These are tourist maps
with an invitation, in French, to visit Afghanistan. Rivers and towns
are indicated, but the identifications are unclear. On the first map
the red circle marks the location of Kabul, the capital. The dark
print to the West of Kabul is Herat, where Alexander the Great built a
great fortress.
On the second stamp the
red print (North) indicates Badakhshan and (South) Wakhan.
Badakhshan was once part of the
ancient Greek kingdom of Bactria. In 1859 it became a part of
Afghanistan. The Wakhan
Corridor is a long narrow panhandle that passes between Tajikistan in
the north and Pakistan in the south linking Afghanistan with the
Xinjiang region in China. Near Kabul there is a tower
identified in small print as Ghazni. There are two towers 43 meters
high which are a part of the 13th century citadel of Ghazni.
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