Forever Bonsai: Trident maple single
Object Details
- Description
- With these five stamps, the U.S. Postal Service celebrates the beauty of bonsai. The word “bonsai” (Japanese for “plant in a pot”) refers to the art of cultivating plants—usually trees—in trays, pots, or other containers. Favorite bonsai plants include evergreens, maples, and azaleas, but many other trees and shrubs are also suitable. A large number of bonsai are on permanent display in Washington, D.C., at the United States National Arboretum.
- One of the common styles of bonsai is shown on each of these five stamps. This stamp depicts a trident maple in informal upright style, in which the trunk bends slightly to the left or right. The plants depicted are roughly 15 to 20 inches tall.
- Although no one knows when the first bonsai was created, it is generally accepted that Buddhist monks brought the practice from China to Japan about a thousand years ago. The bonsai collection at the National Arboretum began in 1976 when the Nippon Bonsai Association in Tokyo, Japan, presented the people of the United States with 53 plants as part of the U.S. bicentennial commemoration.
- A bonsai master begins with seeds, cuttings, a naturally stunted tree, or a very young tree. Over time, he or she prunes the roots and branches, uses wire to shape and “train” the branches, and sometimes scrapes or peels bark to achieve desired effects. The plant is watered and repotted when necessary, and can live a hundred years or more.
- Art director and stamp designer Ethel Kessler worked with artist John D. Dawson on this issuance. The Bonsai stamps are being issued as Forever® stamps in self-adhesive booklets of 20 (4 of each design). Forever stamps are always equal in value to the current First-Class Mail one-ounce rate. At the time of issuance, the Bonsai stamps are being sold at a price of 45 cents each, or $9.00 per booklet.
- Credit line
- Copyright United States Postal Service. All rights reserved.
- Data Source
- National Postal Museum
- Date
- 2012
- Object number
- 2012.2025.207
- Type
- Postage Stamps
- Medium
- paper; ink
- Place
- United States of America
- See more items in
- National Postal Museum Collection
- Title
- Scott Catalogue USA 4621
- Topic
- Plants
- Asian-Pacific American Heritage
- Contemporary (1990-present)
- U.S. Stamps
- Record ID
- npm_2012.2025.207
