Zanzibar 218-221

     Arabs arrived in Oman in the 9th century B.C., and were converted to Islam in the 7th century A. D. The capital of the area was Muscat, successively occupied by the Arabs, the Portuguese and the Turks, until Ahmad ibn Sa'id forced them out in 1741 and founded the Al-Busa'id dynasty in 1744.
     The capital was moved from Muscat to Zanzibar from 1832 until 1861. After 1856 Sultan Said bin Sultan Al-Busaid died, the empire was split between two of his sons in 1861. At the time the stamp was issued in 1944 the Al-Busaid family was still in power in Oman. Sultan Qabus ibn Sa'id is the present head of state and government.