Australia Post’s first set of the year was “Special Occasions”. Released on January 3, there are ten designs available in gummed and self-adhesive varieties in sheets or booklets plus a miniature sheet that contains one copy of each design. There was also a “Wedding Collection” with a prestige booklet and stickers as well as maximum cards of each design.
According to the Australia Post Collectibles issue page
This stamp issue refreshes our ongoing series marking some of life’s key milestones – birthdays, anniversaries, weddings and the arrival of a newborn, to name just a few. These are events for which a heartfelt missive sent through the post is often most fitting, a handwritten message, in our digital times, having the power to convey the personal significance of lived events and representing a tangible connection between sender and recipient.
Nine of the stamps in this issue have been designed specifically for social mail between individuals; the design featuring the Southern Cross and Australia is pitched towards general and business mail users. The floral and the Let’s Celebrate designs are appropriate for use across a number of life events.
Australia Post Collectibles
$1.20 – Teddy Bear
$1.20 – Floral Heart
$1.20 – Paper Bouquet
$1.20 – Happy Birthday
$1.20 – Let’s Celebrate
$1.20 – White Tulips
$1.20 – Champagne Flutes
$1.20 – Waratah
$1.20 – Australia
$2.40 – Wedding Bands
Technical Information
| Date of Issue: | 3 January 2023 |
| Number of Stamps: | Ten (10) gummed stamps, ten self-adhesive stamps, one (1) gummed miniature sheet of 10 stamps |
| Denomination: | 9 x $1.20, 1 x $2.40 each format |
| Designers: | Jo Muré (Teddy Bear); Jason Watts (Champagne Flutes); Simone Sakinofsky (Happy Birthday, Let’s Celebrate); Sonia Young (Floral Heart, Paper Bouquet, White Tulips, Waratah, Australia, Wedding Bands); all from Australia Design Studio |
| Printer and Process: | EGO, Keysborough, Victoria, Australia by offset lithography on Tullis Russell 104gsm Red Phos. gummed paper and Securpost C Print 100 P8P self-adhesive paper |
| Stamp Size: | 26mm x 37.5mm |
| Mini-Sheet Size: | 151mm x 125mm |
| Perforations: | 14.6 x 13.86 |
| Sheet Format: | 50 stamps each design; booklets of 10 stamps each design |
| First Day Postmark: | Brisbane QLD 4000 |
Miniature Sheet
First Day Cover
Presentation Pack
Booklets of Self-Adhesive Stamps
Gutter Strip of Gummed Stamps
Prestige Booklet
Maximum Cards
Sporting greats and the stories that have shaped their careers form an important thread, not only in our sporting history but also in the broader story of the nation.
Rather than depicting our sporting history via athletes in competition, this stamp issue presents items associated with four of our leading athletes during the height of their sporting career. The objects shown in the stamp designs form part of state and national museum collections.
The stamps represent cycling, motorsport, tennis and wheelchair racing through champions from across the past century: Hubert Opperman, Jack Brabham, Evonne Goolagong Cawley and Kurt Fearnley.
Australia Post Collectibles
$1.20 – Jack Brabham’s BT23A-1 Prototype
Jack Brabham (1926–2014) was Australia’s greatest Formula One (F1) driver. He was the first Australian to achieve the honour of F1 world champion, winning in 1959, 1960 and 1966, and the only F1 champion to win in a car of his own construction – the BT19 in which he was victorious in 1966. Brabham put his formidable driving skill to the test in 126 Grand Prix during his time behind the wheel, winning 14 of these races, and placed second in 10 of these and third in seven.
On the heels of his 1966 F1 win, Brabham designed with fellow Australian Ron Tauranac the Repco-Brabham Tasman BT23A-1 prototype in 1967. Brabham raced it in the 1967 Tasman series, contested across six races held in New Zealand and Australia between 7 January and 6 March 1967. This prototype, shown in the stamp, led directly to the BT24A model that won the F1 in 1967, driven by Brabham team driver Denny Hulme. The BT23A-1, the only car of this model to exist, is held in the collection of the National Museum of Australia.
The stamp photograph is courtesy National Museum of Australia.
