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USPS partners with Japan Post for new stamp series
In honor of a historic exchange between the United States and Japan, the U.S. Postal Service is partnering with Japan's courier service, Japan Post, to release a new stamp series titled Gifts of Friendship.
The stamps are in commemoration of two exchanges between the two nations. The first exchange occurred on March 27, 1912 in Washington D.C., when first lady Helen Herron Taft and the wife of Japan's ambassador, Viscountess Chinda, planted two of the 3,020 cherry trees Tokyo Mayor Yukio Ozaki sent over. Three years later, President William Howard Taft repaid this gift by sending 50 flowering dogwood trees to Japan in 1915.
The Forever stamp collection is being released on the centennial of Taft's gesture: April 10, 2015.
Stamp artist Paul Rogers teamed with designer William Gicker to create the collection. Junko Kaifuchi illustrated the Japan Post stamps.
Stamps full of beautiful colors
The four stamp designs depict the trees in full blossom by nearby historic landmarks, two in the U.S. and two in Japan.
In one stamp, bright cherry trees are in the foreground of the Lincoln Memorial, while the other stamp showcases vibrant, colorful dogwood trees surround the U.S. Capitol Building.
Kaifuchi's designs showcase Tokyo's equivalent to the Capitol building, the National Diet Building, framed by cherry blossoms. The other stamp illustrates the building's clock tower in the foreground of white dogwood flowers.
"The four stamp designs depict the trees and in full blossom by nearby historic landmarks, two in the U.S. and two in Japan."
These trees are looked at with great admiration when the spring season begins in both countries. Festivals are held to celebrate the cherry and dogwood trees, friendship and the deep bond between the U.S. and Japan.
The Postal Service will join the Cherry Blossom Festival and Japan-American Society of Washington DC to officially mark the first day of issue. During the annual Sakura Matsuri Japanese Street Festival a day later, a special dedication will take place.
The souvenir stamp sheet will come with 12 stamps, 10 of which were the images designed by Rogers and Gicker. The remaining two stamps are Kaifuchi's illustrations. Various options are available for those wishing to purchase the stamps.
Special stamp releases are fairly common with the USPS. Interestingly enough, there have been previous collaborations with foreign countries. During October 1990, USPS partnered with the Soviet Union to celebrate October as national stamp collecting month. The occasion was marked by the release of stamps featuring various sea creatures.
As the weather warms, the new stamps present the opportunity for companies using postal software to create mailing campaigns that will resonate with recipients
