Two commemorative stamps designed around the theme of Peace will be issued by Jersey Post on 9 May as part of the 2023 Europa stamp issue.

Each year, European postal administrations are given a stamp issue title to interpret by PostEurop, the trade association that has been representing European postal operators since 1993. The aim of the joint stamp issue is to build awareness of each other’s common roots, culture and history. For 2023, the theme is PEACE – The Highest Value of Humanity, with the stamps to be issued on Europe Day, an annual celebration of peace and unity in Europe.

This year, the Europa joint stamp issue took the form of a competition and Jersey Post was one of twenty-nine postal administrations from across Europe to submit a design on the theme.

The £1.85 stamp was designed for Jersey Post by local artist Ron Mills and represents the dove of peace. “The three ideals of love, unity and hope are represented by the hands of a woman, a man and a child, blended to create the shape of a dove,” explains Ron. “The smaller child’s hand, used to represent the dove’s tail feathers, signifies hope for the future of mankind. The dove of peace flies ever upwards, attempting to encircle the whole world with the promise of a brighter day.”

The 98p stamp features the winning entry and was created by Mrs. Linda Bos and Mrs. Runa Egilsdottir (A Designers Collective) for POST Luxembourg. The designers explain their vision as follows: “The world needs a new Peace symbol, uniting all nations. Cultural differences perchance a barrier for a state of Peace. If only mankind could respect each other’s differences by understanding their significance and responding to them with consideration, the world would be a better place. This design shows a visual metaphor for a peacefully integrated, cooperative society in which people embrace each other’s culture. It was inspired by the Celtic Love Knot symbol, with interlocking hearts. The colour palette illustrates all the nations in the world. By adding hands with intertwined fingers, it conveys the message of mutual respect.”

The Europa logo appears on both the 98p stamp and the £1.85 stamp, and the two Europa stamps have also been presented together in a souvenir miniature sheet.