The Isle of Man Post Office has issued a set of eight stamps to commemorate the Apollo space program and the 50th Anniversary of the first manned flight to land on the Moon, which saw lift-off on July 16th 1969 and landed four days later on July 20th.
With designs showcasing the beauty of space, the Moon and the vehicles that took humanity to its surface, the set was launched at a special occasion at NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston and previewed at a cosmology event in Europe, with attendees including astronauts Buzz Aldrin, Al Worden, Rusty Schweickart, Chris Hadfield, Nicole Stott and British astronaut Tim Peake.
Working with former Director of NASA's Johnson Space Center George Abbey, nicknamed 'The Astronaut Maker', former astronauts and the NASA administration, London design agency Glazier Design has been commissioned by the Isle of Man Post Office to create a set of stamps befitting of this most important mission.
Through subtle references, micro text codes and mission quotes, the stamps pay tribute to the incredible NASA staff in Mission Control, the astronauts, the program directors and those who gave their lives for the Apollo missions. The references include secret binary codes honouring the crew that died in Apollo 1, quotes from the missions, GPS references on Earth and the Moon and important dates and times.
Maxine Cannon, Isle of Man Stamps & Coins General Manager said: "The Moon landing and the Apollo program were milestones in the history of space travel and therefore deserve to be commemorated. We are very proud to honour the anniversary of the Moon landing with these impressive pictures captured on our stamps and are grateful to NASA and George Abbey in particular, for their support and assistance in bringing this collection to life."
Former NASA Astronaut Nicole Stott, who spent a total of over 100 days in space during her two missions, said: "50 years ago this July two people stepped out onto the Moon, humanity's first footsteps on another planetary body watched by the then largest television audience in history. The actions of these two men were supported by thousands more men and women on the ground. Many missions came before and came after Apollo 11. Now 50 years on we are only just now beginning to take those very same steps again, but this time we stay for good and like before for the good of all."
Ben Glazier of Glazier Design said "I was born during the Apollo 11 mission, so the moon landing has been with me all my life. To create a set of stamps to mark such an important event for humanity has a deep personal meaning for me. As humanity moves out into space with planned missions returning to the Moon and then on to Mars, we are honoured to play a small part in this great human expansion."
The 'One Small Step' collection is available as Set and Sheet Set, A5 Sheetlet, Presentation Pack, First Day Cover and a Prestige Booklet from www.iompost.com/moonlanding.
For further information, visit the microsite www.moonlandingstamps.com.
TECHNICAL DETAILS
Text: George Abbey, Benedict Glazier
Design: Glazier Design
Printer: Lowe Martin
Process: Offset Lithography
Colours: 4 colour plus varnish
Paper: 110 gms PVA gummed
Perforations: 14 per 2cms
Stamp Size: 40 x 40mm
No. of Stamps: 8
Format: 24 stamps per sheet (12 x 2 designs)
NOTES TO EDITORS
Imagery
Hi-res imagery of the stamps and photography from the launch event are available.
Photography © Roman Stott & Ben Glazier, 2019.
Contacts
Press and Image enquiries
Nicole Livingston – nicole.livingston@iompost.com
Isle of Man Post Office:
Maxine Cannon - maxine.cannon@iompost.com