$1.20 – Evonne Goolagong Cawley’s Racquet
The impressive Evonne Goolagong Cawley (b. 1951) was the first Australian Indigenous player to compete in international tennis. The lightning fast yet graceful right-hander won seven Grand Slam tournaments through her international career – the Australian Open four times, successively across 1974–77, Wimbledon twice, in 1971 and 1980, and the French Open in 1971. She was runner-up at Wimbledon in 1972, 1975 and 1976, and won the women’s doubles with Peggy Michel in 1974. She also won in doubles titles in the Australian Open five times during her career on the court. She retired from competition in 1983.
The wooden Dunlop Maxply Fort racquet shown in the stamp is held in the collection of the National Museum of Australia, one of a number of items Goolagong Cawley donated to the museum, including three Wimbledon trophies and a second racquet. Goolagong Cawley used the Maxply Fort racquet, a popular model of tennis racquet, during the early 1970s.
The stamp photograph is courtesy National Museum of Australia.
$1.20 Hubert Opperman’s “Tour de France” Model Bike
Hubert Opperman (1904–1996) was Australian cycling royalty during the 1920s and 1930s, his appeal extending to Europe; he was voted Europe’s most popular sportsman in 1928. A highly disciplined endurance and competitive cyclist, “Oppy”, as he was known, counted among his numerous achievements the Australian Pro Road Championship in 1924, 1927 and 1929, and the Bol d’Or (Golden Bowl) 24-hour Paris in 1928. Perhaps at the top of his cycling achievements was winning the 1,162-kilometre Paris–Brest–Paris race in 1931, which he completed in 49 hours and 23 minutes, breaking all previous records.
Opperman and the Victorian bike company Malvern Star Cycles formed an enduring partnership, which began when, as a teen at the start of his cycling career, Opperman met Malvern Star proprietor Bruce Small. Establishing a Victorian team of competitive cyclists, Small became his coach and mentor, and Oppy raced the company’s bikes. The “Tour de France” model road bike was used Oppy when he set a world record for his 24-hour unpaced cycling on 5–6 October 1927, cycling from Mt Gambier to Melbourne (416 miles). This bike and two others ridden by Oppy are held in Museum Victoria’s collection.
The stamp photograph is courtesy Museums Victoria.
$1.20 – Kurt Fearnley’s Racing Wheelchair
Since announcing his sporting ambition when he won silver at the 2000 Sydney Paralympic Gamess, Kurt Fearnley (b. 1981) has become a household name in Australia. Being born without a lower spine has not held Fearnley back during his 20-year career on the track and road. He competed at five Paralympic Games between 2000 and 2016 (Rio), won seven world championships, competed in more than 30 marathons (including in New York, London and Chicago), and completed this remarkable career in competition with a marathon win at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.
Fearnley used the racing wheelchair shown in the stamp design when he won gold in the marathon at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Weighing just 7.8 kilograms, this three-wheeled racing wheelchair is held in the collection of the Australian Sports Museum.
The stamp photograph is by Nick Doolan.
Technical Information
| Date of Issue: | 7 February 2023 |
| Number of Stamps: | Four (4) gummed stamps, four self-adhesive stamps, one (1) gummed miniature sheet of 4 stamps |
| Denomination: | 4 x $1.20 each format |
| Designer: | Tim Hancock |
| Printer and Process: | RA Printing, Carrum Downs, Victoria, Australia by offset lithography on Tullis Russell 104gsm Red Phos. gummed paper and Securpost C-Print 100 P8P Non-Phos. self-adhesive paper |
| Stamp Size: | 26mm x 37.5mm |
| Perforations: | 14.6 x 13.86 |
| Sheet Format: | 50 stamps each design; booklets of 10 stamps each design |
| First Day Postmark: | East Melbourne VIC 3002 |
Miniature Sheet
Presentation Pack
First Day Covers
Gutter Strips of Gummed Stamps
Booklets of Self-Adhesive Stamps
Maximum Cards
Fairy-wrens (genus Malurus) are small songbirds found in all Australian states and territories. Of the ten species found in Australia, most (nine species) are found only here, and one is found in both Australia and Papua New Guinea.
