Norvic Philatelics - GB New Stamps and Special Postmarks
The Christmas stamps for 2005 will consist of a set of 6 stamps, plus a miniature sheet, stamp booklets and a Smilers Sheet.
In a move which will be welcomed not only in the United Kingdom but by Christians around the world Royal Mail's 2005 Christmas stamps return to a religious theme. But, always pushing the boundaries of innovation, the images of the Madonna and Child are shown as portrayed by different cultures, including those of Haiti, India, North American Indian, Australian Aboriginal, and European.
It has been four years since Royal Mail last issued a non-secular set of stamps and it is now their intention to issue secular and non-secular Christmas stamps on alternate years. This year the theme of the issue is the enduring image of the Madonna and Child and designer Irene Von Treskow has selected a series of images that show interpretations of the image from different cultures around the world. Irene von Treskow is perhaps uniquely qualified to bring together these images, not only is she an award-winning designer and illustrator, she has been an Anglican priest since 1996.
About the stamps
2nd Class – The Black Madonna and Child was painted by an unknown
Haitian artist.
1st Class – Madonna and Child by Marianne Stokes. Painted in
Ragusa, Italy, the model for the Holy mother was a local village girl.
This work was one of many based on spiritual themes by Marianne Stokes and
was completed in
around 1907-1908. Stokes, nee Preindlsberger (1855-1927), was born in
Austria and after studying in Germany and France, came to England where
she married fellow artist Adrian Stokes.
42p - The Virgin Mary with the Infant Christ European school colour
lithograph, artist unknown circa 1900, private collection
60p - Choctaw Virgin Mother and Child, by Fr. John B. Giuliani. Fr.
Giuliani was born into a family of emigrants, originally from a poor
agricultural town near Naples, Italy. While at the Pratt School of Art in
New York City, he went through a conversion experience and decided then to
enter St. John Seminary in Brighton, Massachusetts, and was ordained in
1960.
he studied icon painting under a master in the Russian Orthodox style in
New York in 1989, before he began to adapt the technique to a Native
American motif. The Choctaws were the first of the “Five Civilized
Tribes”; In this Choctaw image of the Virgin Mother, She wears a one piece
cotton dress
and ruffled aprons, both finely decorated with appliqué worked in
contrasting colours; an ornamental hair comb, glass bead necklaces and
elaborate native-made silver earrings. The Child wears a native-made shirt
embellished with finely cut and stitched appliqué. Together, Mother and
Child stand before a screen of indigenous evergreens.
68p - Madonna and the Infant Jesus . This is a Mughal painting
from India dating from around 1620 to 1630 AD. The painting belongs to the
collection of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (formerly
the Prince of Wales Museum) Mumbai, India.
£1.12 - Come let us adore Him This is a painting in coloured sand by
Dianne Tchumut from the Merrepen Arts Aboriginal Corporation of
Northern Australia.
Technical details:
The 32x30mm stamps and 115x105mm miniature sheet are printed in gravure by
De La Rue. The stamps are perforated 14½x14, die-cut on the self-adhesive
sheets. An invisible date 2005 is 'reversed out' of the phosphor
at the bottom left of each stamp (except the 2nd class, where it is just
above the value), the first time this has been done on British stamps.
The 2005 Christmas Smilers sheet will not contain the stamps shown here,
but the 2001 1st & 2nd class robins, previously issued as Smilers
in 2003.
For the 2005 Christmas Robins Smilers, please click
here.
Note these images show actual stamps on actual covers and we have
added the postmarks digitally.
We have this FDC with the set of 6 stamps and postmarks W9823 and S9842
- Price £9.25.
The Miniature Sheet cover is available with postmark M9821 Price £9.25.
Also available:
Post Office FDC with a full set or miniature sheet - £5.25
(various postmarks available in small numbers.)
Set of 6 stamps or miniature sheet unused or VFU - £4.25
Set of unused postcards reproducing the stamps (PHQ cards) - £2.75
Special postmarks available on the Day of Issue are shown below: these postmarks cannot be obtained from the PO after 1 November.
Ref FD525 Official Bureau postmark |
Ref FD518 Official Bethlehem postmark |
Ref FD518N Official Bethlehem non-pictorial postmark in Welsh and English |
Ref N9838 Madonna and Child, York |
Ref W9844 Madonna and Child, Christchurch, Newport |
Ref S9842 Madonna and Child, Holytown, Motherwell |
Ref L9829 1300 Years of Christian worship, Wells Somerset |
Ref L9833 Shepherdswell, Dover |
Ref N9839 Merry Christmas from York Minster |
Ref L9830 2005 Christmas, Canterbury |
Ref L9832 St Katherine's Way, London E1 |
Ref S9841 Maryhill, Isle of Lewis |
Ref L9819 Merry Christmas to All, North Pole Road, London W10 |
Ref M9837 Stableford, Newcastle |
Ref W9823 Madonna and child, Bethlehem, Llandeilo |
Ref W9846 Christmas 2005, Bethlehem, Llandeilo |
Ref M9821 Madonna and child, Mary Street, Birmingham |
Ref W9845 Bethlehem, Llandeilo |
<<<< Ref W9843 Wisemans Bridge, Narberth |
<<<< Ref W9847 Bethlehem, Llandeilo |
<<<< Ref M9862 Royal Mail Christmas Stamps Wolverhampton Art Gallery. (Location of original painting on 1st class stamp) |
This page updated 10 December 2005
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January 11 Farm Animals |
February 8 British Journey - South West England 24 Jane Eyre & Brontes prestige book |
March 15 Magic Circle Centenary 22 Wilding Castles Miniature Sheet |
April 5 New definitives 8 Royal Wedding 21 World Heritage Sites 26 Definitive reprints |
May 10 Definitive reprints |
June 7 Trooping the Colour 21 Smilers sheet - Flag stamp, White Ensign 21 Definitive reprints |
July 5 End of World War II 19 British Motorcycles |
August 5 London 2012 Olympics 23 Europa - Gastronomy |
September 22 Independent Television 50th Anniversary |
October 4 Small greetings definitives & Smilers 6 Cricket Winners: Ashes MS 18 Battle of Trafalgar |
November 1 Christmas Christmas Robins Smilers Sheet |
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