US #5484
2020 Red and Black Plums – Fruits and Vegetables
- Celebrates the tradition of using fruits and vegetables as subjects for still lifes
Stamp Category: Definitive
Set: Fruits and Vegetables
Value: 55¢ First Class Mail Rate (Forever)
First Day of Issue: July 17, 2020
First Day City: Charlesto... more
US #5484
2020 Red and Black Plums – Fruits and Vegetables
- Celebrates the tradition of using fruits and vegetables as subjects for still lifes
Stamp Category: Definitive
Set: Fruits and Vegetables
Value: 55¢ First Class Mail Rate (Forever)
First Day of Issue: July 17, 2020
First Day City: Charleston, West Virginia
Quantity Issued: 200,000,000
Printed by: Banknote Corporation of America
Printing Method: Offset
Format: Double-sided booklets of 20
Tagging: Phosphor tagged paper, block
Why the stamps were issued: To show off the simple beauty of fruits and vegetables.
About the stamp designs: Pictures existing artwork of red and black plums by Robert Papp.
First Day City: According to the USPS, Charleston, West Virginia, was chosen for the First Day of Issue postmark because of the city’s famous Capitol Market, a year-round farmers’ market and nonprofit organization. There was no First Day of Issue Ceremony due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
About the Fruits and Vegetables set: Includes 10 different stamps designs all picturing a different fruit or vegetable still life by Robert Papp.
History the stamp represents: Plums were one of the first domesticated fruits and have been found at ancient archaeological sites along with olives, grapes, and figs.
Today, plums come in a variety of different types. Some are sweet while others are more tart, and their colors can range from black to yellow. These fruits may be round or ovular and usually have a white film on the skin known as “wax bloom.” Plum tree flower in the early spring and begin growing fruit after 80 days of warm temperatures. In a good harvest year, about 50 percent of flowers become fruit. When the weather is too dry, underdeveloped buds fall from the tree before getting a chance to become fruit. If it is too wet, the fruit may develop a fungus, which will ruin it.
Many types of plum are eaten fresh, as a snack, while other varieties are most commonly used in cooking. One popular recipe using plums is plum cake. Plum cake may be made with fresh plums or, more often, dried fruit. These cakes were popular in the American colonies. They were often baked in large quantities as “muster cakes” for men called to military service before the Revolutionary War. After America gained independence, women baked plum cakes to encourage men to attend town meetings and elections, earning them the new nickname “election cakes.” Who knew this common fruit had such an interesting history?!
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