Dear Collector

As Australia gears up for this year’s Commonwealth Games, to be held on Queensland’s Gold Coast, we at Philatelic wish participating Australian athletes every success.

We are proud to release the official stamp issue to mark the Commonwealth Games in Queensland. You’ll find the official stamp design and associated products outlined on page 14.

Details of the 2018 Australia Post Australian Legends can be found on page 4. The stamp issue was released on 18 January and features some household names of the small screen. Each Legend continues to charm and entertain Australian audiences through their unique style of performance.

This edition also introduces some food labels to which we can all relate. Vintage Jam Labels is a colourful stamp issue that looks back on the era of tinned jam production in Australia and the use of beautiful labelling to market these products.

Two stamp releases in March feature fauna from Australia and the Australian Antarctic Territory. The first of these represents four of Australia’s 19 species of finch. These small birds with their distinct markings can be found in various habitats, with the Zebra Finch found across most of Australia. The second features the Crabeater Seal, the most numerous of the seal species found in the Antarctic. The four stamps illustrate aspects and behaviours of these fascinating animals.

The fifth and final stamp issue in the series titled A Century of Service focuses on the commemoration of Australian service personnel through war memorials. The stamps show national and overseas war memorials, and these represent the similar places of memorialisation that can be found in our major cities and in suburbs and country towns.

In April we celebrate the Queen’s 92nd birthday with the annual Queen’s Birthday issue. Also for release in April is the Norfolk Island Wrasses stamp issue, featuring a selection of these brilliantly coloured fish..

Michael Zsolt

Manager, Philatelic, Australia Post

This content was produced at the time of the Stamp Bulletin publication date and will not be updated.