The U.S. Postal Service® continues to honor the sacrifices of the men and women who serve in the U.S. military with the issuance of the Purple Heart Medal Stamp 2019 stamp that depicts the medal suspended from its purple and white ribbon.
The Purple Heart is awarded in the name of the president of the United States to members of the U.S. military who have been wounded or killed in action. According to the Military Order of the Purple Heart, an organization for combat-wounded veterans, the medal is "the oldest military decoration in the world in present use and the first award made available to a common soldier."
Established by General George Washington during the Revolutionary War, the badge of distinction for meritorious action—a heart made of purple cloth—was discontinued after the war. In 1932, on the 200th anniversary of Washington’s birth, the decoration was reinstated and redesigned as a purple heart of metal bordered by gold, suspended from a purple and white ribbon. In the center of the medal is a profile bust of George Washington beneath his family coat of arms.
The Purple Heart Medal 2019 stamp is a redesign of the 2012 Purple Heart Medal stamp and features a purple border matching the brilliant purple of the medal and its ribbon. Ira Wexler photographed the medal. William J. Gicker served as art director with Bryan Duefrene as designer.
The Purple Heart Medal 2019 stamp is being issued as a Forever® stamp. This Forever stamp will always be equal in value to the current First-Class Mail® one-ounce rate.
Issue: | Purple Heart Medal 2019 Stamp |
Item Number: | 120700 |
Denomination & Type of Issue: | First-Class Mail Forever |
Format: | Pane of 20 (1 design) |
Series: | N/A |
Issue Date & City: | October 2019, Noblesville, IN 46060 |
Art Director: | William J. Gicker, Washington, DC |
Designer: | Bryan Duefrene, Washington, DC |
Typographer: | Greg Breeding, Charlottesville, VA |
Photographer: | Ira Wexler, Braddock Heights, MD |
Modeler: | Sandra Lane/Michelle Finn |
Manufacturing Process: | Offset, Microprint |
Printer: | Banknote Corporation of America |
Press Type: | Alprinta 74 |
Stamps per Pane: | 20 |
Print Quantity: | 400,000,000 stamps |
Paper Type: | Phosphor Tagged Paper, Block Tagged |
Adhesive Type: | Pressure-sensitive |
Processed at: | Banknote Corporation of America |
Colors: | Pantone 266, Pantone 1805, Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black |
Stamp Orientation: | Vertical |
Image Area (w x h): | 0.73 x 0.84 in/18.542 x 21.336 mm |
Overall Size (w x h): | 0.87 x 0.98 in/22.098 x 24.892 mm |
Full Pane Size (w x h): | 5.3 x 4.88 in/134.62 x 123.952 mm |
Plate Size: | 400 stamps per revolution |
Plate Numbers: | “B” followed by six (6) single digits |
Marginal Markings: | |
Front: | Header: Purple Heart: The Medal for the Combat Wounded • Plate numbers in four corners |
Back: | ©2019 USPS • USPS logo • Two barcodes (120700) • Plate position diagram • Promotional text |