Stamps and stamp collecting, often regarded as the king of hobbies, but what makes stamps so seductive that millions of people around the world collect them. Queen Elizabeth II, Charlie Chaplin, Amelia Earhart and Franklin D. Roosevelt were all avid stamp collectors according to the Smithsonian National Postal Museum. Even the tiny principality of Monaco has its very own Museum of Philately and Coinage. One of the great draws of stamps is their role as an educational tool. You can discover famous people or not so famous people from postage stamps. The names of the national birds, trees and flowers of the countries of the world are often colorful subjects found on a stamp. Historical events and food are popular items. France recently brought out its baguette stamp which actually smells like a fresh loaf of bread. So speaking of stamps, yesterday the U.S. Postal Service released America Vistas, two new Presorted Standard stamps, at the San Diego Stamp Show. These two stamps, intended for use by business mail users, evoke the beauty, variety and vastness of the natural spaces of The United States.

America Vista Stamp Depicting a Mountain. Courtesy The United States Postal Service. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette

Greg Breeding, an art director for USPS (The United States Postal Service), designed the stamps using art from DKNG Studios. “For Presorted Standard stamps, we like to showcase broadly appealing imagery from across America,” says Breeding. “These two paintings have a kind of Americana feel by displaying both mountains and the shore, both iconic to the American landscape. Because of their unique design style and use of color, the images come off as very fresh and engaging.” One stamp depicts a sandy shoreline at sunset, with a lone sailboat in the distance. The other is a nighttime mountain scene, featuring a small, secluded cabin overlooking a lake. The sweeping sky filling the upper half of the beach scene matches the lake in the bottom half of the mountain scene. The stamps share a horizon line at a halfway point in each design, Customers may purchase stamps and other philatelic products through the Postal Store at usps.com/shopstamps, by calling 844-737-7826, by mail through USA Philatelic or at Post Office locations nationwide.
Special to The Gourmet Gazette