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2024 Danish stamp program – powering from waves to hearts

by | Dec 15, 2024

Now that the 2024 Danish stamp program is complete, its time to post it. Unless the post office sneaks one past us, the program consists of 6 sets plus Christmas Seals, which take the place of an annual postal stamp. There are 3 major release dates – January, May and October, with the season wrapped up with the Seals. 

If there was a theme for 2024, it would be “Retrospective”. Two out of the six designs focus on previous releases – 5 for the HAFNIA stamp show, and a major look at Denmark’s rich history of engraved portraits on stamps. Three great engravers,  Martin Mörck, Bertil Skov Jørgensen and Lars Sjööblom, lent their formidable talents to re-creating a few of Denmark’s classic stamps. And the Christmas Seals round out the sense of looking back with a series of designs focused on Denmark’s history. 

A compact program, stamp-wise, but deep in history and tradition. 

Enjoy
Catpaw

January 

Hafnia 2024 Philatelic Exhibition, Copenhagen – Hjertebølge Udland Stamp Show

Hafnia 2024 cancels

Hafnia 2024,
2024 Danish stamp program

Hjertebølge Inland | Hjertebølge Udland Stamp Show FDC 

5 stamps on souvenir sheet, FDC, 4 special cancels were available at the exhibition
offset

Issued for the Hafnia 2024 stamp show in Øksnehallen, Copenhagen from October 17-20, 2024. Each sheet is numbers with the proceeds of the first 1,500 sold going directly to the HAFNIA organisation. You can see the results of this year’s exhibition here: Hafnia24 – European stamp exhibition.

The 5 stamps on the sheet previously appeared in. 

  • 1984, Pigeon Letter Carrier. Designer: Arne Kühlmann Engraver: Hanne Bach Hansen
  • 2013 – Europa (C.E.P.T.) 2013 – Postal Vehicles. Engraver: Bertil Skov Jørgensen
  • 1951, Mail Coach but reversed from the original. Designer: Viggo Bang. Engraver: Bent Jacobsen
  • 1934 Aircraft Fokker VII a over Copenhagen – the top part of this stamp was used in this design. The entire stamp shows more of Copenhagen
  • The middle stamp is yet to be identified – but for the life of me I can’t find the original. 

Proceeds from this souvenir sheet go directly to Hafnia.  

Designer: Hanne Bach Hansen

Release date: January 2, 2024


Wave and Heart Design
definitive

Wave and Heart DesignWave and Heart Design

Wave and Heart Design Wave and Heart Design

Wave and Heart Design Wave and Heart Design

2 stamps, 2 FDCs, cancel, booklets of 10
offset

Designer: Bertil Skov Jørgensen

Release date: January 2, 2024


May 

EUROPA 2024: Underwater Flora & Fauna
The Breath of the Sea

Europa cancel

Denmark
The Breath of the Sea 

Denmark
The Breath of the Sea - Phycodrys rubens | Dumontia contorta | Ptilota gunneri   Denmark
The Breath of the Sea - Phycodrys rubens | Dumontia contorta | Ptilota gunneri

 

3 stamps, 2 FDCs, cancel
offset

Breath of the Sea – Phycodrys rubens | Dumontia contorta | Ptilota Gunneri

The first stamp  – Phycodrys rubens is Denmark’s official entry to the EUROPA competition.

Jørgensen used samples from Associate Professor Emeritus Ruth Nielsen’s herbarium. Dr. Nielsen specialises in microalgae, dried and slides, from Denmark, Iceland, the Faeroe Islands. To obtain the large crisp images of the 3 plants, Jørgensen scanned samples of the dried plants kept by the collection..

The Breath of the Sea – Havets åndedræt
In 2024, Post Europ has chosen the joint theme “Underwater Fauna & Flora,” which we have translated to “The Breath of the Sea.” Fjertang, in Latin Ptilota gunneri, is a worthy representative of the fantastic world found in the seas, fjords, sounds, and straits around our country. The stamp have been designed by Bertil Skov Jørgensen, known for a wide range of our stamps, and they have been created by scanning a dried original plant from Professor Emeritus Ruth Nielsen’s own herbarium.
Denmark post office info page

Designer: Bertil Skov Jørgensen with the help of Associate Professor Emeritus Ruth Nielsen’s collection
Jørgensen is a graduate of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and obtained his engraving training under Martin Mörck. 

