Stamps of the Underground Post of Ukraine

The Underground Post Office of Ukraine was an organization that operated outside Ukraine under the leadership of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists.   The underground post office issued and distributed postage stamps with Ukrainian themes outside the Soviet Union.

The PPU was founded in 1949 in West Germany in Munich and existed for over 50 years.

The "Underground Post of Ukraine" is a separate and interesting section of Ukrainian philately, covering a significant period of the second half of the 20th century. 

The stamps of the underground post office were printed first in Germany and later in other countries around the world.

It should be noted that the stamps of the Ukrainian Underground Post Office were not postage stamps.  They could not be used to pay for postal services.  However, they had a very important social and cultural significance.

After World War II, a large number of Ukrainians were forced to live outside of Ukraine.  All these emigrants tried to preserve their native traditions and culture.  For these people, the existence of the Underground Ukrainian Post was very important.   The issues of the PUP reminded them of their home and informed the world about the existence of such a nation as Ukrainians.

Emigrants affixed stamps of the Ukrainian Underground Post Office to their mail alongside official state stamps of the postal services of the countries where they lived.  Although these stamps did not carry the function of paying for postal services, the sender and recipient of the letter had the impression that the stamps functioned on a par with the state stamps.  In the eyes of the Ukrainian diaspora, it looked as if the Ukrainian Postal Service was cooperating with post offices around the world.

The proceeds from the sale of underground postage stamps were used to support the OUN's activities in the struggle for Ukrainian statehood.  This encouraged conscious Ukrainians abroad to buy and use the philatelic products of the Ukrainian Underground Post Office.

In addition to material support for the resistance, the Underground Post of Ukraine carried a great Ukrainian message to the world. Through a small postage stamp, Ukrainian fighters for independence promoted their achievements on a global level, telling the world about history, culture, traditions, places of interest, and important personalities for Ukrainians.

The underground post office did not miss a single opportunity to remind the peoples of the world about the enslavement of the Ukrainian nation, the horrific crimes against Ukrainians and against civilization as a whole that Moscow committed in the past and continues to commit in the future.

The stamps of the underground mail were very high quality and professional. They often caused a resonance in the global philatelic community. Numerous single issues of the PPU belong to the best editions of Ukrainian non-state philately (erinophilia) and are highly valued among collectors.

Writer and public figure Stepan Liubomyrsky and graphic artist and printer Liubomyr Rykhtytsky contributed most to the design of the PPU publications. Mr. Liubomyr should be especially noted, as he was the main driving force behind the publication for decades. He successfully combined the qualities of an artist, printer, and coordinator of the Underground Post of Ukraine. After his death in 1983, the organization ceased to exist.

In addition to the above-mentioned people, such prominent artists as Myron Bilynsky, Mykhailo Chereshnevsky, Yurii Kostiv, Mykhailo Kuryllo, Myron Levytsky, Mykhailo Dmytrenko, Stepan, Korolenko, Edward Kozak, Sviatoslav Hordynsky, and Robert Lisovyi worked on creating miniatures at different times in the PPU.

 The number of publications of the Underground Post Office of Ukraine is enormous.  The publishers can be envied by many countries whose publications are far behind. During its existence, the Ukrainian Underground Post Office issued nearly 3,700 of its main types of stamps.

The thematic diversity of the publications is surprisingly wide. They can be divided into four groups:

 Stamps dedicated to organizations, institutions or state entities;

Stamps dedicated to events;

Stamps dedicated to individuals;

Stamps on various other topics.

It is quite difficult to make sense of such a huge variety. On the pages of our store you can not only buy stamps of the "Underground Post of Ukraine" but also find out interesting information about the issues and artists who worked on the copies.