| Name | Value |
|---|---|
| Date of Issue | January 21, 2014 |
| Year | 2014 |
| Quantity | 50,000,000 |
| Denomination |
First-Class Mail Forever
|
| Denomination Value | $0.46 |
| Perforation or Dimension | 1.19 x 0.91 in./30.23 x 23.11 mm |
| Series | Love |
| Series Time Span | 1999 - 2018 |
| Issue Location | New York, NY 10199 |
| Postal Administration | United States |
On January 21, 2014, in New York, New York, at the Time Warner Center, the Postal Service™ will issue the Love: Cut Paper Heart First-Class Mail® stamp (Forever® priced at 46 cents) in one design in a pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA) pane of 20 stamps. The stamp will go on sale nationwide January 21, 2014.
The Cut Paper Heart stamp adds another romantic entry to the beautiful Love stamp series.
This fanciful stamp takes its inspiration from the folk traditions of papercutting. Its digital illustration depicts a large white heart enclosing a smaller pink heart with a saw-toothed edge along its left-hand side. Surrounding the central hearts are pink swirls, with smaller hearts imbedded in the design and a ragged-edge motif that echoes the edging on the small pink heart. The hearts and swirls are contained within a red square that has “pinked” edges, as if cut with pinking shears. A white border frames the entire design.
The stamp art is reminiscent of liebesbriefe — ornately cut and painted love letters that are a form of scherenschnitte, the papercutting tradition brought to America in the 18th and 19th centuries by German immigrants. Not intended only for February 14, these early precursors to valentines carried declarations of love and sometimes proposals of marriage. The stamp art is a stunning digital interpretation of these traditional love-letter decorations.
Like the liebesbriefe, the Cut Paper Heart stamps are not just for use on Valentine’s Day, but say “love” all year round.
Designed by art director Antonio Alcalá, the stamp features an illustration by Q. Cassetti.