When I titled this “Drifting through the Polish Crypto 2024 stamps” it was done as a tribute to Polish artist Andrzej Gosik. This is now the 3rd year for Poland’s dive into the Crypto stamp world, and they’ve created an impressively diverse catalogue of designs and topics, including my favourite set by Gosik. If you are new to Bitter Grounds, and come strictly for the cryptos, welcome. This page is devoted to delving into the designs and artists. If you want to read up on the nuts and bolts of each issue, my friend Luc’s crypto-stamps.org site is the best resource around. Prices, numbers, details that are often left out on my writeups can be found there. He also has a store and offers cryptos for sale when he has them. 

One annoyance I’ve come across, when dealing with cryptos, is the lack of a linear layout for the yearly releases. Some stamps are reissues of regular postage, and others are extensions of previous issues. All too often the dates trip over each other, adding to the confusion. One of the main objectives here, is to clarify dates and if they are reissues, especially of regular stamp releases. Hopefully this will be a gentle introduction to the new crypto stamp world for traditional collectors.  That being said, you are bound to stumble across the odd error in the details. I’m usually in such a rush to get to the fun design info, I occasionally slip up. If you spot a mistake, I’d be grateful if you’d pop me a message. 

Among my favourite cryptos to date, as mentioned above, is Andrzej Gosik’s cyberpunkish In the Sky 2nd ed. Gosik’s dirigibles and balloons were a natural choice for an NFT/crypto set. And I have a passion for cyberpunk, both literature and art, so when these stamps appeared, I was excited. 

Gosik is a long-time designer for Poczta Polska, with many stamps to his credit. This set initially appeared as regular stamps on October 18, 2023, and was quickly turned into a crypto version. A brilliant set and the FDCs are even better. 

As time goes by, I’ll tweak the crypto pages. If you’d like to see Poland’s regular stamp issues, wander forth to Poland | Polska 2024 to enjoy the latest designs. I’ve already begun on the 2023 and 2022 crypto seasons, but they’ll take time to edit. I have a few more details I’m hunting down. In the meantime, enjoy 2024.

Cheers
Catpaw

Block chain Polygon.

February

Valentine’s Day NFT Stamp 1.0
Special Edition

Purple
Copies: 100

March

25 years of Poland in NATO NFT N° K5
Special Edition

The Battle of Vienna – July 14 to September 11, 1683
Special edition

Battle of Khotyn (Sept. 2 – 9, 1621)
Special Edition

Total copies: 4,000

Originally released as a regular stamp 75 years of the “Mazowsze”, November 8, 2023, and the crypto stamp released December 18, 2023

In the Sky 2nd Ed

This series was originally issued as regular stamps October 18, 2023. The first In the Sky set featured Poland in Space

The issue “In the Sky” is the latest main collection of the Polish Cryptostamp, marked with the number 2.0. It presents surreal paintings of balloons by the renowned artist Andrzej Gosik, who is both a painter, illustrator and author of watercolors. The compositions are full of fairy-tale references, have a mysterious character, and are dominated by an unusual language of forms. An important element of this style is its ambiguity, which stimulates deeper reflection and one’s own interpretations. In 2022, Gosik’s entire collection of works of art was presented at an exhibition organized at the Castle-Museum in Łańcut, which was an expression of appreciation for Jan Potocki – the first Pole to travel in a balloon in 1790.
poczta-polska.pl/cyfrowa-filatelistyka-poczta-polska-wprowadza-nowa-kolekcje-kryptoznaczkow/

Artist: Andrzej Gosik
Award winning artist Gosik has also designed over 100 stamps for Poland. 

My paintings, initially only oleine and acrylic, and finally watercolor, have been with me for several decades. It is clearly divided into two trends: realistic (landscape, portrait) and surrealist. Both are now represented primarily in watercolor. In my surrealist paintings, I use a lot of technical experiments in order to achieve interesting, graphically differentiated textures. Andrzej Gosik Paintings | Polish Art & Design Gallery (polish-art.eu)

The 5th stamp was created by Rafał Trandyk aka Topteam, a member of the Polish Crypto Stamp community. Trandyk is also known for his participation in the Chess.com world. 

Designer: Roch Stefaniak

base paints (cmyk) + metallic paint + UV ink + InkJet (personalization)

Release date: March 27, 2024

Traditional philatelic folders with a special NFT add-on and FDC. Each folder contains the regular (non-perfed) stamp (2,000 copies). The NFT token reveals animated balloons. As well 4 cards accompany each set.  

The Polish Crypto stamp collection also includes digital Philatelic Thalers, which are a special type of tokens.

CATEGORY 1

 
Copies: 7 000

FDC Copies: 300
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CATEGORY 2

Copies: 5,000

FDC Copies: 300

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CATEGORY 3

Copies: 3,000

FDC Copies: 300  

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CATEGORY 4

Copies: 2,000

FDC Copies: 300

Category 5 – Artwork by Rafał Trandyk aka Topteam

Copies: 2,000

Crypto Folder

Copies: 2,000
Folder includes NFT token with animation, an unperforated block of the regular stamps” In the skies” four cards on polyvinyl chloride.

April

350th Anniversary of the Battle of Khotyn 

The Battle of Khotyn in 1621 is one of the most important events of the 17th century. The Turkish Empire, led by Sultan Osman II, sought to capture Ukraine, Poland and Western Europe in order to possess the main part of Europe and prove its invincibility. As a result of the war, the Turkish-Tatar army lost, and was forced to retreat and sign the Peace of Khotyn. The Battle of Khotyn 1621 | GWZO (leibniz-gwzo.de) No longer available 

Release date: April 18, 2024

Designer: Joanna Fleszar-Haspert 
The central figure was taken from an oil painting titled “Battle of Chocim 1673”, by A. Stech and F. van Kessel, Boris Wolnitsky National Art Gallery of Lviv.

Silver
Copies: 300  

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Gold
Copies: 70