New Issues of Luxembourg

Interesting postage stamps

On 30 November 1999 some very interesting postage stamps were issued in Luxembourg.

Christmas

A drawing of the Belgian artist Michel Demart, who works and lives in Luxembourg, was used for this year's Christmas stamp.
Value: 16 + 2f.
Size: 35.96 x 35.96mm.
Print: Photogravure by Hélio Courvoisier.

Charity

The second series of postage stamps depicting the 16th century drawings by Jean Bertels, abbot of Echternach. The drawings selected can be found in the "Grand Bertels" kept in the National Archives in Luxembourg.
In 1571 Jean Bertels completed a small geographical work intended primarily for his own personal use. It gave him a clear overview of the abbey estates and income, of which he was the administrator. When he was made abbot he added a few pages. Next he started compiling and illustrating a similar but more comprehensive work listing details of the estates and income of Notre-Dame de Munster Abbey.
In 1595 Jean Bertels was appointed head of the abbey of Saint-Willibrord at Echternach and he started to compile a similar study based on the archives of the abbey. Using a structure with drawings at the head of texts about different towns and villages, he managed to describe the residents' daily life in close detail. Bertels died in 1607 before he was ready and therefore a series of spaces inscribed with the name of the town or village has remained blank.
Values: 16 + 2f Oswiler, 16 + 2f Bettemburch, 20 + 3f Cruchte auf der Alset and 32 + 7f Berchem.
Size: 35.96 x 28mm.
Print: Photogravure by Hélio Courvoisier.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

The German writer and poet Von Goethe (1749-1832) made drawings too. This stamp pictures his drawing "Tor zum Breitenweg im Stadtgrund" which Von Goethe sketched in 1792 during his stay in the Luxembourg fortress. The original drawing is kept in the "Stiftung Weimarer Klassik" in Weimar.
Value: 20f.
Size: 41.1 x 28mm.
Print: Photogravure by Hélio Courvoisier.

More postage stamps

Stamps Luxembourg
Postage Stamps 1999
Luxembourg September 1999
UPU stamp Luxembourg
Luxembourg 31 March 2000
Luxembourg 9 May 2000