Sisal, with the botanical name Agave sisalana, is a species of flowering plant native to southern Mexico but widely cultivated and naturalized in many other countries. It yields a stiff fibre used in making rope and various other products. The term sisal may refer either to the plant’s common name or the fibre, depending on the context. The sisal fibre is traditionally used for rope and twine, and has many other uses, including paper, cloth, footwear, hats, bags, carpets, geotextiles, and dartboards.
In the 19th century, sisal cultivation spread to Florida and the Caribbean islands. In 1891, it was widely reported that the entire island of Mayaguana, an easternmost island and district of the Bahamas, had been sold to a single buyer – Bahamas Governor, Sir Ambrose Shea (1815–1905). the Island became a giant sisal plantation.
Joseph Chamberlain, father of British Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain, bought the land in the Bahamas to start a sisal plantation. Neville came to the Bahamas for six years to cultivate the land and grow sisal. However, they didn’t cultivate a single sisal plant on Mayaguana. A surveyor decided Andros was better. Chamberlain bought more land, some 10,000 acres in Andros. After several years, their family sisal venture lost £50,000 in the end.
Commercial farming of sisal, like cotton and pineapples, has had little success.
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1954 Definitive Series – 2/- Native Product – Sisal
1964 Definitive Series (New Constitution) – 2/- Native Product – Sisal
