Make Your Own Personalised Stamps And Discover Bhutan’s Postal History At The Postal Museum
The Bhutan Postal Museum in Thimphu is also a major tourist attraction.
(Source: Michael Buckley)
By Staff Reporter | Daily Bhutan
Officially opened on 7 November 2015, the Bhutan Postal Museum narrates the Kingdom’s evolution of communication, transportation and postal services.
Located at the General Post Office building in the capital, Thimphu, it was also established to celebrate the 60th birth anniversary of the Fourth Druk Gyalpo - His Majesty the King Jigme Singye Wangchuck.
The Bhutan Postal Museum serves to tell the story of Bhutan’s progress and development over the past few decades, especially in the fields of communications and its postal system.
Brief history of postal services in Bhutan
Bhutan launched its postal system and produced its first postage stamps in 1962, as it opened its first post office in Phuentsholing, a small town in the south that borders India.
Bhutan Post designs its own postage stamps in-house. The themes are proposed by a Bhutanese advisory committee, which balances national interests with international appeal.
Print your own personalised stamp at the Bhutan Postal Museum
The Bhutan Postal Museum in Thimphu is also a major tourist attraction. At the museum shop, tourists are not only able to purchase Bhutanese stamps, but they can also produce personalised stamps featuring their portraits set against Bhutan’s iconic Tiger’s Nest Monastery (Taktsang).
Photo: A nomad on the loose
As the little stamps are printed out, visitors can choose the postcards on sale at the counter and post the newly minted stamp on each postcard.
Depending on the destination, the postcard with the personalised stamp actually works and will be delivered to the specified address. This is a very popular and unique form of souvenir for many tourists.
Regarded as Bhutan’s ‘little ambassadors’, visitors will be amazed by the rich and interesting array of stamps on display.
The museum showcases:
- the progress of postal services and to a certain extent, the communications system in Bhutan
- Bhutan’s rare and unique stamps issued over the years
- The Kingdom’s modes of communication during the pre-postal era and the stories of its legendary messengers
- artefacts of direct relevance to the postal services, especially those that can help to tell Bhutan’s story effectively.
View some of Bhutan's fascinating stamps.
Source: Bhutan Post
The museum comprises five galleries, each with a theme as follows:
Gallery I
Also known as the repositionable gallery, this gallery’s exhibits will change according to special occasions in Bhutan as well as its stamp releases. It currently pays tribute to His Majesty the Fourth Druk Gyalpo.
Gallery II
It showcases the pre–postal era of Bhutan and tells stories of how communication took place between the Kings and its subjects, between officialdom and how communities from one region communicated with those from other regions, as Bhutan is landlocked and its mountainous population sparsely populated.
Gallery III
It focuses on the advent of the postal system in the country and how it has changed over time. It simultaneously focuses on telegraphy, wireless and telephones and their evolution to the age of Internet and smartphones.
Gallery IV
It exhibits Bhutan’s rich assortment of breitling replica stamps and help promote Bhutan’s rich cultural, traditional and heritage values. It also helps educate Bhutanese society on the merits of philately.
Gallery V
This is the interactive area where activities and programmes will be designed to educate school children and guests.
There is also an area designated for multimedia, where documentaries related to Bhutan’s postal system are screened.
Opening Hours:
9:00am – 5:00pm in the summer
9:00am – 4:00pm in winter and during Drubchoe and Tshechu (Festival)
The museum is closed on Sundays
Museum Cafe: Located at the entrance of the museum, the café serves coffee, tea, soft drink and snacks.
Phone: +975-322281
Website: www.bhutanpost.bt