Australian Fairy-wrens are omnivores and range in size between around 11.5 and 15 centimetres. All fairy-wrens begin their lives in dullish brown or light blue plumage, with males of each species ultimately transforming into a dazzling plumage tinged with blues, purples and orangey-reds, though some not until their third breeding season – a process known as plumage maturation. As with many birds, it is predominantly males that are brightly coloured, in order to attract females for breeding.
Fairy-wrens have complex social structures and occupy diverse habitats and ranges. These diverse habitats are thought to explain the differences in plumage maturation within and across species and may also influence the variation in social group structure and size. As well as being beautiful, fairy-wrens are intelligent, learning the alarm calls of other birds in order to flee from predators.
This stamp issue presents photographs of four fairy-wren species, showcasing different aspects and behaviours. A graphic rendition of a preferred plant is featured in the stamp backgrounds.
Australia Post Collectibles
$1.20 – Lovely Fairy-wren
The Lovely Fairy-wren (Malurus amabilis) is one of several species of chestnut-winged fairy-wren, distinguishable by its bright blue and white females (most females are a dullish brown). Compared to other chestnut-winged varieties, its cheeks are considered rounder and the white on its tail tips more prominent. Breeding males are unique among Australian fairy-wrens because all males retain their bright plumage throughout the year. A male and female pair is featured on the stamp.
While common, the Lovely Fairy-wren is restricted to the coast of the Cape York Peninsula and the Wet Tropics, Queensland, where is prefers subtropical or tropical dry forests and moist lowland forests, including broadleaf thickets and shrubland. Preferred vegetation includes the climbing fern Lygodium reticulatum, which is alluded to on the stamp. Lovely Fairy-wrens are the most arboreal of Australian fairy-wrens and can be found in rainforest canopies at 20 metres high.
The stamp photograph is by Clinton Nash.
$1.20 – Superb Fairy-wren
The Superb Fairy-wren (Malurus cyaneus) is found in open eucalypt woodland forests throughout south-eastern Australia – from south-eastern Queensland, eastern New South Wales and south-eastern Victoria to the southern Eyre Peninsula in South Australia, as well as in Tasmania, King Island, Flinders Island and Kangaroo Island. The Superb Fairy-wren also frequent parks and gardens; it is the only species of fairy-wren to have successfully adapted to suburban environments, where it is attracted to dense shrubs and small trees such as paperbarks and tea trees (the latter depicted graphically on the stamp).
Known colloquially as the Blue Wren, it was voted “Australia’s favourite bird” in a 2021 poll run by Guardian Australia and Birdlife Australia and was one of the first Australian birds to be officially described (Ellis, 1782). The bright male plumage of the Superb Fairy-wren, which comes into effect in time for breeding season, includes an iridescent sky-blue cap. In some males, this bright plumage can last for most of the year.
The stamp photograph is by Greg Wyncoll/Shutterstock.com.
$1.20 – Red-backed Fairy-wren
The Red-backed Fairy-wren (Malurus melanocephalus), the smallest of the Australian fairy-wrens at around 11.5 centimetres, is common throughout northern and eastern Australia (New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia). It is found within a wide variety of tall grassy habitats, especially sub-tropical tussock grasslands, or open woodlands and forests with thick grassy groundcover, including Blady Grass (Imperata cylindrica), which has been graphically presented on the stamp.
During breeding season, the jet-black male of the species, with bright red patches on their shoulders and back, are often seen pursuing females across grassy plains, with their head and neck feathers standing to attention. Both males and females are highly promiscuous, though temptation is thought to be tempered somewhat when breeding pairs sing a duet.
The stamp photograph is by Trent Townsend/Shutterstock.com.
$1.20 – Purple-crowned Fairy-wren
The Purple-crowned Fairy-wren (Malurus coronatus), named for its brilliant-purple crown, establishes territories in exclusively riparian habitat – dense vines, grasses, trees and shrubs (such as Pandanus), which are situated land alongside creeks, streams, gullies, rivers and wetlands. It is one of the largest fairy-wren species, at around 14.5 to 15 centimetres. While considered fairly shy, Purple-crowned Fairy-wrens are known to sing loudly while defending their territory.
