Issue date: 10 Feb, 2009
This series is made up of two stamps one featuring a mosaic from the Casa del Mitreo in Mérida depicting a fragment of Oriens’s face, representing the sun and the other devoted to the Archaeological Park of Carranque (Toledo) depicting the face of Oceanus, representing the Ocean.
The Casa del Mitreo is a Roman family house dating back to the 1st Century or beginning of the 2nd A.C. In one of its rooms lies the cosmic mosaic, perhaps one of the best kept from the Roman times. It represents the philosophical concept of the world and the forces of nature that rule it. It is divided into three parts representing the sky, the earth and the sea. In the upper part, finished off with a semicircle, are depicted the figures of Saeculum, Caelum, Chaos, Polum, Tronitum, Ocassus and Oriens. This latter is depicted in the stamp. Oriens is the Sun that appears in the mosaic with its chariot drawn by four white horses. It represents a young man with its head crowned with rays made up of golden tesseras.
The villa of Materno was discovered in 1983 in the roman site of Carranque (Toledo). It is a stately home of the end of the IV century A.C. In the main corridor there is a spectacular mosaic devoted to Oceanus or Ocean. It is the face of this character, a bearded Oceanus, which is depicted in the stamp. The mosaic also depicts various marine species.
Rate A - €0.75. For a “standard” letter or postcard within Spain, up to 20 g.
Rate A2 - €0.85. For a “standard” letter or postcard within Spain, between 20 g and 50 g.
Rate B - €1.65. For a “standard” Ordinary International letter or postcard addressed to Europe (including Greenland), up to 20 g.
Rate C - €1.75. For a “standard” Ordinary International letter or postcard addressed to the rest of the world (except USA, Canada, Japan, Australia and New Zealand), up to 20 g.
Rate D - €2.10. For a “standard” Ordinary International letter or postcard addressed to the USA, Canada, Japan, Australia and New Zealand, up to 20 g.