Italian K2 conquest marked: 50th anniversary celebrated with new stamp

A new stamp is to be issued on 31st July in order to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the first successful attempt to reach the summit of K2, the world’s second highest mountain.

Italian climbers Lino Lacedelli and Achille Compagnoni completed their ascent at 6pm on 31st July, 1954 following years of planning. Expedition leader Ardito Desio, the Italian Alpine Club, the Italian National Research Council, the National Olympic Committee and the then Prime Minister Alcide De Gasperi all worked together to make the achievement possible.

The stamp measures 30 x 40mm and will have a face value of 65 cents.

GIBBONSSTAMPMONTHLY.COM
July 27, 2004

James Baldwin tribute: USPS dedicates 20th stamp in Literary Arts series

Well-known author James Baldwin, whose works explore race relations, as well as the arts and human relationships, was honored today when the U.S. Postal Service dedicated a new commemorative postage stamp in its Literary Arts stamp series. The ceremony was held in the Langston Hughes Auditorium of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, New York, NY.

"His writings are a demonstration of his love for all of us. Baldwin wrote with great honesty and passion. You can almost feel his need to explore the hard truths of our society," said Henry Pankey, vice president, Emergency Preparedness, U.S. Postal Service, who dedicated the stamp. "Sometimes, it almost hurts to read his poignant poems, essays, books and plays."

Stamp artist Thomas Blackshear II based his portrait of Baldwin on a black-and-white photograph taken around 1960, probably in New York. The stamp background is evocative of Baldwin's novel "Go Tell It on the Mountain," set in Harlem, and is based on a photograph by Berenice Abbot taken in Harlem in 1938.

USPS.COM
July 23, 2004

Jamaica to honor designer Ralph Lauren

First his name was emblazoned on the back of jeans, now Ralph Lauren is getting his own postage stamp in Jamaica.

The Caribbean island is honoring the American fashion mogul with a commemorative stamp in recognition of his contributions to the country's tourism industry.

Lauren is a shareholder of the exclusive Round Hill resort in the seaside town of Montego Bay and is active in several Jamaican charities.

The stamps will be available in September in Jamaica and at authorized vendors worldwide at a cost of $6 per sheet, Postmaster General Blossom O'Meally-Nelson said Tuesday.

Other famous figures honored with their own Jamaican stamp include Winston Churchill, Princess Diana and Bob Marley.

TUSCALOOSANEWS
July 21, 2004

Austria to honour Schwarzenegger

Hollywood actor-turned-Californian governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is to be honoured in his home country of Austria with a birthday stamp.

The Austrian post office has announced plans to issue a stamp celebrating the Terminator star on July 30, Mr Schwarzenegger's 57th birthday.

The stamp is part of a special series entitled "Austrians living abroad".

Mr Schwarzenegger returned to Austria in his official capacity last week to attend the funeral of President Klestil.

BBC
July 19, 2004

R. Buckminster Fuller commemorative postage stamp issued by U.S. Postal Service

A commemorative postage stamp honoring the legendary American inventor, architect, engineer, designer, geometrician, cartographer and philosopher R. Buckminster Fuller was issued on July 12 - on his birthday - at Stanford University, where his papers are archived.

The stamp artwork is a painting of Fuller by Boris Artzybasheff (1899-1965).

The painting, which originally appeared on the cover of Time magazine on Jan. 10, 1964, depicts Fuller's head in the pattern of a geodesic dome. Geodesic domes and a number of his other inventions surround Fuller, including the Dymaxion Car, the 4D Apartment House and several objects and models that reflect the geometric and structural principles he discovered.

USPS.COM
July 14, 2004

James Baldwin to be commemorated with stamp

American author James Baldwin will be honored with a new commemorative postage stamp to be issued by the U.S. Postal Service on July 23 in New York.

Baldwin's essays, novels, plays, short stories and poems explore various subjects, including race relations, the arts and human relationships, while always showing their author's strong moral conscience. His work made him a leading intellectual figure during the years of the civil rights movement in America.

The 40mm x 25mm stamp is the 20th release in the Literary Arts series and has been designed by Thomas Blackshear II. Based upon a picture of Baldwin from around 1960, the background depicts a scene from Baldwin’s first novel, "Go Tell It on the Mountain," which is set in Harlem, the area of New York where the author was born and raised.

USPS.COM
July 13, 2004

Hungarian Olympic Stamps: another Athens issue on the way

Hungary Post are to release three Olympic stamps in advance of this summer’s Olympic Games in Athens. Designed using a Greek style, the stamps depict rowers, ball players and runners.