Populations of the Purple-crowned Fairy-wren are localised and in decline: Kimberley region sub-species M. c. coronatus is listed as endangered in Western Australia, and subspecies M. c. macgillivrayi, near the Gulf of Carpentaria, is considered threatened under Northern Territory legislation. Threats include habitat loss from fires, feral herbivores, invasive weeds and livestock grazing.
The stamp photograph is by Alwyn Simple.
Technical Information
| Date of Issue: | 21 February 2023 |
| Number of Stamps: | Four (4) gummed stamps, four self-adhesive stamps, one (1) gummed miniature sheet of 4 stamps |
| Denomination: | 4 x $1.20 each format |
| Designer: | Jo Muré, Australia Post Design Studio |
| Printer and Process: | RA Printing, Carrum Downs, Victoria, Australia by offset lithography on Tullis Russell 104gsm Red Phos. gummed paper and Tullis Russell Red Phos PSA P55 self-adhesive paper |
| Stamp Size: | 37.5mm x 26mm |
| Miniature Sheet Size: | 135mm x 80mm |
| Perforations: | 13.86 x 14.6 |
| Sheet Format: | 50 gummed stamps each design; booklet of 20 self-adhesive stamps all designs |
| First Day Postmark: | Port Fairy VIC 3284 |
Miniature Sheet
Presentation Pack
First Day Covers
Gutter Strips of Gummed Stamps
Booklet of Self-Adhesive Stamps
Maximum Cards
Stamps and Medallions Cover
This stamp and medallion cover is a limited collectable, featuring a pictorial envelope with the four stamps from the Fairy-wrens stamp issue and four related medallions. The stamp is postmarked – First day of issue | 21 February 2023 | Port Fairy Vic 3284
Limited to 2,000.
Medallion details
- Metal: Zinc alloy
- Weight:25.5g
- Diameter: 37mm
- Thickness: 4mm
This international Aerogramme features Australian flora and fauna in the design, and is an easy way to keep in touch with family and friends overseas.
An aerogramme is a single sheet of paper suitably folded and sealed on all sides. It is sent by Air Mail to any international destination at a uniform price, delivered in accordance with the timetable applicable Airmail service as published by Australia Post from time to time.
Australia Post Shop
- Issue date: 1 March 2023
- Size: 210mm x 103mmm
- Design: Simone Sakinofsky, Australia Post Design Studio
The 1930s were times of great hardship in Australia. The second half of the 1920s saw wheat and wool prices fall and greater competition for export markets. The Wall Street stock market crash in the United States, in 1929, had worldwide impacts, including in Australia. The national unemployment rate reached a staggering 32 per cent in 1932. Against this dire backdrop was a source of optimism, in the form of travel posters, produced largely during the 1930s (but also during the late 1920s and into the early 1940s), in what became known as the “golden age” of Australian poster design.
Travel posters commissioned by the newly-formed Australian National Travel Association (ANTA), the Victorian Railways, and other state-based tourism and railway boards, sought to promote tourism and recreation as both achievable and desirable – a series of simple joys. Commercial artists were tasked with encouraging Australians to “seek the winter sunshine”, to spend “lazy days” cruising the River Murray or to enjoy Queensland’s sunny beaches, with the added call to “see for yourself”, “go by train” and “take a Kodak”. Such posters were also produced to promote Australia as a sunny yet sophisticated travel destination for international travellers, including by the national airline, Qantas.
Three of the most popular and influential poster artists during this period, James Northfield (1887-1973), Percy Trompf (1902-1964) and Gert Sellheim (1901-1970), were colleagues at Melbourne’s Art Training Institute. While Sellheim’s designs were bold, graphic, minimalist and influenced by cubism, Trompf and Northfield, who were both born in small town Victoria, used “lush, painterly tones” and simplified realism to depict Australian landscapes, filled with happy holidaymakers enjoying the great Australian outdoors.
Australia Post Collectibles
$1.20 – Western Australia
The Western Australia poster by Trompf highlights the region’s famous wildflowers – more than 10,000 species that create an incredible display during spring, defying the dry and infertile soils of the region. A smiling girl looks as though she’s about to walk right up and hand over a freshly picked bouquet.
The stamp image is © Percy Trompf Artistic Trust, courtesy Josef Lebovic Gallery, Sydney.
