Austria’s 2023 stamp program starts with a bit of art and a lot of varoom! Among their many strengths, Austrian designers can count the creation of stunning old motorbike & early car stamps. And this year is no different. The program kicks off with a Porsche, a classic motorbike and expressionism. But I’ll bet it’s not the Porsche you’ve come to recognise.
Over the years, Austria has pushed the traditional stamp design envelope to new limits, through their use of different materials (toilet paper, old postal uniforms, bandage materials). Österreichische Post is not afraid to experiment. Last year’s highlights included David Gruber’s fun Covid stamp that could be peeled and worn like a bandage. Although, if you want it to remain collectable, I would not recommend doing this.
This year should see at least one unorthodox set, but hopefully at least two.
2023 will be another year of interesting Crypto and NFT designs from Austria’s artists. 2022 produced everything from a modern look at the classic Mercury motifs to more gold NFTs.
The reworking of the old Mercury image was done by PR1MAL CYPHER. And I think it was inspired. The nod to the traditional design, in the bottom right corner was a nice touch. If you are interested in learning more about the use of Mercury on stamps, check out this -> More Austrian stamps for 2022 | Bitter Grounds Magazine. While NFTs and Cryptos will be listed here, don’t miss our catalogue for up to date information and details.
Keep a watch on this page for updates and new releases. Many items, such as special sheets, postcards and vending machine labels, are added as I find them. It often takes a couple passes through the extensive Austrian Post website to find everything. If you would like to receive update notifications sign up for my free weekly newsletter.
January
Enchanting Roses
20 self adhesive stamps on a sheet
Artist: Josef Lauer (1818- 1881)
Lauer was a still life painter who lived and worked in Vienna. He focused primarily on still life paintings of plants, flowers and birds. He studied at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna
Release date: January 1, 2023
Österreichische Galerie Belvedere – Upper Belvedere Palace
20 self adhesive stamps on a sheet
The Galerie Belvedere’s Upper Belvedere Gallery celebrates it’s 300th anniversary in 2023. Belvedere Museum Vienna | Home page. The Belvedere is 3 separate buildings, the Upper, Lower and 21, each showcasing different styles and eras of art. The Upper is housed in a Baroque castle and holds masterpieces from great artists like Klimt, Schiele, Funke, Messerschmidt and van Gogh.
Release date: January 1, 2023
Holly Pond Hill – I love you
4 stamps, 4 stickers
Holly Pond Hill is a series of illustrated children’s books, written by Paul F. Kortepeter and illustrated by Susan Wheeler
Release date: January 1, 2023
Royal angelfish
1st in series
Series: fish
1 stamp
Release date: January 2, 2023
Attractions in Austria
Series 4
4 stamps on sheet
- Leopoldine Temple, Burgenland
- St. Anne’s Column in Innsbruck, Tyrol
- Senftenberg Castle ruins, Lower Austria
- St. Stephen’s Cathedral, Vienna
Release date: January 2, 2023
Beethoven Frieze
8th in series
8 stamps
Beethoven Frieze – Gustav Klimt 1902
… painted by Klimt in 1902 for the 14th Vienna Secessionist exhibition, which was intended to be a celebration of the composer and featured a monumental polychrome sculpture by Max Klinger. Meant for the exhibition only, the frieze was painted directly on the walls with light materials. After the exhibition the painting was preserved, although it did not go on display again until 1986. The Beethoven Frieze is now on permanent display in the Vienna Secession Building. Beethoven Frieze, 1902 by Gustav Klimt (gustav-klimt.com)
Release date: January 2, 2023
Summer 2023
2 vending machine stamps
Three overprints available:
- Philatelie Shop
- “VÖPH
- Sonderpostamt
Release date: January 9, 2023
Violincello
Series: Musikland Österreich
1 stamp, 2 FDCs, cancel sheets of 10 (not shown), black print, black print sheets of 10, info sheet
offset
Designer: Kirsten Lubach
Release date: January 18, 2023
Max Oppenheimer – Tilla Durieux, 1912
Series: Modern art in Austria
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, black print, info sheet
offset
The painting is a portrait of Tilla Durieux (1880-1971), oil on canvas, painted 1912. The painting is currently held by the Leopold Museum in Vienna.
