Stamps of Indonesia

In September 1948 the Netherlands East Indies was formally renamed Indonesia and contemporary stamps of the Wilhelmina series were issued with the new name overprinted. The currency of Indonesia changed to the rupiah of 100 sen in 1949 and a definitive series in this currency was released in February 1949. A numeral design was used for the lowest values (1 to 10s) while pictorial motifs showing temples, sculpture and scenery were used for the higher denominations.

The 15 and 25s stamps issued in October 1949 marked the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Universal Postal Union. The common design shows the globe and the civic arms of Berne. Indonesia became independent on 27 December 1949, when the stamps of the United States of Indonesia were adopted.

An independent republic was proclaimed in August 1945 at the time of the Japanese surrender, in defiance of the Dutch. The republicans controlled central Java and most of Sumatra and issued distinctive stamps in these areas. The Dutch controlled the rest of the islands, which they renamed Indonesia in 1948. Originally stamps were issued with an inscription ‘Fonds Kemerdekaan’ (liberation fund) and were sold at a heavy premium over postal value, but the charity inscription was subsequently erased and the stamps reissued as a definitive series.

On 27 December 1949, Indonesia, comprising the former Dutch territory of that name, together with the republican areas became an independent state in the Netherlands-Indonesian Union with the title of the United States of Indonesia (Republik Indonesia Serikat). Stamps of the Netherlands-Indies overprinted RIS (the initials of the name) were issued in January 1950. A 15s stamp celebrating the inauguration of the United States was printed in photogravure and showed the Indonesian flag.

A unitary state known as the Indonesian Republic was proclaimed in August 1950 and remained within the Netherlands-Indonesian Union until August 1954, when that union was dissolved. All stamps issued since 1950 have been inscribed ‘Republik Indonesia’. A set of five stamps was printed and issued in 1955 to mark the National Scout Jamboree.

From the mid-fifties onwards Indonesia has closely watched international events and been quick to issue stamps in support of them. Five stamps appeared in 1958 to mark International Geophysical Year. The stamps depicted a satellite encircling the globe, an allusion to the early sputnik experiments by the Soviet Union. A set of eight stamps, illustrating agricultural products was released in August – October 1960 and initiated the Indonesian policy of thematic sets issued at frequent intervals. The stamps featured oil palms, sugar cane, coffee, rubber, rice, tobacco and tea.