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Stamps with apple and pear varieties in the Netherlands
PostNL has issued a new stamp sheet with 10 stamps depicting restyled images of old varieties of apples and pears. The illustrations come from 'De Nederlandsche Boomgaard', a 19th century reference work, from the Special Collections.
The “Apple and Pear Varieties in the Netherlands” stamp sheet was designed by graphic designer Bart de Haas. He was largely unfamiliar with our country's many apple and pear varieties before embarking on the design project. Virtually all the varieties featured on the stamp sheet are still grown on a small scale in the Netherlands.
Bart de Haas: "PostNL was looking to use historical illustrations, and while looking around for old drawings, I ended up at Wageningen University. It turned out their library had a copy of De Nederlandsche Boomgaard , a standard 19th-century reference work that includes beautiful illustrations of more than 100 apple and pear varieties. It wasn’t easy to make a selection of the varieties that are still available today as many types that were common at that time are no longer available. Liesbeth Missel, a librarian at Wageningen University, helped me do just that – based on both current availability and diversity in terms of size, shape, structure and colour".
You can order several products with these 10 stamps, including a single sheet, a post wallet and a booklet with recipes. Go to PostNL Collect Club for more information.
