Botanical Congress

The International Botanical Congress (IBC) is held every six years to discuss plant sciences research and nomenclature issues. Traditionally, the country hosting the international convention issues stamps commemorating the event. These Botanical Congress developmental artworks commemorate the 11th IBC held in 1969 in Seattle, Washington. The four issued stamps represent the first US botanical stamps to feature Latin names.

Botanical Congress Issue

Fourquieria splendens (Ocotillo) concept stamp art
ISSUE Botanical Congress
MEDIUM board; gouache
ILLUSTRATOR Stanley Galli
FIRST DAY OF ISSUE August 23, 1969

The Ocotillo, a flowering plant indigenous to the Sonoran and Chihuahuan Deserts of the Southwest, is depicted in an orange desert environment with a yellow sky and a flowering stem. The final approved version continued this coloration with a yellow sky but with a more detailed and colorful desert background.

6c Cypripedium reginae (Lady’s Slipper) and Franklinia alatamaha (Franklin Tree) concept stamp art
ISSUE Botanical Congress
MEDIUM board; gouache
ILLUSTRATOR Stanley Galli
FIRST DAY OF ISSUE August 23, 1969

Found in the Southeast, the Franklin tree produces a lovely white flower with a golden-yellow center, depicted here centered against a light green background. The Lady’s Slipper flower, a wildflower native to northern North America, is highlighted in the foreground with a green scene in the background. In the final approved art, both flowers are displayed prominently in the foreground while the background has been modified.

Botanical Congress concept stamp art
ISSUE Botanical Congress
MEDIUM board; gouache
ILLUSTRATOR Stanley Galli
FIRST DAY OF ISSUE August 23, 1969

The four colorful images represent the first time flora from diverse national regions—the Southeast, Southwest, Northeast, and Northwest—were represented on US stamps. These images represent the variety of flora studied by the International Botanical Congress (IBC), and the botanical description is consistent with IBC standards. For example, the featured plants are identified by their respective Latin names.

Pseudotsuga menziesii (Douglas-fir) concept stamp art
ISSUE Botanical Congress
MEDIUM board; gouache; ink
ILLUSTRATOR Stanley Galli
FIRST DAY OF ISSUE August 23, 1969

This developmental art focuses on the pinecones and needles of the Douglas-fir, an evergreen conifer species native to western North America. Concepts included a vertical orientation with a white skyline, horizontal cones and needles, and a green skyline. The final design retained the green and used a vertical orientation for the needles and pinecone.

Botanical Congress concept stamp art
ISSUE Botanical Congress
MEDIUM board; gouache
ILLUSTRATOR Stanley Galli
FIRST DAY OF ISSUE August 23, 1969

This composite art piece consisting of four large drawings was likely used by the USPS to discuss final aspects of the stamp design, such as placement of the lettering and positioning of the individual images in a four-stamp format.