Books Pictured On Stamps

This September 3, 1977 10 fr value (Sc #993) of Belgium commemorates the 50th anniversary of the International Library Association (IFLA). Stamp depicts a detail from Jan Van Eyck's (1390-1441) panel L'agneau Mystique/The Mystical Lamb from the Ghent Altarpiece (1432). Second pic shows a larger portion of the panel.

Here is Pakistan's August 14, 1973 20 paisa stamp (Sc #346) commemorating the country's 25th anniversary of independence.

Another source of books depicted on stamps

On April 1, 1943 Argentina issued this 5 centavos stamp (Sc #507) commemorating the 1st Argentinian Book Fair.

This October 23, 1973 20 paisa stamp (Sc #334) of Pakistan commemorates Education Week.

On September 26, 1980 Uruguay issued a set of four 70 new pesos stamps commemorating 'Cultural Media'. The stamps were printed in sheets of 16 in a se-tenant block fashion (2 x 2) with the lower right stamp (Sc #1352d) of the block depicting four books and a very oversized "s" piece of printing type.

Here is Pakistan's December 15, 1976 20 paisa 'Children's Literature' stamp (Sc #428).

Readers are shown in a factory's library on this 40 filler value (Sc #1109) from Hungary's April 4, 1955 set of four stamps commemorating the 10th anniversary of liberation from Admiral Horthy's regime.

This May 22, 1943 sixty haleru value of Bohemia and Moravia is from the three-stamp set the German occupiers issued to commemorate the 130th birthday of composer Richard Wagner (1813-1883). Stamp shows a scene from Wagner's opera Der Meistersinger von Nuernberg.

On November 20, 1961 Norfolk Island issued this 5d Christmas stamp (Sc #44) depicting a 15th century Book of Hours. The book's edges serve as the design's frame.

Here is the eight drachma value (Sc #1352) from Greece's May 5, 1980 EUROPA set of two stamps. Stamp depicts Greek writer and diplomat George Seferis (1900-1971) and his library.

The USA used a detail from Netherlandish artist Hans Memling's ca.1479 painting Madonna and Child with Angels (National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.) as the imagery for both its 1966 and '67 Christmas stamps. The 1966 stamp is definitive-sized, and more highly cropped, so the November 6, 1967 stamp (Sc #1336) is shown here.

This 2 escudo, bicolor value (Sc #796) of Portugal is from the October 15, 1954 set of four identically-designed National Literacy Campaign stamps. The four values are printed in different
colors.

On March 31, 1973 Malta issued a 15-value definitive set showing aspects of culture and life on the island. The 50c value (Sc #466) of the set shows symbols of education, including an open book.

Here is the 75c value (Sc #C547) from Costa Rica's December 7, 1972 four-stamp set commemorating the International Year of Books. This stamp and the 20c are of identical design, showing the first book ever published in the country (1830). The other two values depict the National Library.

From ticotimes.net (April 27, 2014), "In 1830, Costa Rica received a remarkable gift from Philadelphia: a printing press. Until then, all documents had been handwritten, and not a single book or pamphlet had ever been published on Costa Rican soil."