2287) The Three Wise Men (Natal), Portugal: Innovative Stamps: Correios de Portugal or CTT (Portuguese Post) has issued a set of three stamps and an innovative Souvenir Sheet (SS), which uses NFC technology to light up an LED bulb, as if the Star of Bethlehem is indicating where Christ was born: Date of Stamp set issue: 22.10.2019:
(Natal means the time or place of one's birth. In this stamp set it relates to Bethlehem and Christ's birth)
The Cover of this Stamp Album depicts the coming of the three wise-men to Bethlehem.
The Back Cover of the Stamp album narrates the story of Christmas and the three Wise Men:
"CHRISTMAS: THE THREE WISE MEN:
Over the centuries, the story of the Three Wise Men, also known as the Three Kings or Magi, gained a plasticity that did not just make it a theological and iconographic reality far richer than the biblical text, but also catapulted it into a unique place in popular Christian culture.
Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying: Where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east and are come to worship him (Matthew 2: 1-2).
Their names were given by Venerable Bede (673-735), who is believed to have systematised various traditions and who stated that Melchoir was an old man of 70, with white hair and beard, a native of Ur, like Abraham; that Gaspar was a robust young man who had set off from a distant mountainous region near the Caspian Sea; and that Balthazar came from the Persian Gulf, had a thick beard and was around 40. The scant iconography from this period does not present them as Kings.
The transition from Magi to Kings is thought to have taken place after the reign of Otto II (955-983), Holy Roman Emperor and German King, after the translation of their relics to Europe and, possibly, their canonisation. The posture of adoration, typical in these figures, takes on an ideological slant with this elevation to monarchs: the Kings kneel before the divine figure and, by extrapolation, before the Emperor imbued with its holy power.
The Three Kings have a dual function. On the one hand, they help situate the narrative in history by relating it to a monarch, Herod. On the other hand, they allow for the introduction, at the very start of the narrative about Jesus, of the Messianic message and that of the rejection to which he would be subjected. With these Magi, we are told that Christianity would adore the Jewish Messiah, as if affirming the universality of his salvation.
This episode which sparked his persecution and flight to Egypt, humanises the Messiah, giving him the immense vulnerability of a pursued child, prefiguring the martyrdom he would go through. The seemingly innocent dialogue between the Magi and Herod sets Jesus off on the narrow path between Good and Evil; essentially, the concretisation of his function as King, Son of God.
And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him; and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts: gold and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way. (Matthew 2: 11-12).
Gold, frankincense and myrrh were the offerings from these Magi to the young King, whose birth had been indicated by a star, a symbol of his royalty. For the Church, these three elements symbolised - gold (royalty), frankincense (divinity) and myrrh (the passion).
The symbolic centre is, naturally, Light. It is the star that guides these Magi; It is the star that marks the birthplace of He who would bring Light to the world. Coming from afar to pay homage to the new King, the Magi came to receive the Light.
This is the theme of the "Christmas" issue presented here, leading believers on the vast cultural and religious journey whose value is the culmination of the image of the search, the path and the Light.
Pages 2 and 3 of the Stamp album
Page 2 of the Album presents three Cancelled Stamps of 0.53, 0.86 and 0.91 Euros respectively depicting the three Magi.
The specifications of these stamps are:
Date of Stamp set issue: 22.10.2019
Stamp values: 0.53, 0.86 and 0.91 Euros
No. of Stamps issued: 100,000 copies of each variant
Souvenir Sheet: 3.50 Euro (50,000 copies)
Illustrations:
Infolio Design: Jorge Macedo
Brochure Cover: Luis Taklim
Translation: Kennis Translations
Paper: FSC 110 g/sq m
Sizes:
Stamp Sizes: 40.00 mm x 30.60 mm (x 3 Variants)
Souvenir Sheet Size: 95.00 mm x 125.00 mm
Perforation: Cross of Christ: 12 1/4 x 12
Printing: Offset
Printer: Cartor
FDC: C5 0.75 Euro, C6 0.56 Euro
Brochure: 0.85 Euro
The Souvenir Sheet issue includes the image of the guiding star where a light emitting diode (LED) is located. The LED is activated through contact with a Android or IOS smartphone with NFC technology (near field communication).
To access this feature, follow these steps:
1. On an Android operating system,simple activate the NFC feature in the smartphone settings menu.
2. Move the back side of the smartphone close to the Souvenir Sheet.
3. Find the area where the NFC frequency is being emitted to illuminate the star's light (LED).
(This instruction is mentioned both in Portuguese and English for the convenience of users and is applicable to both Android and IOS systems).
The LED light will blink intermittently, as if a Star is guiding the viewer to the manger, where Christ was born.
(The above Stamp is from the Collection of Jayant Biswas, who has also presented this LED innovative stamp for my collection)
Interesting links to posts on Portugal and Spanish Coins and postage stamps on this blog:
For interesting posts on Coins and stamps of Portugal, please visit the following links:
The "Age of Discovery" Escudo Banknote Series:
My Stamp Album - The Adventures of Tori & Co.:
For interesting posts on Coins and stamps of Spain, please visit the following links:
For posts on coins issued under the Eurostar Coin Programme, please visit the following links:
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