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  • 41c "Madonna of the Carnation" single
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41c "Madonna of the Carnation" single

Object Details

Description
On October 25, 2007, in New York, New York, the Postal Service issued traditional and contemporary Christmas stamps in honor of the holiday season.
The contemporary stamp, the 41-cent Holiday Knits stamps in four designs, were designed by Carl T. Herrman of Carlsbad, California. In celebration of the winter holiday season, the four stamps feature classic Christmas-time imagery designed and machine-knitted by nationally known illustrator Nancy Stahl of New York, New York. Inspired by traditional Norwegian sweaters and knitted Christmas stockings, Stahl decided on "something cozy" for the holiday stamp issuance -- a dignified stag, a snow-dappled evergreen tree, a perky snowman sporting a top hat, and a whimsical teddy bear.
The traditional stamp, the 41-cent Madonna of the Carnation stamp, was issued in a pressure-sensitive adhesive double-sided book of twenty stamps. Designed by Richard Sheaff of Sottsdale, Arizona, the stamp reproduces an oil-on-panel painting entitled "The Madonna of the Carnation" by Milanese painter Bernardino Luini (circa 1480-1532). Dating to around 1515, the painting is now part of the Samuel H. Kress Collection at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. The stamp art is considered a detail of the painting because the original photograph was slightly cropped on all four sides to fit the stamp format.
Reference:
Postal Bulletin (September 27, 2007).
mint
Credit line
Copyright United States Postal Service. All rights reserved.
Data Source
National Postal Museum
Date
October 25, 2007
Object number
2008.2005.122
Type
Postage Stamps
Medium
paper; ink (multicolored)/ lithographed
Place
United States of America
See more items in
National Postal Museum Collection
Title
Scott Catalogue USA 4206
Topic
Holidays & Celebrations
Contemporary (1990-present)
Art & Photography
U.S. Stamps
Record ID
npm_2008.2005.122
Usage
Usage conditions apply
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/hm8b6989456-cbf8-4777-a2fd-0269b2bbca3e
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
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IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
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HomeSmithsonian National Postal Museum

Visit »

Open daily 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Admission is always free!

2 Massachusetts Ave., N.E.
Washington, DC 20002

The museum's main entrance is located on the corner of First Street and Massachusetts Avenue NE. Other entrances have variable hours.

street map of Postal museum

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