PhlPost issues special stamp featuring watchtowers

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Postal Corp. (PhlPost) recently issued the first quarter topical special stamp featuring Philippine watchtowers embellished with sand.

“This is a tactile stamp because when you touch the actual image of the watchtower, you will be able to feel the sand-like texture,” said Ma. Elenita San Diego, chief of PhlPost’s Post Shop, Philately and Museum Division. 

The PhlPost produced 90,000 copies of the watchtower stamp, which will be sold at P25 each.  The special stamp features four watchtowers found in Boljoon, Cebu; Bantay, Ilocos Sur; Samboan, Cebu; and Tabaco, Albay.   The watchtower in Boljoon, Cebu was built around the late 1700s. It is separated from a church by a narrow corridor. The unadorned bell tower of Boljoon looks out to sea. The watchtower in Bantay, Ilocos Sur was erected in the 1790s. Bantay town stands beside the Abra River that flows from the Cordillera to the Luzon Sea. Through this waterway, commerce between mountain and sea was facilitated. It serves both an ecclesiastical and military function. The bell tower has a panoramic view of Abra River, the town of San Vicente, and Vigan City.

On the other hand, the watchtower in Samboan, Cebu faces Tañon Strait and is located on a promontory accessed through a 157-step stone stairway popularly called Jacob’s ladder. This watchtower is believed to be the handiwork of Fr. Toribio Gerzon in 1878. Samboan was under the secular clergy.

The church bell tower in Tabaco, Albay, meanwhile, was considered an efficient warning device against attacks from pirates. Souvenir sheets and official first day covers of the watchtower stamp have been made available to the public beginning March 28 at the Post Shop, Philately and Museum Division of Manila Central Post Office.

These were printed by Amstar Co. Inc.