Blue Penny Museum, Port Louis (must see)

The Blue Penny Museum is a museum that offers a unique insight into the history and art of Mauritius. It opened its doors to the public in November 2001 and was founded by The Mauritius Commercial Bank.

The museum is dedicated to the world-famous one-penny and two-pence stamps of 1847, the blue and red penny stamps. These stamps are considered a national treasure and are among the rarest stamps in the world. In 1993, they were purchased for $2,000,000 by a consortium of Mauritian enterprises headed by The Mauritius Commercial Bank and brought back to Mauritius after almost 150 years. For conservation purposes, the originals are illuminated only temporarily, with most of the time only copies on display.

The Blue Penny Museum is not limited to stamps, but it offers a wider range of exhibits. Visitors can explore the history of the island's exploration, settlement and colonial period, and even take a detour into the Paul and Virginie story. The museum's collection includes antique maps, engravings from different periods in history, and photographs. On the ground floor, visitors can see the country's most famous work of art, a superbly lifelike statue of Paul and Virginia, created in 1881 by Prosper d'Épinay.

Central to the museum's collection are the two rarest stamps, the blue two-pence and the red one-penny 'Post Office' stamps issued in 1847. To preserve the colors, they are only lit up for 10 minutes at a time, every hour, at 20 minutes past the hour. The museum offers a fascinating and in-depth look at the history and art of Mauritius.