She was a celebrated star of the film and theater, a modern woman of the 1920s, politically active and perhaps the most portrayed woman of her time. The roles of Tilla Durieux (1880–1971) were as varied as the artists for whom she posed as a model, among them Auguste Renoir, Max Slevogt, Lovis Corinth, Franz von Stuck, Charley Toorop, Ernst Barlach, Oskar Kokoschka, Max Oppenheimer and the photographers Lotte Jacobi and Frieda Riess. TILLA DURIEUX | Current | EXHIBITIONS | Leopold Museum
Oppenheimer was a pioneer in the expressionist movement. If you happen to be in Vienna from October 4, 2023 to February 25, 2024, you can catch their MAX OPPENHEIMER EXPRESSIONIST PIONEER exhibition.
With this long-overdue, large-scale exhibition, the Leopold Museum intends to shed new light on the eminent and ground-breaking oeuvre of Max Oppenheimer, which has unjustly fallen into oblivion, and to explore the wealth of his works’ motifs. Furthermore, the presentation looks at the role of the artist and his networks through his contemporaries Oskar Kokoschka and Egon Schiele MAX OPPENHEIMER | Preview | EXHIBITIONS | Leopold Museum
Designer: Regina Simon
Release date: January 19, 2023
Ferdinand Porsche – Elektro-Automobil
Series: Austrian inventions
1 stamp, 2 FDCs, cancel, sheets of 10, black print, black print sheet, info sheet
offset
Ferdinand Porsche worked with Ludwig Lohner to create this 1899 electric car. It is generally considered the first working electric car.
While working at Lohner-Werke, Porsche developed a drivetrain with low-friction by mounting the electric motors to the hubs. These motors directly drove the wheels. Each motor had the capability of 2.5 to 3.5 horsepower and up to a maximum of 7 horsepower for short bursts. In the beginning, the “System Lohner-Porsche” prototypes were two-wheel drive. The Lohner-Porsche Mixed Hybrid: The First Electric Vehicle – Electric Vehicle USA (evusa.org)
Designer: David Gruber
Release date: January 27, 2023
February
Mariazell
1st in series
series: churches
1 stamp
Release date: February 1, 2023
KTM R100
Series: Motorcycles
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, info sheet, black print
offset
10 Things Everyone Forgot About KTM And Their Motorcycles (hotcars.com)
Designer: David Gruber
Release date: February 15, 2023
KTM X-BOW GTX 2020
Series: Automobiles
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, info sheet, black print
offset
X-BOW GTX 2020 – Ultimate track weapon – KTM
Designer: David Gruber
Release date: February 15, 2023
Congratulations & Mourning – 2023
Special occasions
2 stamps, 2 FDCs, 2 cancels, 2 info sheets, 2 black prints
The first stamp is a congratulations or celebration stamp. The second one uses an old mourning motif, the black feather, to be used obituaries or condolence letters.
Designer: Theresa Radlingmaie
Release date: February 22, 2023
Birth of Peter Anich (1723-1766)
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, black print, info sheet
offset
Anich was an 18th cartographer and maker of precise mathematical instruments. He studied under Ignaz Weinhart (1705–1787), a Professor of Mathematics and Physics at the University of Innsbruck, learning maths, astronomy and the skills needed to create various measuring instruments.
In the late 1750s Anich was commissioned, by Joseph Freiherr von Sperg, to carry out various surveys around the Tyrolean-Venetian border. In 1760, he was commissioned to survey the northern Tyrol region. Anich died before he could complete what would be considered the most accurate map of the times. His assistant Blasius Hueber was able to complete the map, using Anich’s methods.
It is the first map of the province of Tyrol based on a geodetic survey. Moreover, the Atlas Tyrolensis is due to its scale, its precision and the size of the area depicted, after all, the County of Tyrol, including the principalities of Brixen and Trento 26,000 km2, the first uniformly designed map of a European country. It is one of the most important international cartographic achievements of the 18th century.
