United Nations honors Paris stamp fair on souvenir sheet of three

By Denise McCarty

The United Nations Postal Administration’s third event souvenir sheet for 2017 honors the 71st Salon Philatelique d’Automne (autumn philatelic fair) in Paris.

The sheet is being issued Nov. 9, the first day of this four-day event held at the Espace Champerret Hall A, 6 rue Jean Oestreicher, Paris.

Designed by Sergio Baradat of the United Nations, the sheet highlights Paris’ famous architecture and art.

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As with UNPA’s previous event souvenir sheets, this sheet includes three stamps in different currencies: United States dollars for the post office at U.N. headquarters in New York City; Swiss francs for the post office at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland; and euros for the post office at the Vienna International Center in Vienna, Austria.

The $1.15 stamp depicts Antoine Coysevox’s sculpture Fame Riding Pegasus that stands at the entrance of Tuileries Garden.

The 2-franc stamp shows a fountain from the Place de la Concorde, and the €1.70 features a gargoyle from the Notre Dame Cathedral.

The selvage surrounding the stamps includes images of the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre pyramid by architect I.M. Pei, the ancient Greek sculpture Winged Victory of Samothrace that is in the Louvre, and the Arc de Triomphe.

Baradat said of the Parisian landmarks shown on the sheet: “I’ve incorporated them in a composition that is classic in an Art Deco style. Paris has a long history of appreciation of philately; I drew inspiration from past Paris Exposition sheets as inspiration.”

Joh. Enschede of the Netherlands printed the souvenir sheet using metallic and hexachrome ink.

Earlier this year, the UNPA issued a three-stamp souvenir sheet March 30 for the Melbourne 2017 FIAP (Federation of Inter-Asian Philately) stamp exhibition held in Melbourne, Australia; and a second sheet Oct. 27, for UN Expo 17 held in Bellefonte, Pa. The designs featured Australian marsupials and text from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, respectively.

The UNPA issued the first two event souvenir sheets with three stamps in different currencies in 2016 for the 32nd and 33rd Asian international stamp exhibitions held Aug. 10-15 in Bangkok, Thailand, and Dec. 2-6 in Nanning, China.

For ordering information,­ visit the UNPA website.