Imagining Palestine in Iranian Stamps: 1980–1987

Since the 1979 Iranian Revolution, the Islamic Republic’s postage stamps have undergone a significant thematic shift to reflect the regime’s ideological and foreign policy priorities. Under the Pahlavi monarchy, stamps emphasized secular nationalism, modernization, royal imagery centred on the Shah, and national symbols rooted in pre-Islamic Persian heritage—without issuing a single stamp in support of the Palestinian cause. In contrast, the Islamic Republic has produced numerous stamps promoting the Palestinian issue, embedding it within a broader ideological framework that fuses Iranian nationalism with Islamic, revolutionary, and martyrdom narratives. As a predominantly Persian and Shia state, Iran’s Palestine-themed stamps emphasize the Islamic identity of Palestinians while downplaying their Arab ethnicity and omitting secular images. This article examines how such stamps have functioned as tools of foreign policy communication, reinforcing Iran’s image as a defender of oppressed Muslims. Focusing on stamps issued between 1980—when Palestine first appeared in Iranian philately—and 1987, just before the first intifada, this study explores how visual media have been used to construct national identity and project Iran’s ideological stance in the modern Middle East.