Dec 29, 2025 Book of the Week – Christmas Stamps From Around the World

“But well or poorly designed and printed, in a collector’s album or on billions of Christmas greetings each year, each stamp has a message of its own, best expressed in the words of the original good tidings of great joy!”
– Belmont Faries

Dear Rare Reader,

We hope that those who celebrate had a happy and joyous Christmas. This blog post is the last in a three-part series.
To read the preceding posts, click here.

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As any recipient or sender of a holiday card knows, season’s greetings would be incomplete without the postal stamp. Small but mighty, the stamp ensures that the holiday spirit reaches loved ones near and far. To some, the stamp’s potential is so fascinating that they can’t help but study and collect the small object. People like these are known as “philatelists” and have been creating a community through the study of stamps since the latter half of the nineteenth century, near the time that the penny post was first invented.

The term “philately” was coined by the French stamp collector, Georges Herpin, in 1864. The neologism translates roughly from Greek to “an affinity for the exemption of duties or taxes.” Herpin chose this name because the establishment and standardization of the stamp meant that receiving letters would be free, whereas previously, the recipient would have had to pay.

One of the twentieth century’s most accomplished philatelists was a man known as Belmont Faries. Based in Washington, D.C., Faries devoted nearly the entirety of his career to the study and development of stamps. Faries’ main contribution to the philatelic community was in the scholarship he produced. Not only was Faries an editor for some of the most prolific journals in the field, like the Journal of the Society of Philatelic Americans and the U.S. Specialist, he also wrote for a variety of publications, one of which was a letterpress, miniature book titled Worldwide Christmas stamps.

Christmas stamps from around the world
Belmont Faries
Dallas, Texas: Somesuch Press
HE6221 C47 1982

Fairies’ main contribution to the little red, leather-bound book is the introduction, which explains the rich history of the holiday stamp and reflects the important role it has played in the globalization of some of the Victorians’ most beloved seasonal traditions.

In his introduction, Faries cites the Netherlands as the first producer of the Christmas stamp in 1930, but later mentions a Canadian Christmas stamp that depicts a festively decorated tree produced in 1881. Faries goes on to admit that he disregards this stamp as the first with a holiday theme because of its secular nature before drawing attention to other notable stamps from around the globe.

The little book that Faries wrote the opening words for is composed of forty-one pages, the majority of which feature actual holiday stamps from various places around the world, showcasing the vital role of the stamp in spreading (literally) holiday cheer.

The volume was published in 1982 by Somesuch Press, a fine press publishing house that was based in Dallas, Texas, under the direction of Stanley Marcus. Interestingly, even though Somesuch Press had its own imprint, Marcus contracted out his books to a wide range of printers, and Worldwide Christmas Stamps was no exception. According to the colophon found on the last page, the tiny book was “designed, handset, and printed” by Greame Kelly and Susan Acker, two printers of the Feathered Serpent Press, which was based in San Rafael, California.

The collaborative efforts that went into the creation of the tiny book serve as yet another example of the long-lasting, far-reaching, and wonderfully festive impact of the holiday card.

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This blog post is the final installment of a three-part series discussing and celebrating the holiday card. To conclude, the University of Utah’s rare books team furthers the tradition by sending season’s greetings to you and yours: We hope the year ahead is full of light, love, and all the books you could wish for!

P.S. : Can you spot our office elves?

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Contributed by Theadora Soter, Rare Books Assistant Curator

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