A new stamp series from Japan will depict natural items from a scientific point of view. The first pane of 10 stamps shows carefully detailed flower illustrations dating back three centuries.
By Michael Baadke
Japan Post’s first issue in its Record of Nature stamp series features delicate illustrations of flowers crafted during the early years of the country’s Edo period (1603-1868).
The small pane of 10 stamps issued Jan. 22 showcases artwork by Konoe Iehiro (1667-1736), a noble in the imperial court who was the 21st head of the Konoe household.
The stamp pane is described by Japan Post as issue No. 1 in the new Record of Nature stamp series.
The series will present artwork with a scientific perspective to depict items of natural origin.
Rika Hoshiyama designed the first stamp pane, which was created in consultation with Koichi Igarashi of the Osaka University of Arts.
The stamps reproduce artwork from the three-volume Makoto Hanaki, Japan’s earliest botanical pictorial book.
Each stamp is denominated 84 yen, the price of mailing a standard-size domestic letter weighing up to 25 grams (about 0.88 ounces).
Two million panes of 10 (20 million stamps) were printed by six-color offset. Each stamp measures approximately 1 inch by 1.2 inches (25.5 millimeters by 30mm). The pane measures roughly 6.3 inches by 3.4 inches (160mm by 86mm).
The stamps are self-adhesive, arranged in two horizontal rows of five.
In a news release announcing the issue, Japan Post described each of the flowers depicted on the individual stamps.
CREDIT the Source: Floral art introduces Japan’s new Record of Nature series