The Hungarian Olympic team, made up of over 200 athletes, are hoping to improve upon their performance at the 2000 Sydney Games where they claimed 17 medals and are aiming to finish among the top 15 countries.

400,000 of the stamps will be issued on 13th July, each measuring 45 x 38.3 mm.

GIBBONSSTAMPMONTHLY.COM
July 10, 2004

Stamp honors Wilma Rudolph

Olympian and former Tennessee State University track star Wilma Rudolph will be honored with a U.S. postage stamp with her likeness July 14 in Sacramento, Cal.

Rudolph, who was one of the famous TSU Tigerbelles, was the first female track athlete to win three gold medals in 1960 at the Rome Olympics.

A 1963 graduate of TSU, she received the Babe Dedrickson Zaharris Trophy for outstanding Olympic performance, was twice named Associated Press Woman Athlete of the Year and was the first female to win the James E. Sullivan Award for the top American amateur athlete.

Originally from Clarksville, Rudolph died in 1994 at her home in Brentwood.

The Rudolph stamp is the fifth in the Distinguished Americans series.

NASHVILLECITYPAPER
July 07, 2004

China to destroy US$365m of stamps

The State Postal Bureau of China began the destruction of 3 billion yuan (around US$365 million) of stamps on Friday in an attempt to boost the country’s flagging philatelic market.

Special and commemorative stamps released between 1992 and 2001 will be minced over a two month period at the Beijing Postage Stamp Printing Bureau.

Liu Jianhui, director of Postage and Stamp Management Department said that the oversupply of these stamps had led to the depression in the market and that they currently account for 94 percent of all the inventories of provincial post offices.

GIBBONSSTAMPMONTHLY.COM
July 05, 2004

150th Anniversary of Launch of USS Constellation Celebrated with New U.S. Postage Stamp

Thunderous cannon fire from the U.S. Navy's last all-sail sloop-of-war reverberated through Baltimore's Inner Harbor as the U.S. Postal Service commemorated the 150th anniversary of the USS Constellation's launch by dedicating a commemorative postage stamp in its honor.

The first-day-of-issue dedication ceremony took place at the Inner Harbor Amphitheater near the 186-foot ship's berth and marked the beginning of a five-day tall ship "Sailabration" that culminates July 4 with a harbor-wide fireworks display.

The stamp art is a hand engraving based on a photograph, believed to date to 1893, in the collection of the U.S. Naval Historical Center.

Ships scheduled to showcase the Sailabration include these tall ships: Bluenose II, 181' Nova Scotian; Capitan Miranda, 205' Uruguayan Navy training; Cisne Branco, 257' Brazilian Navy training; Cuauhtemoc, 270' Mexican Navy training; Mircea, 269' Romanian Navy training; Pride of Baltimore II, 170' Maryland Goodwill Ambassador; and Sagres, 296' Portuguese Navy training.

The USS Constellation depicted on the stamp, as the last Civil War-era naval vessel still afloat, was built at the Gosport Navy Yard (now the Norfolk, VA, Naval Shipyard) and launched on August 26, 1854. The Constellation actively served the nation for nearly 100 years. Today the ship is a floating museum anchored in Baltimore's Inner Harbor.

USPS.COM
July 02, 2004

Original US stamps celebrate birthday

The 1st July sees the 157th anniversary of the release of the first postage stamps by the US Postal Service.

First made available in 1847, the five cent stamp featured Benjamin Franklin (the first Postmaster General of the United States) whilst the 10 cent stamp depicted George Washington.

The decision was taken to introduce postage stamps because the process in place at the time was deemed too expensive and complicated for the American public. An act was passed on 3rd March 1847 in order put an end to this:

"And be it further enacted, that to facilitate the transportation of letters by mail, the Postmaster-General be authorized to prepare postage stamps, which when attached to any letter or packet, shall be evidence of prepayment of the postage chargeable on such letter."

The date of 1st July was set for the first stamps to come into use, however production problems meant that the stamps were available from just one Post Office – New York City. Congressman Harvey Shaw is said to have been the first person to purchase the stamps, he bought a 5c for himself and a 10c for the Governor of Connecticut.

The earliest known use of the 1847 issue is believed to be 2nd July, 1847. In 1990 a cover was found featuring two 10c stamps and was later auctioned off for over $100,000.

GIBBONSSTAMPMONTHLY.COM
July 01, 2004