11 most controversial postage stamps in US history

12. 01. 2021
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Postage stamps often provoke lively debate - usually for reasons that the post office would never anticipate. One inanimate object weighing less than one gram, such as a postage stamp, can sometimes cause a lot of problems. In the long history of the United States, stamps have often caused controversy, usually for reasons that the post offices would not have challenged in advance.

Eleven best-known examples

1) Stamp Whistler 's Mother, issued in 1934

Many artists objected to the way James McNeill Whistler's famous 1873 painting was cropped to fit the horizontal format of a postage stamp. Others complained about a vase of flowers that had been added to the lower left corner - perhaps a small vanguard of "product placement" for Mother's Day, which the stamp was supposed to celebrate. A group called the American Artists Professional League complained in a telegram sent to the general manager of the post office that the stamp was "a mutilation of the original artist's painting, thus depriving him of much of his charm." The director of the New York Museum of Modern Art, who recently borrowed the painting (officially Arranged in Black and Gray: A Portrait of the Artist's Mother) from the Louvre, said for a change that if Whistler "were alive today, he would be furious."

Stamp depicting Whistler's mother, 1934. (Photo: Public Domain)

2) Stamp Susan B. Anthony, issued 1936

Some critics thought with imagination that a cigarette was sticking out of the lips of a famous women's rights defender. In reality, however, it was an unhappily placed line of white hatching in the background. (The next issue of this stamp in 1955 was already a slow complaint.) However, the US dollar coin with Susan Anthony, issued in 1979, was no less controversial. Critics have complained that the coin is too similar in size to a quarter of a dollar and is therefore easily confused with it. It proved equally problematic in the eyes of the public.

Stamp Susan B. Anthony, 1936. (Credit: Public Domain)

3) Stamp with the generals of the American Civil War, issued in 1937

Many Southerners were outraged by this stamp with the three generals of the north: William Tecumseh Sherman, Ulysses S. Grant, and Philip Sheridan. Grant and Sheridan would probably be tolerated by the majority of the population, but Sherman was still despised by his harsh tactics and the infamous devastating march to the sea in 1864. South Carolina and Georgia lawmakers have addressed the issue, with Georgia proposing that the stamp not be issued. until the federal government compensates its residents for the damage caused by Sherman's cruelty and does not recognize a long list of his crimes. The Postal Department tried to reassure critics by reassuring them that a mark with Robert E. Lee and "Stonewall" Jackson would soon follow. But…

Stamp with the generals of the American Civil War, 1937 (Source: Public domain)

4) Stamp with the Generals of the Confederation, issued in 1937

Although the post office hoped that the stamp, issued in honor of Robert E. Lee and Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson, would appease the Southerners, offended by the hated Union General William Tecumsh Sherman, it also proved controversial in itself. The problem was that Lee's portrait depicted only two stars on his collar, even though he was a three-star general. So it looked like it was being degraded. The post office defended itself by claiming that the stamp was based on an older photograph of the general or that the third star was in fact hidden by his collar. However, when Lee was depicted on the postage stamp again in 1949, it was already in a civilian suit.

Confederate Generals Civil War, 1937. (Photo: Public Domain)

5) Pony Express stamp, issued in 1940

Horse lovers and historians have found a long list of errors on this stamp, issued on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the first postal service. The horse's mouth was open (according to some it is unlikely at gallop) and daylight shone through its nostrils, giving the horse the impression that they had pierced its head. The rider held the reins too loosely and the saddle on which he rode allegedly preceded its time by about 50 years. As if that wasn't enough, the rider didn't even seem to carry any mail. The later Pony Express stamp, issued in 1960 for the 100th anniversary, was apparently no longer controversial, although the galloping horse's mouth was still open.