$1.20 – South Queensland Surfing Resorts
The poster by M Anderson (dates unknown) calls tourists to the beaches and resorts of sunny south Queensland, using a birds-eye perspective to show what fun people are having on the pristine, sandy shoreline below.
The stamp image is from the collections of the National Library of Australia.
$1.20 – Mildura
The Mildura poster by Northfield showcases the fresh produce and river cruises for which this region of Victoria is known, and it draws attention to the fact that its mild winters make visiting an attractive proposition for tourists located further south. The poster was produced by Victorian Railways as a way of competing with coach services, which were gaining in popularity by the 1930s.
The stamp image is © The James Northfield Heritage Art Trust and held in the collections of National Library of Australia.
Technical Information
| Date of Issue: | 7 March 2023 |
| Number of Stamps: | Three (3) gummed stamps, three self-adhesive stamps |
| Denomination: | 3 x $1.20 each format |
| Designers: | Simone Sakinofsky, Australia Post Design Studio |
| Printer and Process: | EGO, Keysborough, Victoria, Australia by offset lithography on Tullis Russell 104gsm Red Phosphor/Blue PVA Stamp Paper and Arconvert Securepost/MC 90/Cprint 100/ P10P self-adhesive paper |
| Stamp Size: | 26mm x 37.5mm |
| Perforations: | 14.6 x 13.86 |
| Sheet Format: | 50 stamps each design; booklet of 10 stamps all designs |
| First Day Postmark: | Mildura VIC 3500 |
Presentation Pack
First Day Cover
Gutter Strips of Gummed Stamps
Booklet of Self-Adhesive Stamps
Maximum Cards
This stamp issue commemorates the centenary of Legacy in Australia. This national charitable organisation was established in 1923 in Melbourne to provide services to the families of Australian Defence Force veterans killed or wounded in World War I. In 1923, returned serviceman Major General Sir John Gellibrand formed the Remembrance Club in Hobart to aid those who suffered because of war. Another returning soldier, Lieutenant General Sir Stanley Savige, was inspired to establish a similar club in Melbourne, which was named Legacy.
Legacy is still caring for tens of thousands of partners and families who have lost their loved ones or have been adversely impacted by conflicts across the globe, including the Korean War, Malayan Emergency, Vietnam War, campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan and in peacekeeping operations. Today, there are 44 Legacy Clubs throughout Australia and one in London, providing emotional, social and financial support. Legacy currently supports 43,000 individuals and families across Australia, supported by over 3,600 volunteer members or Legatees. Funds to support Legacy’s work are raised by a variety of methods, the most notable being the sale of special badges and other goods during Legacy Week, which is usually during the first week of September.
Australia Post Collectibles
Technical Information
| Date of Issue: | 21 March 2023 |
| Number of Stamps: | One (1) gummed stamp, one self-adhesive stamp |
| Denomination: | $1.20 each format |
| Designers: | Janet Boschen, Boschen Design |
| Printer and Process: | EGO, Keysborough, Victoria, Australia by offset lithography on Tullis Russell 104gsm Red Phosphor/Blue PVA Stamp Paper and Flexographic on RAF Unik Stampcoat 85FSC/WG65 self-adhesive paper |
| Stamp Size: | 26mm x 37.5mm |
| Miniature Sheet Size: | 101mm x 151mm |
| Perforations: | 14.6 x 13.86 |
| Sheet Format: | 10 stamps; coil roll of 100 stamps |
| First Day Postmark: | Melbourne VIC 3000 |
First Day Covers
Sheet of 10 with Folder
Coil Roll
Maximum Card
Postal Numismatic Cover
The Centenary of Legacy postal numismatic cover is highly collectable, featuring a pictorial envelope with the single stamp from stamp issue and a coin from the Royal Australian Mint. The stamp is postmarked – First day of issue | 21 March 2023 | Melbourne Vic 3000
Australia Post Shop
PNC Issue: 2023 Issue 9, limited to 7,500
- Issue date: 2023
- Mint: Royal Australian Mint
- Metal: AlBr
- Denomination: $1
- Weight: 9g
- Diameter: 25mm
- Finish: Uncirculated
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