The history of mail and postage stamps of Sao Tome and Principe, a small state on the islands of the same name in the Gulf of Guinea off the west coast of Africa with its capital in Sao Tome, can be divided into two stages: the period of the Portuguese colony until 1975 and the period of the independent Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe. -Tome and Principe since July 12, 1975. Sao Tome and Principe has been a member of the Universal Postal Union since 1977.