PHILATELIC EXHIBIITONON TAGORE

P H I LA T E L IC E X H I B I I T O N O N TA G O R E

AN ICCR PRESENTATION

Thou hast made me knownto friends whom I knew not Thou hast given me seatsin homes not my own.Thou hast brought the distant near and made a brother of the stranger.

Rabindranath Tagore : Gitanjali Poem No. 63

Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore’s versatility extended to his being a poet, novelist, painter and musician. Tagore believed that the world was acrucible of cultures from which the universal man could find nourishment.Thus man – made division of nations held little value for him. His spiritsoared above these, while his limitless curiosity to learn about different people and cultures inspired him to undertake the most adventurous travel.The Post Office had a special place in the Poet’s heart. One of Tagore’sfamous plays is Dak Ghar. In this play, he has portrayed the Post Office as asymbolical messenger of hope and deliverance.In the philatelic world, the handsome profile of the Poet continues to be thesubject of commemorative stamps not only in India and its neighboringcountries but also in countries as far as Bulgaria and Brazil. PostalDepartments of around 20 countries have issued stamps on him. Thisexhibition consists of rare philatelic items on Tagore from all over the world,which includes Official Postage Stamps, Postal Stationery, Postmarks andCustomised Stamps. In the Tagore centenary year, a large number of stampswere issued in his honour in different parts of the world. On his 150th BirthAnniversary, collectors from all over the world are hoping to add to their collections on the Tagore theme.During the Freedom Struggle many itemsof patriotic postal stationery were printed.Tagore, as an iconic figure in the Nationalist Movement, featured in many of these patriotic national stationery items.The first stamp issued by the IndianPostal Department in honour of Rabindranath Tagore was in a set of 6stamps on leading poets and saints of India. This 12 anna stamp, issued onOctober 1, 1952, was printed at theIndia Security Press using thePhotogravure process, the latestdevelopment in printing technology inthose days.To mark the Poet’s Birth Centenary, theDepartment of Posts issued a stamp of 15npdenomination, on May 7, 1961. The stampwas designed by Satyajit Ray, an alumni of Visva-Bharati and renowned film director.The design was based on a photograph takenduring Tagore’s visit to Milan in 1926.The text of the brochure published on the occasion was penned by Humayan Kabir, the then Union Minister for Scientific Research and Cultural Affairs.On the same occasion, the then Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) issued a6 K stamp on May 8, 1961. The USSR wasthe first nation outside India to issue a stamphonouring Tagore.A special commemorativeletter sheet was also issuedduring the same period in the USSR. Theletter sheet wronglystates Tagore’s lifespanas 1861 -1945, insteadof 1861- 1941.Argentina issued a 2 peso stamp on May 13, 1961. Thisis the first ever First Day Cancellation which has theautograph of Rabindranath Tagore.

Brazil issued a stamp of value 10 cruzeiros onTagore, on July 28, 1961.On October 12, 1961,Romania issued a set of 6stamps on world famous personalities, one of whomwas Tagore. The stamp of 40 bani value, has thePoet’s portrait in green onwhite. ‘R. Tagore’ isinscribed on one side of thestamp.Though the United States of America did not issue any stampscommemorating Tagore in his centenary year, the USIS Business Centre inCalcutta issued a meter franking stamp on all letters sent from the office for alimited period in 1961. The franking had the following caption:RABINDRANATH TAGOREAMERICA SALUTES TAGORE1861 – 1961To commemorate the Golden Jubilee of Visva Bharati University, Tagore’sdream project, the Indian Postal Department released a 20p stamp onDecember 24, 1971. Twenty-five years later, tocommemorate the Platinum Jubilee of the University,the Department of Posts provided from Santiniketan aspecial cover and a pictorial cancellation on December 28, 1996.On December 10, 1973 Sweden issued a set of 3 stampsto honour Nobel Laureates of 1913, on the 60thAnniversary of their receiving the honour. The 1.40Kroner stamp depicts Tagore in profile. Since 1961,every year, the Royal Swedish Post Office commemorates Nobel Prizewinners on ‘Nobel Day’ which falls on December 10.The Republic of Paraguay issued aminiature sheet in1977 depicting the Nobel Medal for literature. The sheetmargin has the list of names of allrecipients of the Nobel Prize inLiterature from 1901to 1976, whichincludes Tagore, whoreceived the prize in1913.Comoros issued a 50 Franc stamp and aminiature sheet in 1977 to commemorate75 years of the institution of the award. Thisstamp depicts Tagore’s portrait in profile inthe extreme left hand corner with threeother Nobel Laureates. Tagore’s name isincorrectly written as R. T. Tagore.