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The Stamp Terrorists Changed
) Click Picture for a Larger View |
Included in the article is the original, pre-September 11th, artwork for the New York stamp, which included the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center. It's the first time this version has been seen in public.
McCaffrey describes how the designs for the 50-stamp sheet, scheduled for April, were all but set and ready to be reproduced for distribution to the press when the attack occurred. There was some question as to whether to revise the stamp, or issue it as is as a memorial.
The Twin Towers appear at the upper right. In the final (?) design, the searchlight heading toward the upper right is continuous and has been strengthened.
(Not mentioned in the article is that the Postal Service Board of Governors was meeting at the moment of the attack on the Pentagon in a conference room at USPS headquarters in Southwest Washington, and those attending could see the Pentagon from the room's windows. The Governors were hustled into a shelter in case of further attacks.)
The very informative article includes a list of all the elements in each of the stamp designs in the set.
Courtesy Barb Boal, editor, American Philatelist. Used by permission of the U.S. Postal Service. Click on the image above for a larger version.