Since I began collecting space thematic postage stamps, I have seen several very distinct designs appear in the mixed lots that I usually buy. One set that caught my eye was a 10 stamp commemorative set from Poland in 1963.
The very distinctive style of colour block and reversed out white line drawing, covers space milestones beginning with the conception of space travel via rocket in 1903, by Konstantin Tsiolkovsky and marking both Soviet and American milestones in the space race, up to the point of issue.
As the Soviet Union were very keen to keep their programme secret at the time, its interesting to note that the Vostok spacecraft depicted on the stamps only bear a passing resemblance to the actual spacecraft and the Lunik 2 stamp, only shows the spherical emblem that was deposited on the lunar surface following the intentional impact of the probe.
The stamps designer is listed as Jerzy Dresselberger and each stamp has an image of the craft and a diagram of the orbital path, apart from the Tsiolkovsky stamp, which includes an algebraic equation.
It’s interesting to note the inclusion of the final stamp for the Soviet Mars 1 probe, as it ceased communication with Earth in March 1963, before reaching Mars, due to an onboard systems failure. Whilst the Soviet Union was always keen to whitewash any failures and cover up its disasters, the set was probably published following the successful launch of the probe.