Zur Entstehungsgeschichte des Atlas Tyrolensis pg. 3 by Wilfried Beimrohr
courtesy © Tiroler Landesarchiv 2006
Designer: Theresa Radlingmaie
Release date: February 25, 2023
March
Wildcat
1st in series
series: wild animals
1 stamp
Release date: March 1, 2023
Flowers
4th in series
4 stamps
- Oenothera
- campanula
- snow-rose
- nasturtium
Release date: March 1, 2023
Spring awakening in Austria
8th in series
8 stamps on a sheet
Release date: March 1, 2023
Herbarium
20th in series
20 stamps
Release date: March 1, 2023
Sea Creature
20th in series
20 stamps
Release date: March 1, 2023
Power of Flowers
postcards
10 postcards, 6 stamps
Release date: March 1, 2023
Spring on Holly Pond Hill
postcard
6 postcards
Release date: March 1, 2023
Definitive Stamps from 1916 – 1918 – Emperor Francis Joseph
Series: classic stamps
2 stamps, FDC, cancel, black print, info sheet
offset (original stamps were letterpress printings)
These stamps were originally released September 1916 to September 1918.
Original designer: Rudolf Junk (1880-1943)
Junk was an Austrian graphic designer who worked or the Austrian State Printing Office. He designed both bank notes and stamps. He also designed a few stamps or Liechtenstein.
Designer: Anita Kern
Release date: March 4, 2023
Loyalty Bonus Stamp – Iris (Iris germanica)
1 stamp, cancel
This stamp was released as part of the annual loyalty bonus program and not for general sale
Designer: Brigitte Heiden
Release date: March 4, 2023
Pope Benedict XVI
1 stamp, FDC, cancel. black print, info sheet
Designer: Kirsten Lubach
Release date: March 4, 2023
Butterfly – Eriogaster catax
Series: Perikularium – endangered insects
1 stamp, cancel, sheets of 10
offset
Eastern Eggar Conservation Case Study | The Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund
Designer: Theresa Radlingmaier
Release date: March 4, 2023
100th anniversary of the publication of “The Language of Bees”
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, black print, info sheet
Designer: Marion Füllerer
Release date: March 4, 2023
April
Austria’s Natural Treasures
4th in series
4 stamps on sheet
offset
- Lobau, Vienna
- Puszta Landscape, Burgenland
- Karwendel, Tyrol
- Körbersee, Vorarlberg
Release date: April 4, 2023
Village churches – Gosau, Upper Austria
1 stamp
Release date: April 4, 2023
The Jezersko–Solčava – Spectacled Sheep
Series: old animal breeds
1 stamp, cancel, sheets of 10, black and white print, info sheet, 2 FDCs
offset
Roy’s Farm has a page on this particular breed, including alternate names, history of the breed and where it’s commonly used Jezersko Solčava Sheep Characteristics, Uses & Origin (roysfarm.com).
Designer: Kirsten Lubach
Release date: April 15, 2023
20g Golden Whale – Crypto 4.0
Topic: Marine Mammal Rescue Day
Stamp + NFT NFC + 20-gram gold bar
Tokapi blockchain
Designer: Julia Obermüller
Release date: April 17, 2023
200th Anniversary of Lobmeyr
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, black print, info sheet
offset
Family owned Lobmeyr was founded in 1823 by Josef Lobmeyr, Sr.
Designer: Marion Füllerer
Release date: April 20, 2023
Silhouette – Futura
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, black print, info sheet
offset
Linz based luxury sunglass and eyeglass company that was formed in 1964
Designer: Martin Fößleitner
Release date: April 26, 2023
Lentos Art Museum Linz – 20th Anniversary
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, black print, info sheet
offset
Designer: Karin Klier
Release date: April 27, 2023
May
Fire Lily
Series: Flowers
1 stamp
Fire Lily (Cyrtanthus ventricosus) Fire lily | Kew
Release date: May 2, 2023
Wonderful Austria
20 stamps on sheet
Release date: May 2, 2023
Castles in Austria
8th in series
8 stamps
Release date: May 2, 2023
Sights in Austria
4th in series
4 stamps on sheet
- Pilgrimage church of Tschagguns, Vorarlberg
- Rosenburg Castle, Lower Austria
- Ruins of Prandegg, Upper Austria
- Kreuzberglkirche Klagenfurt, Carinthia
Release date: May 2, 2023
Let’s Party!
