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- 3c Mothers of America President Franklin D. Roosevelt sketch
3c Mothers of America President Franklin D. Roosevelt sketch
Object Details
- Description
- This is Franklin Delano Roosevelt's original pencil design for Mothers of America postage stamp. Although originally intended to honor artist James Abbott McNeill Whistler, at FDR's direction the stamp as issued honored mothers on Mother's Day mail. Roosevelt inscribed the sketch with the message: "For Jim Farley—The "Original Design" of the Mothers Day Stamp by Franklin D. Roosevelt." Dated 2/16/34 FDR.
- The designer altered the painting Whistler's Mother by removing the background and the woman's feet and adding a vase of flowers. An example of the resulting stamp, USA Scott 737, (issued 1934 May 2) is attached in the lower left corner.
- References:
- Baur, Brian C. Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Stamps of the United States 1933-45. Sidney, OH: Linn’s Stamp News, 1993.
- Baur, Brian C. Franklin D. Roosevelt: The Stamp-Collecting President. Sidney, OH: Linn’s Stamp News, 1999.
- Data Source
- National Postal Museum
- Date
- 1934
- Object number
- 0.209045.11
- Artist
- Franklin Delano Roosevelt, American, 1882 - 1945
- Type
- Postage Stamps
- Medium
- paper; graphite; ink
- Dimensions
- Height x Width: 6 3/4 x 7 3/4 in. (17.15 x 19.69 cm) an additional 1 1/8 inches of paper is folded over at the top
- Place
- United States of America
- See more items in
- National Postal Museum Collection
- On View
- Currently on exhibit at the National Postal Museum
- Title
- Scott Catalogue USA 737
- Topic
- Art & Photography
- National Stamp Collection
- U.S. Stamps
- Record ID
- npm_0.209045.11
- Usage
- Usage conditions apply
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
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