte used Madagascar issues. The first Comoro stamps appeared in
Mayotte is an Islamic country. Its people speak a Swahili dialect and French. The island produces coffee, vanilla and shrimp, and is plagued with high unemployment rates.
But its contemporary stamps are well designed and issued in relatively small quantities. I try to keep Mayotte stamps in stock, so please visit my store to see what is available… or browse to see what has been newly listed that may be of interest.
