Madonna and Child on Stamps
Madonna and Child on Stamps
The first stamp commemorating Christmas was issued on Dec. 7, 1898, in Canada, featuring a map of the British Empire and the words “Xmas 1898.” Subsequent Christmas stamps from around the world have been decidedly more festive. The Virgin Mary first appeared on a stamp issued in Bavaria on Feb. 14, 1920, and featured a Marian column in Munich’s Marienplatz. The Nativity, now a common feature on Christmas stamps from around the world, was first depicted on a stamp issued on June 10, 1936, in Estonia.
The Nativity is frequently featured on stamps in diverse cultural representations. A small sampling of the approximately 9,000 Marian postage stamps in the collection is digitized and available in eCommons, the University’s open-access institutional repository.1) Mother and Child (Scott title)
Scott No. 658
Release date: Dec. 12, 1996
Malawi
2) European Space Agency Giotto and the Three Magi (Scott title)
Based on artwork by Giotto di Bondone, c. 1267-1337
Scott No. 2975
Release date: Feb. 14, 1986
Hungary
3) Island Mother and Child (Scott title)
Scott No. 578
Release date: Dec. 2, 1991
Kiribati
4) Indian Mother with Child (Scott title)
Artwork by Carlos Zeiter
Scott No. 633
Release date: Dec. 23, 1976
Peru