4955
2015 49¢ Red Forever Heart
Love Stamps
The heart has been a symbol of love since before the days of Ancient Greece. This stamp reminds people that true love can last forever. It was issued in time for Valentine’s Day mail.
Countless ballads attest to the power of love. People in love feel they can overcome any obstacle that stands before them. Love moves mountains, builds bridges, and tears down walls.
Before the first millennium, the Roman poet Virgil coined the phrase “amor vincit omnia” – “love conquers all.” It is a sentiment often repeated in literature and romantic philosophy. Even in the real world, stories of sacrifice and devotion lift the spirits.
Fairy tales tell of charmed couples triumphing over evil to live happily ever after. Handsome princes rescue fair maidens from broken homes and eternal sleep, battling witches and dragons along the way. Against all odds, they defeat whatever foe lies in their path – all in the name of love.
Shakespeare’s 16th-century sonnets and plays are also filled with “love conquers all” references and themes. In A Midsummer Night’s Dream, love is portrayed as a mythical force that can be manipulated by fairies. But in the end, earthly love wins out despite the fairies’ meddling. The strength of true love is too powerful even for magical interference.
The power of love reigns supreme in fiction and reality alike. For centuries, love has conquered all and will continue to do so for centuries to come.
The lacy design on this stamp was created by Jessica Hische using the word “Forever” to form a heart.
49¢ Red Forever Heart, issued to satisfy the first-class mail rate
Issue Date: January 22, 2015
City: Richmond, VA, the state’s slogan is “Virginia is for Lovers.”
Quantity: 200,000,000
Category: Commemorative
Printed By: CCL Label, Inc.
Printing Method: Lithographed in sheets of 120, with six panes of 20 per sheet
Perforations: Serpentine Die Cut 11
Self-adhesive
The U.S. Postal Service issued its first Love stamp in 1973 and began a tradition in 1982 of releasing a new stamp almost every year around Valentine’s day.
4956
2015 49¢ White Forever Heart
Love Stamps
The heart has been a symbol of love since before the days of Ancient Greece. This stamp reminds people that true love can last forever. It was issued in time for Valentine’s Day mail.
True love’s kiss may be the most iconic fairy-tale symbol of everlasting love. It saves all and paves a direct path to lifelong happiness. But once upon a time, that was not the case.
Modernized versions of fairy tales, popularized by storybooks and films, take great liberties with the original tales. Luckily the dark and sometimes violent fables of the past have been softened, most notably with that symbolic cure-all – true love’s kiss.
Famous comatose damsels Snow White and Sleeping Beauty are brought back to life by such kisses. Similar smooches break enchantments in the Disney versions of “The Frog Prince” and “The Little Mermaid.” A twist on the concept allows true love’s tears to magically heal and transform in both “Rapunzel” and “Beauty and the Beast.”
Disney’s 2014 film Maleficent reinterprets true love’s kiss. It takes the power of the kiss away from the typical male suitor and places it firmly on the lips of a female heroine. In this version of “Sleeping Beauty” the supposed villain grows to love the princess as a daughter and it is her kiss that saves the day.
As Disney illustrates, even without a romantic element, true love’s kiss remains the ultimate spell- breaker and symbol of the power of everlasting love.
The lacy design on this stamp was created by Jessica Hische using the word “Forever” to form a heart.
49¢ White Forever Heart, issued to satisfy the first-class mail rate
Issue Date: January 22, 2015
City: Richmond, VA, the state’s slogan is “Virginia is for Lovers.”
Quantity: 200,000,000
Category: Commemorative
Printed By: CCL Label, Inc.
Printing Method: Lithographed in sheets of 120, with six panes of 20 per sheet
Perforations: Serpentine Die Cut 11
Self-adhesive
The U.S. Postal Service issued its first Love stamp in 1973 and began a tradition in 1982 of releasing a new stamp almost every year around Valentine’s day.