Portraits of the American Indian on new stamps

The Marshall Islands Postal Service has issued 12 new stamps featuring Portraits of the American Indian.

Iroquois ... Seminole ... Apache ... Sioux ... Cheyenne ... these are just a few of the Native American tribes and nations that developed their own cultures and unique ways of life long before the white man discovered the "New World."

In the early 1800s, there were probably around 300,000 Indians and 30 distinct tribes in what is now the western United States. The many histories of the American Indian are as rich and varied as the histories of the many different peoples who later inhabited the North American continent.

Indian art, Indian values, reverence for nature, and Indian culture influence America even today, and these treasures provide a rich heritage for all Americans to share. Though the passage of time has changed and blended many of the old traditional styles, some still endure today as the most sacred of tribal secrets.