75 years of the first Ukrainian postage stamps

Postage stamp "75 years of the first Ukrainian stamps" 1993

Ukraine has always strived for independence. The struggle for it lasted for centuries. For these reasons, the Ukrainian people are generally considered to put their own freedom first. In modern history, the establishment of the Ukrainian People's Republic in 1917 with the proclamation of independence can be considered the first success. Despite the fact that the government was suspended in 1921, it was possible to restore independence and transfer the right to govern Ukraine after 1991.

 History of the first stamps

The beginning of the Ukrainian philately can be traced back to the issue of the first stamps of shahs during the period of state formation of the Ukrainian People's Republic in 1918. It was with the signing of the Universal Declaration of Independence that the question of developing our own banknotes and stamps arose. Since the new government did not have time to start minting metal coins, the first stamps also served as the first bills of exchange.

Since the Soviet-Bolshevik regime disagreed with the formation of the UPR and began occupying Ukrainian lands, there was little time to issue stamps. Therefore, there were no competitions or public hearings to select the design of the first stamps. As a result, the design of the stamps was ordered directly from artists.

What we know about the first series of shahs

These stamps went down in history as shahs, because according to the law of the Ukrainian Central Council of the Ukrainian People's Republic, a new monetary unit, the hryvnia, was introduced, consisting of 100 shahs. The issue was prepared in five stamps of different denominations. Two artists, Heorhii Narbut and Antin Sereda, took part in the development of the sketches. The main task was to create five different sketches that would show signs of the UPR's statehood.

A. Sereda worked on the design of the smallest denominations of 10 and 20 shahs. He developed the concept and layout of the stamp with the placement of elements and the general style. It should be noted that he was a student and follower of G. Narbut. G. Narbut himself worked on the 30, 40, and 50 shahs denominations. Visually, one can even distinguish the style of the subjects.

·         Date of issue: April (actually July) 1918.

·         Year of withdrawal from circulation: March 1919.

·         Circulation: over 71.5 million copies.

the first Ukrainian stamps photo Wikipedia

The designs of the postage stamps were developed before the coins were issued. Due to the lack of bills of exchange, it was decided to use stamps as credit coupons. To do this, the stamps were overprinted on the back in the form of a rectangular frame with a trident inside and the four-line text "Goes on a par with a ringing coin." This is how the first issues of money stamps were issued. They were printed using clichés on a zinc plate in the amount of 400 marks. Later, these sheets were cut into 4 100-mark sheets and serrated.

After the market was saturated with bills of exchange, it was time to print a postage stamp. G. Narbut proposed a new design for the series, but in the absence of time to produce new clichés, it was decided to issue them based on the finished sketches. To distinguish postage stamps from money stamps, a different paper with an adhesive backing, different shades of colors, and no serifing were used.

Description of the stamp "75 years of the first Ukrainian stamps"

In the period of Ukraine's independence, stamps began to be issued in 1992. In the following year, 1993, a total of 9 issues with 16 different stamps were made. The stamp "75 years of the first Ukrainian stamps" is a commemorative issue and is dedicated to the celebration of the Postal Day. The stamp was designed by Ukrainian graphic artist Yurii Logvyn. His works were included in many stamps of the period 1993-2001. His last work for Ukrposhta was the series "History of the Ukrainian Army", which was issued in 2002-2006 and the final 4 stamps of the series in 2010.

·         Date of issue: 09.10.1993

·         Circulation: 1 million copies

·         Stamp size - 40x28 mm

·         Number of stamps per sheet - 9 (3x3)

·         Face value - 100 karbovanets

·         Artist - Y.G. Logvin

The stamp "75 years of the first Ukrainian stamps" is presented in a horizontal format in two colors on a white background - blue and light brown. In the center is the inscription "75 years of the first Ukrainian postage stamps". The lower part has inscriptions in the corners. On the left side is the inscription "Day of the postage stamp" and on the right side is the face value of 100.00, which corresponds to the currency of the karbovanets. The top of the stamp bears an inscription indicating that the stamp belongs to the Ukrainian Post Office for the year of issue 1993. All inscriptions are made in blue ink. To the left of the central inscription is a miniature of the first stamp with a face value of 10 shahs. On the right side is the symbol of the Postage Stamp Day in the form of a globe and people around it holding postal letters. These two elements correspond to the brown color of the ink used to print the stamps.