4 stamps, 4 stickers
Release date: May 2, 2023
European Capitals of Culture
20 stamps on sheet
Release date: May 2, 2023
Sport in motion Hurdling, Pole Vaulting, and Javelin Throwing
3 stamps, 3 FDCs, cancel, 3 info sheets, 3 black prints
offset
- Hurdling
- Pole Vaulting,
- Javelin Throwing
Designer: Anita Kern
Release date: May 5, 2023
2023 Stamp Day – sustainable mobility
1 stamp, 2 FDCs, cancel, sheets of 16, info sheet, 2 black prints
offset
Electric van tested by Austria post in the interwar period.
1935 Gräf & Stift by the Vienna E-Werke
Wiener Automobilfabrik A.G., vorm. Gräf & Stift
Designer: Anita Kern
Release date: May 5, 2023
EUROPA 2023: Peace – the highest value of humanity
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, info sheet, black print
offset
Designers Peace knot: Linda Bos / Runa Egilsdottir, Esch-sur-Alzette
Design: Marion Füllerer
Release date: May 5, 2023
300th Anniversary of the Upper Belvedere
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, info sheet, black print
offset
This 17th century palace was built for Prince Eugene of Savoy who used it as his summer residence. Designed by Johann Lucas von Hildebrandt (1668-1775). This baroque palace now houses an extensive art collection. The Belvedere has three sections – the Upper, Lower and 21. Austria post issued a 20 stamp pack celebrating the art in January of this yar.
Designer: Theresa Radlingmaier
Release date: May 5, 2023
Host pyx
1 stamp, FDC, maxicard, cancel, info sheet, black print
offset
Liturgical vessel housed at the Museum of Mining and Gothic Art Leogang. According to the Museum, this pyx was once carried by the archbishops of Salzburg during their travels.
The fire-gilded copper vessel with lid and cross finial from around 1200 is decorated with the finest enamel, in the so-called champlevé technique, depressions in the surface were filled with vitreous enamel. This earliest form of enamel work in Europe originates from Limoges in southern France; the city is still known today for its enamel art and its porcelain. Commemorative stamp Host pyx – PostAG
Designer: Kirsten Lubach
Release date: May 5, 2023
June
Beautiful Austria
4 stamps on souvenir sheet, cancel, info sheet, black print
Designer: Roland Vorlaufer
Release date: June 10, 2023
100th Birthday of Inge Morath – Photographer
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, info sheet, black print
offset
“To take pictures had become a necessity and I did not want to forgo it for anything “
– Inge Morath
These two sites have good write ups (and an interview with) Moranth:
Biography Captures The Charisma And Confidence Of Photographer Inge Morath : NPR
Inge Morath • Photographer Profile • Magnum Photos
Designer: David Gruber
Release date: June 10, 2023
Mariastein Pilgrimage Church near Kirchbichl-Kufstein
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, info sheet, black print
offset
Pilgrimage Church of Mariastein | Attractions | Austrian Tirol (tyrol.com)
Designer: Kirsten Lubach
Release date: June 10, 2023
Crypto 5 – Bears
1 Crypto NFT
5 different colours
Designer:
Release date: June 23, 2023
Crypto Safe
The Crypto Safe is issued in conjunction with Crypto 5.0 Bear. There are three NFTs you can use to pair up with a Bear crypto stamp to unlock a digital twin. The three symbols when combined with a crystal bear become:
The safe is the first crypto released by Austria that isn’t an animal motif. You have to unlock the safe to achieve a baby bear.