Stamp for the 1940th anniversary of the founding of the Pony Express, XNUMX. (Photo: Public Domain)

6) Christmas stamp, issued in 1962

It seems that no type of stamp has always been as controversial as those issued on the occasion of Christmas. This also applies to the first American Christmas stamp from 1962. Thanks to a pair of white candles and a wreath with a red bow, the stamp was attacked for crossing the border between church and state and for denigrating the faith. Some Christians have also argued that the government has no right to interfere in their religion. Time magazine even attacked the stamp for aesthetic reasons and called it "intentional bagging." In 1963, the post office did no better with a design with a Christmas tree in front of the White House. Although there may have been an artistic improvement, Mark was criticized for interfering in politics at Christmas.

Christmas stamp, 1962. (Photo: Public Domain)

7) Christmas stamp, issued in 1965

In 1965, the post office decided to try something different: a picture of the angel Gabriel, based on a picture of a banner from the beginnings of New England. Critics who attacked the mark to depict an angel with breasts, even though Gabriel was a man, were not taken into account. Gabriel returned to the Christmas stamp three years later, this time inspired by the Annunciation, a painting by Master Jan van Eyck from the 15th century from the collection of the National Gallery of Art. Perhaps because of the famous pattern of painting this time, the 1968 stamp did not cause any anger, although her Gabriel could also be confused with a woman - albeit definitely with smaller breasts.

Christmas stamp, 1965. (Photo: Public Domain)

8) Stamp with dinosaurs, issued in 1989

Who could be offended by a set of four stamps in honor of animals that became extinct millions of years ago? In this case, paleontologists who claimed that two of the signs contained errors. They argued that the Brontosaurs were not dinosaurs, but apatosaurs. And the pteranodons were not technically dinosaurs at all, but flying lizards. Postal officials admitted the second complaint, noting that the stamps were officially named "prehistoric animal series" and that the term "dinosaur" appeared only in promotional materials. The other two signs, worshiping a stegosaurus and a tyrannosaurus, escaped any controversy.

Stamp with Dinosaurs, 1989

9) Elvis Presley stamp, issued in 1993

Elvis fans have been working for the mark since 1987, the 10th anniversary of his death (at that time, everyone except the president had to be at least ten years after his death). However, drug use has made this demand highly controversial. Due to the frequent "sightings" of Elvis even in the years after his official death, there was also a controversial debate about whether he was really dead for the required 10 years - or whether he died at all. Nevertheless, the stamp has reportedly become the most successful commemorative edition in the history of the post office with a circulation of approximately 500 million copies.

Stamp with Elvis Presley, 1993. (Photo: Chris Farina / Corbis / Getty Images)

10) Stamp with Richard M. Nixon, issued in 1995

Although Nixon resigned in disgrace in 1974 when he was threatened with charges, the former president, like others, was traditionally honored with a postage stamp after his death. As expected, the mark was unpopular and became the target of many jokes; as a commentator of one newspaper remarked: "this is a person whose background I really don't want to lick" (self-adhesive stamps became commonplace only in 2002). Sales increased a bit when a clever businessman released an envelope that made Nixon look behind bars.

32 cent stamp with R. Nixon, 1995

11) Atomic Bomb Stamp, issued in 1995

As part of the series on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II, the postal service designed a stamp with the image of the atomic mushroom and the words "Atomic bombs accelerate the end of the war, August 1945." Perhaps not surprisingly, the Japanese government, peace activists and many others that she was celebrating that terrifying weapon, she insulted. Especially when it is still owned by several countries and sometimes there is a real threat of its use. After the apparent intervention of the then president Bill Clinton, the post office reconsidered the matter and the stamp was never issued (although its prototype, which shows "00", where the face value was to be added, can be easily found online). Instead, the post office depicted President Harry Truman announcing the surrender of Japan on August 14, 1945.

Downloaded stamp depicting an atomic bomb that inspired imitations like this, from stamp designer Gary Newhouse and the Enola Gay team, 1995. (Photo: LiveAuctioneers.com archive and he Written Word Autographs)

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