At the end of October Austria issued a COVID-19 semipostal stamp printed which made headlines worldwide in the mainstream press.
Austrian Post is known for pushing the boundaries in their creation of unusual stamp issues, so this latest innovation shouldn’t be much of a surprise.
Austria’s €2.75 + €2.75 Distance that Brings Us Together semipostal souvenir sheet was issued on October 30 and printed by Variuscard Productions and Handels GmbH of Vienna in a quantity of 300,000 sheets.
Both the name of the souvenir sheet and the material it was printed on relate to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This mini sheet was created using a very elaborate process and using unique material. The stamp was printed on actual toilet paper and is the same size as a sheet of toilet paper.
A self-adhesive foil was bonded to the reverse of the sheet that makes it more resistant to tearing and making it possible to detach the stamp if you wanted to.
The perforations of the stamp are similar to that of toilet paper as well.The souvenir sheet’s name comes from the slogan “Distance that Brings Us Together,” which refers to keeping a distance of at least 1 meter from other people to help to reduce the spread of the disease, according to Austrian Post.
The stamp features two silhouettes of the virus with a baby elephant “meant to help us judge and maintain this distance correctly,” Austrian Post said.
Other animals are pictured in the selvage for comparison in size. The baby elephant was added as a metallic foil.Austrian Post did say in a press release that “the seriousness of the situation has not been forgotten” and reported that the extra funds from the issue will be “used for a charitable cause.”
For more details, visit the Austrian Post website.