Release date: May 23, 2024


Danish Postal Service Over 400 Years  
postal history | history 

Danish Postal Service Over 400 Years   cancel

Hafnia 2024 – Postman over 400 years

 Hafnia 2024 – Postman over 400 years

Hafnia 2024 – Postman over 400 years 

5 stamps, FDC, cancel, booklets of 10
offset

Postal delivery dates to December 24, 1624, when the Danish government issued the Decree on Mail Carriers

This became known as the birth certificate of the postal service. A total of nine postal routes were initially established, the most important of which connected Copenhagen and Hamburg. On this route, letters, parcels and freight were carried on carriages, while pedestrian mail carriers served the other routes, accepting only letters.

A postmaster was appointed in Copenhagen, tasked with being present at the Stock Exchange for two hours a day, and with dealing personally with both the administrative and the practical business. There is good reason why the regulation stipulated that this person was to be “a sober and industrious man”. When the mail carriers passed through the market towns, they were offered accommodation in hostels, for example, and their hosts were to receive and distribute letters to local people – even those who did not live on the postal route itself.
Post Danmark through history | PostNord

Each stamp highlights the changing faces of postal workers.

Designer: Thomas Thorhauge

Release date: May 23, 2024


King Frederik X
Joint Issue with Greenland and Faroe Islands

King Frederik X
 cancel

King Frederik X
Joint Issue with Greenland and Faroe Islands

King Frederik X
Joint Issue with Greenland and Faroe Islands King Frederik X
Joint Issue with Greenland and Faroe IslandsKing Frederik X
Joint Issue with Greenland and Faroe Islands

1 stamp on souvenir sheet, 2 FDCs, souvenir folder
offset

Photographer: Steen Evald
Designer: Ella Clausen

Release date: May 26, 2024


October  

Danish Post Office, 400 Years – Portrait Engravings

Portrait Engravings cancel
engraved_portraits_master1  engraved_portraits_master2 

Danish port FDCrait engravings Danish portrait engravings FDC

4 stamps on 2 souvenir sheets, 2 FDCs, cancel
offset

This tribute to the art of engraving features 3 outstanding engravers. Martin Mörck produced the Tove Ditlevsen and Karen Blixen portraits. Mörck is a legend in the stamp world, having produced some of the world’s outstanding works. The Søren Kierkegaard  stamp was the work of Bertil Skov Jørgensen and H.C. Andersern by Lars Sjööblom. 

Sheet one

  • Tove Ditlevsen, poet, novelist, essayist –  Mörck  based this stamp on a photograph by Erik Petersen. This image originally appeared in the 2010 Famous Danes series. 

    2010 Tove stamp

  • Søren Kierkegaard, theologian, philosopher, poet – the original portrait was created by Kierkegaard’s cousin. Jørgensen originally engraved this in 2013 as part of  the Anniversaries and Events series. 

    Soren Kierkegaard

Sheet two:

  • Karen Blixen, author who wrote under the name Isak Dinesen. Original was based on Blixen’s passport photo and was part of a photomontage by Johan Alkjær. It first appeared on the Europa (C.E.P.T.) 1980 – Famous People stamp and engraved by Arne Kühlmann. Martin Mörck handled engraving this time. 

    Europa (C.E.P.T.) 1980 - Famous People

  • H. C. Andersern, better known in English speaking countries as Hans Christian Andersen. The image was from an 1869 photograph by Thora Hallager and engraved by Lars Sjööblom. Previously appeared on a stamp for the Bicentenary of Birth Hans Cristian Andersen in 2005. Sjööblom engraved it as well, with Eric Mourier  and Mette Mourier on design duties. 

    HC Andersen

Designers/Engravers: Martin Mörck, Bertil Skov Jørgensen and Lars Sjööblom

Release date: October 3, 2024


December

Christmas Seals

Denmark seals 2024
Denmark seals 2024

Denmark seals 2024

There isn’t a philatelic Christmas stamp this year. The annual Christmas Seal set takes its place. Stamps, pins and notecards are available. 

This year’s seal motifs follow a tradition dating back to 1907, marking the current royal succession in Denmark and honoring the King and Queen. Alongside the King and Queen, the Christmas Seal features a wide array of historical symbols, from the Viking ships of the past to today’s royal yacht, from the runes on the Jelling Stone to the letters of the Constitution, from the sky symbols of the Sun Chariot to the Danish astronaut on a mission in space. Queen Mary Participates in the Presentation of 2024 Christmas Seal

Release date: October 3, 2024

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