Papua New Guinea - Traditional Clothes 2012

Technical Details:

Issue Date: 05 September 2012
Stamp Size: 28.45mm x 42.58mm
Denomination:  K1.20, K1.20, K6.00 & K8.00; Sheetlet; K16.40; Souvenir Sheet; K10.00
Quantity Printed: 150, 000 Stamps
Sheet Contents: 25 Stamps
Format: Vertical
Perforation: 2mm
Colours: 4 Colour Process
Paper: 102 gsm
Gum: Unwatered mark, PVA Gummed
Printing Technique: Multi Colour Offset Lithography
Designer: Billy John telek, Post PNG Philatelic Production
Printer: Southern Colour Print Ltd, NZ

TRADITIONAL CLOTHES OF PAPUA NEW GUINEA:

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:  
Papua New Guinean Kina 1.20 - A Man from Telefomin in Sandaun Province wearing a Traditional penis gourd.  
Papua New Guinean Kina 1.20 - 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.
Papua New Guinean Kina 6.00 - Papuan ladies from Central province wearing their traditional grass skirts.  
Papua New Guinean Kina 8.00 - A Duna woman and her child wearing their tradional 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. 

Souvenir Sheet:  
Papua New Guinean Kina 10.00 - Two Popondetta Widows wearing Traditional Tapa cloth (made of tree bark) during a mourning over a dead relative. 

Souvenir Sheetlet: 
Papua New Guinean Kina 1.20 - Mendi bride dressed in tree bark fibres and painted black before getting married.
Papua New Guinean Kina 1.20 - Tari lady wearing grass skirt and tree bark over her back as a protection from sun and rain. 
Papua New Guinean Kina 6.00 - A typical Trobriand family. The lady wears grass skirt while the man wears a pandanus pants. 
Papua New Guinean Kina 8.00 - Mukawa ladies from Milne Bay Province wearing grass skirts made from pandanus leaves and banana leaves.