Traditional Clothes of Papua New Guinea - Stage 1
Papua New Guinea is known as the last frontier and is still being discovered. Despite the intrusion of the modern age, its people still practice the ways of their forefathers, in terms of active participation in their tradition and culture.
With the introduction of Christianity, we see much of it (tradition and culture) fading away as Christian ethics and values takes over.
The most notable is the change of traditional clothes to modern clothes. Not only that, religious ethics also demand decent dressing from faithful followers. Helplessly, we gradually watch our traditional clothes change hands with the modern clothes. The knowledge of methods as to how they’re made is also disappearing fast.
As we move into the 21st century, much of today’s generation have a vague or otherwise no knowledge of how their ancestors dress.
In the quest to continually preserve that tradition, Post PNG through the Philatelic Bureau, continue to assist by featuring some of the many Traditional Clothes of Papua New Guinea on stamps.
Stamp Set
K1.20 - A Man from Telefomin in Sandaun Province wearing a Traditional penis gourd.
K1.20 - A lady from Pomio in East New Britain wearing a traditional grass skirt. With the introduction of christianity, most of these
dressings have faded away.
K6.00 - Papuan ladies from Central province wearing their traditional grass skirts.
K8.00 - A Duna woman and her child wearing their traditional cloths. The woman wears grass skirt made from locally grown reeds. Covering her head and back is a type of traditional rain coat made from pandanus leaves stitched together.
RETAIL PRICE K16.40
Sheetlet
K1.20 - Mendi bride dressed in tree bark fibres and painted black before getting married.
K1.20 - Tari lady wearing grass skirt and tree bark over her back as a protection from sun and rain.
K6.00 - A typical Trobriand family. The lady wears grass skirt while the man wears a pandanus pants.
K8.00 - Mukawa ladies from Milne Bay Province wearing grass skirts made from pandanus leaves and banana leaves.
RETAIL PRICE K16.40
Souvenir Sheet
K10.00 - Two Popondetta Widows wearing Traditional Tapa cloth (made of tree bark) during a mourning over a dead relative.