Release date: June 23, 2023
July
Brunnwirt, Fuschl am See – Brunnwirt Inn
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, info sheet, black print
offset
This stamp and cancel celebrates the Brunnwirt Inn.. For about 600 years it has run almost continuously as a family run restaurant/inn. Currently owed by the sixth generation of the Brandstätter family, First noted in written records around 1400, it was called the Taverne zu Prunn. It was originally owned by Görig Nutz, Chuntz Ayrtrager, his daughter Wallpurgis and her husband Georg Ebner. FAMILY TRADITION – since 1400 – Brunnwirt Essen & Wohnen, Fuschl am See
The cancel reads Gastronomy with tradition.
Designer: Regina Simon
Simon’s first stamp was the 2015 Red House (Vorarlberg) for Austria’s Dining with Tradition.
Release date: July 13, 2023
Achensee Railway
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, info sheet, black print
offset
This is the latest in a long series of stamps issued to commemorate rails in Austria. The Achensee still runs along a 6.78 kilometre stretch of long gauge rail near Lake Achen in Tyrol. This coal-fired steam engine is one of the oldest still in operation in Europe.
Designer Peter Sinawehl
Sinawehl has designed over 60 stamps for Austria Post. Among them is the 2022 Raab-Oedenburg-Ebenfurth Railway, 150th Anniversary, 2021 WESTbahn (Multiple Unit 4010)m, 2020 Graz-Köflach Railways Series VT 10, 2019 125 years Gmunden Tram and Mariazell Railway,
His first stamps were the 1968 Stamp Exhibition IFA pair Etrich Taube and Sud Aviation SE-210 Caravelle.
Release date: July13, 2023
175th anniversary of “Die Presse”
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, info sheet, black print
offset
Die Presse was founded during the tumultuous Year of Revolutions 1848. The revolutions were a series widespread pro democracy and workers rights protests and revolts that swept across Europe. They were triggered by growing dissatisfaction with the ruling status quo. It was a spontaneous revolt, with no central leadership that spread to 50 countries.
The first edition was printed July 3, 1848. The paper is still i operation. News | DiePresse.com
Designer: David Jablonski
Release date: July 19, 2023
FVCKRENDER x Crypto stamp art
Tokapi
Blockchain: Ethereum
ALPINE STAR
Uses the image of the edelweiss flower, Austria‘s national flower.
3 variations, 222 copies each
ETERNAL FLOWER
Ewige Blume or eternal flower is another name for edelweiss
3 variations, 222 copies each
Artist: Frédéric Duquette, aka Fvckrender
Release date: July 27, 2023
August
Hans Kupelwieser
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, info sheet, black print
offset
Issued to celebrate Kupelwieser’s 75th birthday.
Artwork by Kupelwiser: untitled relief made in 2020, anodised aluminium, 170 by 180 by 30 centimetres.
Hans Kupelwieser (de)
Designer: Regina Sim
Release date: August 8, 2023
150th anniversary of the Vienna World’s Fair
1 stamp, cancel
offset
The Vienna’s World’s Fair took place May 1, 1873 amid the turmoil of a major stock market crash and a raging cholera epidemic that shook Austria. It ran from May 1 to October 31, with 35 countries participating. As a result of both the epidemic and stock market problems, the number of visitors was lower than anticipated, with 7,255,000 people attending. The previous Fair, in Paris had 41 participating countries with 15,000,000 attending.
The image on the stamp depicts the Rotunda, a large domed building that was the centre of the fair. It tragically burned down in 1937.
Images courtesy 1873 Vienna (bie-paris.org)
Designer: Anita Kern
Release date: August 23, 2023
Parasol Mushrooms
1 stamp, cancel
offset
Designer: Marion Füllerer
Release date: August 25, 2023
Postal Bus ET 13
\
1 stamp, cancel
offset
Postbus started up in 1907, with a passenger route on along the Neumarkt and Predazzo in South Tyrol. By 1913, service had expanded along with the need for a better vehicle. The ET 13 went into operation on the Reutte – Sonhofen (Tyrol-Bavaria) line and eventually expanded to include 100 vehicles.
