North Borneo 1 cent (1954 definitive)

I was wondering what stamp to be featured on the first post here and finally decided on this.

This stamp shows Mount Kinabalu, at that time already known as the highest peak in North Borneo. It is the highest peak in Malaysia and of the Malay Archipelago at a height of 4095 metres. The area around the mountain (Taman Kinabalu) was designated as a national park in 1964 and was accorded UNESCO World Heritage Site status in 2000. It is Malaysia's first World Heritage Site and still remains it's largest.

Being such a prominent peak, even the name of the mountain is shrouded in mystery. The local people of the Kadazan-Dusun tribe believe the name of the mountain originated from "Aki Nabalu", which means "the revered place of the dead". They believe that the spirits of the departed reside at the mountain.

Another popular theory of the origin of the name "Kinabalu" is "Cina Balu", which means chinese widow. Legend says of a Chinese prince who was stranded on Borneo and eventually married a local lady. Soon afterwards, he left for China, never to return. His heartbroken wife wandered to the mountains and waited eagerly for his ship to return. The legend also says that she eventually turned into stone, forever to remain on the mountain. Some believe that the stone in question is St. John's peak, which resembles a human head or skull at certain angles.