Occussi-Ambeno:
1988, 20th Anniversary of Independence.
16th
November, 1988.
20th
Anniversary of Independence.
| 145 | 30¢ | Purple, orange, & light blue | View stamp |
| 146 | 45¢ | Red, gold, brown, & purple, on yellow toned paper | View stamp |
| 147 | $1.05 | Silver, gold, green, & red, on deep blue toned paper | View stamp |
| 148 | $3 | Orange, brown, & light blue | View stamp |
This set commemorates our 20th birthday. The design of the 30¢ and $3 stamps is by Dunedin artist Judith Wolfe, while the 45¢ and $1.05 stamps were designed by the Norwegian archaeologist Geir Sor-Reime. The stamps were printed by letterpress by the Imperial Occussi-Ambeno Government Printing Office (KDPN) using a Heidelberg platen press. The 30¢ and $3 are on invisibly-gummed paper. All the stamps are perf 12. To view the special First Day Cover, click here. To view the commemorative sticker, click here. The most startling of the many festive events that took place on the day of issue of these stamps was a commemorative zeppelin flight above the capital city. This carried celebrities and a small Adana 8-5 printing press, and a number of postcards actually had a commemorative inscription printed on them in orange ink during the flight, had a 30¢ stamp affixed, then were cancelled at the on-board Post Office, and autographed by the pilot, the Foreign Minister, the Hon. Mr Abdul G. Took. The event was described as the world's first aerial printing press in operation. To view one of these postcards, click here. Several other countries also issued stamps to celebrate this historic event in our history: click here to view the Mevu set, and click here to view the Kemp Land issue. Even the ICIS, the Fifth World's "United Nations", issued a set: click here to see it. Click here to view the Edelweiss stamp.
