1960 Christmas
| | Cat. |
Mint Unhinged |
Mint Hinged |
Fine Used |
2d |
Nativity - 'The Adoration of the Shepherds' by Rembrandt |
117a |
$0.55 |
|
$0.45 |
|
$0.45 |
|
| |
|
First Day Cover - 1 November 1960 |
117b |
|
|
|
|
$5.40 |
|
| ... 2d (117a) |
In 1959 the National Council of Churches and the Bishop of Christchurch
requested a special Christmas stamp issue. Approval was given for the
following year and the decision was made to print a reproduction of
'The Adoration of the Shepherds' by Rembrandt. Rather than print on
white paper, the stamp was printed on toned paper to produce a more
authentic rendering of the old master.
New Zealand was one of the
first countries to print a special Christmas stamp and concerns were
expressed in Parliament that this might lower the prestige of New Zealand
in the eyes of philatelists. There was also concern that postmarking the
stamps might be considered 'defacement' of a Christian icon.
However, the issue proved very popular and over 20 million copies of the
stamp were produced.
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This page was last updated on 12 Apr 2021
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