This 1913 bus operated postal bus passenger route. It could carry up to 16 passengers.
About Postbus – Postbus
Designer: David Gruber
Release date: August 25, 2023
September
100th Anniversary of Bambi
1 stamp, cancel
offset
The timeless classic Bambi was written by Austrian Felix Salten (1869-1945) . Bambi. A Life in the Woods started life as a newspaper serial and it was turned into a novel in 1923.
Designer: Marion Füllerer
Release date: September 16, 2023
150th Anniversary of Vienna’s First Mountain Spring Pipeline
1 stamp, cancel
offset
The first mountain spring pipe was created October 24, 1873. It moved spring water from the mountains of Rax-Schneeberg region to Hochstrahlbrunnen fountain in Vienna’s Schwarzenbergplatz Square. It was planned and carried out by Antonio Gabrielli and geologist Eduard Suess
Designer: David Gruber
Release date: September 20, 2023
Julia Haugeneder – artist
1 stamp, cancel
offset
Wien Museum has a fascinating article on Haugeneder. They explore the organic material she uses as well as process used to create her works.
The end result is given a sculptural character by Haugeneder’s special folding technique and is subject to a number of factors that influence its surface structure, colour and stability. For example, the floor that serves as a substrate for the layers, the choice of color pigments or the folding process itself: “It’s a one-way street – when I start with it, I just have to go through with it,” says Haugeneder, i.e. what lies pecks. This certain unpredictability is also part of the appeal of her folding objects.
Designer: Theresa Radlingmaier
Art: Faltung (Folding) 139, 2020 by Julia Haugeneder
Faltung is part of a larger display of folding sculpture.
Release date: September 26, 2023
100th Anniversary of the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) – NFT
1 stamp, cancel, souvenir folder, FDC, info sheet
digital and screen printing on acrylic glass
This stamp is an innovative. It uses recycled acrylic glass to mimic an old railway sign commonly found at all stations. There are 1,031 different blue sections to collected – each one with a different train station that was in use at one point in the line’s history. The blue acrylic stamps have a small magnet attached and used as fridge magnets.
Each stamp in turn has an NFT chip embedded that can be triggered using a smart phone. It will allow an animated journey of an old “steam locomotive entering a tunnel and emerging as a modern electric locomotive”.
“The stamps were printed in multiple phases using screen and digital printing processes, mirrored on the reverse side, similar to reverse glass painting. The printed panels were then precision cut using high-precision lasers, including the characteristic perforations associated with stamps. On the reverse side of the slips with the station names, there’s a thin magnetic film, allowing the miniature station sign to be affixed to objects like a fridge.” Commemorative stamp 100 th anniversary of ÖBB – PostAG
Designer: David Gruber
Release date: September 30, 2023
October
Saint Elisabeth and the Miracle of the Roses – Mosaic of Saint Elizabeth of Thuringia
1 stamp, cancel, FDC, maxi card, info sheet, black print
offset
The mosaic was created by Carl Ederer and Tyrolean Stained Glass and Mosaic Workshop
Designer: Kirsten Lubach
Release date: October 6, 2023
Ingeborg Bachmann (1926–1973) – Writer
new series: Literature from Austria
1 stamp, cancel, sheets of 10, black print sheet, 2 FDCs, info sheet, black print single stamp
offset
Ingeborg Bachmann | Poetry Foundation has a brief, but interesting bio on Bachmann.
Designer: Roland Vorlaufer
Previous stamps by Vorlaufer include the 2021 Würstelstand , 2020 Christmas, 2018 Dispenser stamps.
Release date: October 11, 2023
Christmas
Each year Austria releases a number of stamps that celebrate Christmas, or have a Christmas feel. They issue both religious and secular themes stamps. This year, I’ve pulled them together under this subheading because so many people enjoy collecting Christmas stamps. This year, there are 6 Christmas/Winter themed stamps to look for.
