Issue date: 31 Oct, 2009
The Christmas 2009 issue is made up of tour stamps, two of them self adhesive and the other two issued within a souvenir sheet. All of them depict Christmas and Epiphany themes and all of them are the work of painter J. Carrero.
The first stamp called Maternity is a composition from an original painting in oil and pencil depicting a young mother embracing her baby.
The second stamp called Llegan los Reyes Magos, (The coming of the Three Wise Men) has elements allusive to the visit of the three kings form the East. At the top of the painting there is a paper note standing out from the background. This mark is characteristic of the work of J. Carrero and in this painting the paper refers to the letter children send the Three Wise Men asking for their Christmas presents. Beneath the letter there are some children’s shoes and toys (a doll in a sailor’s outfit and a tin motorbike). There also features an Arab ceramic tile which is another characteristic and recurrent element in the paintings by J. Carrero.
The other two stamps that make up this issue are in a souvenir sheet format in a mixed composition called Adoración al niño a y paisaje con mujer en rojo depicting a photographic reproduction of an old wood carving from the Italian school and a painting by J.Carrero featuring a woman gazing at a landscape. In this mixed composition, resulting from the use of heterogenic materials, there is a perfect correlation and synchrony between modern and classic elements. The innovative contributions J. Carrero makes in this souvenir sheet and stamps result in an accurate balance of the composition.
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.