Christmas Sweater
1 stamp, cancel, FDC, info sheet
offset on flocked paper with +Pantone 185C
Part of an ongoing series titled “philatelic winter wardrobe”, that includes toques and mittens.
Designer: David Gruber
Release date: October 21, 2023
November
Christmas Snow crystal
1 stamp, cancel
offset
Designer: Marion Füllerer
Release date: November 17, 2023
Christmas – Festive Sledge
1 stamp, cancel
offset
Designer: Kirsten Lubach
Release date: November 17, 2023
Christmas – Holy Family
Parish church Waldhausen in Strudengau
1 stamp, cancel, maxi card
offset
17th c painting by unknown south German artist.
A special presentation will be held at the library in the parish of Waldhausen im Strudengau. It will be jointly hosted by the Strudengau philatelists, the parish of Waldhausen and the municipality of Waldhausen
Special presentation
If you are lucky enough to be in the area and attend, drop me a note and let me know about it.
Waldhausen im Strudengau – GEM2GO WEB – Home
Designer: Theresa Radlingmaier
Release date: November 17, 2023
120th anniversary of the Vienna Workshop / 100th Anniversary of the Death of Dagobert Peche
2 stamps on souvenir sheet, cancel
ofset
Josef Hoffmann, Koloman Moser, and Fritz Waerndorfer founded the Vienna Workshop in 1903 as an association of artists who designed and produced jewellery, furniture, textiles, ceramics, glass, graphics, and print graphics. Dagobert Peche (1887–1923) was regarded as an “ornament genius”; he designed jewellery, furniture, and fabrics and headed the Zurich branch of the Vienna Workshop from 1917 to 1919. In 1921, he also designed stamps, but these were never realised. The miniature sheet features a female head, one of these designs from the postal archive. On the second stamp, there’s a design for the fabric “Geranium” from the MAK, created by Felice Rix (1893–1967) around 1929. From 1914, she worked for the Vienna Workshop, primarily designing ceramics, wallpapers, textiles, and fashion accessories.
Designer: Theresa Radlingmaier
Release date: November 21, 2023
The New Wien Museum
1 stamp, cancel
offset
Artwork: Prater whale. The sculpture was owned by the restaurant Zum Walfisch, where it hung until 2016. It was donated to the New Wien Museum while it was still under re-construction.
Sculptor: Maria Benke. 1951
10 meters long
Weight 1.4 tons
Constructed of wood and copper plate
Eyes glow blue in dark and also acts as water fountain via it’s blowhole.
The Whale was a landmark for 6 decades, sitting outside the restaurant until it closed in 2013. When the Whale was originally moved the Zum Walfisch restaurant location, it traveled along the Zweierlinie line. Austrian brewery Gösser arranged to film the move and used the film for advertising for years. In 2013, when the restaurant closed, the owners ordered the Whale to be destroyed and pieces recycled. Luckily the owner of the demolition company contracted to do so, didn’t follow the orders and stored it on his premises for a couple of years.
In 2016, the Whale was “rediscovered” by people working for Prater . It was donated to the new museum, but held at a depot until the space was ready and the Whale was restored after so many years of exposure to the elements and neglect. During restoration it gained 1.7 tones of added weight courtesy the wooden beams and a tubular steel used to reinforce the frame.
It was finally moved into place July 19, 2022, while the Wien museum was still undergoing construction. It was decided to do this before construction was completed because of the size and weight of the sculpture. It couldn’t be moved in after, so it was hoisted into place before the walls were fully erected.
The New Life of the Prater Whale ⋆ Prater.at has a series of photos showing the Whale in it’s original location and it moving to the museum.
Designer: David Gruber
Release date: November 21, 2023
NO to Violence Against Women
1 stamp, cancel
offset
Designer: Marion Füllerer
Release date: November 25, 2023
December
Christmas – Snow Globe
1 stamp, cancel
offset
Designer: Roland Vorlaufer
Release date: December 1, 2023
Parish Church Oppenberg – Adoration of Kings
1 stamp, cancel
Designer: Kirsten Lubach
Release date: December 1, 2023
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