Ukrposhta presents postage stamps with samples of Kharkiv and Crimean Tatar embroidery

16.05.2024

The embroidered shirt Vyshyvanka is a symbol of strength, defiance, national dignity and identity of Ukrainians. On 16 May, on the Vyshyvanka Day, Ukrposhta officially puts into circulation two new postage stamps: one featuring the embroidery of Kharkiv region from the series ‘Ukrainian Embroidery - the Code of the Nation’ launched in 2018 and the other with a sample of Crimean Tatar embroidery from the Autonomous Republic of Crimea.

‘Everywhere in the world, by wearing an embroidered shirt, we identify ourselves as Ukrainians. And for the whole world, Ukrainians are now an example of courage and dignity. The samples of embroidery, depicted on the stamps that Ukrposhta presents today, are not accidental. After the start of russian aggression in Crimea and eastern Ukraine, embroidery also became a symbol of defiance and resistance. And that is why you can see samples of Crimean Tatar and Kharkiv embroidery on the new stamps. Now, when the enemy is insidiously shelling Kharkiv, when Crimea has been occupied for more than ten years, we want to remind the world that Ukrainians are fighting for their land, their people and culture,’ - says Igor Smelyansky, CEO of Ukrposhta.

The Autonomous Republic of Crimea on the postal issue ‘Crimean Tatar embroidery - the code of the people. The Autonomous Republic of Crimea’ is represented by a women's head shawl ‘marama’ of the mid-nineteenth century, made in the traditional technique of tambour embroidery Qasnaq using metallized (gold) and silk threads on homespun cloth. The ornamentation, colour combinations and technological methods are in line with the principles of national decorative arts and crafts that have been developed since ancient times.

‘The systematic activity of Ukrposhta and artists to promote Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar symbols of invincibility, freedom and unity is an extremely timely and worthy rebuff to the attempts of russian barbarians to destroy the Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar identity,’ - commented Refat Chubarov, Chairman of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people.

The stamps design is based on samples of ancient embroideries provided by the National Museum of Ukrainian Folk Decorative Art. The Kharkiv region is represented by a fragment of a nineteenth-century women's shirt with a picturesque image of cockerels on the sleeves - a symbol of the sun, light and the awakening of life.

‘The rooster has long been a revered bird among Ukrainians - a symbol of the sun and fire, a messenger of the early dawn, a guardian of the household. With its singing, it seems to awaken the heavenly body from its nightly sleep and heralds the dawn. According to folk beliefs, the rooster's cry drives away and scares away all evil and bad things. The image of a rooster on a woman's shirt from the Kharkiv region plays the role of a talisman for a woman, as well as any embroidered decor on clothes generally carries an aesthetic and ritualistic meaning.

In addition, the rooster's cry is a sign of the victory of light over darkness, which is of great importance in our time,’ said Liudmyla Strokova, Director of the National Museum of Ukrainian Folk Decorative Art.

The circulation of the stamp ‘Crimean Tatar embroidery. ‘Qırımtatar nağışı’ stamp is 800,000 copies. The face value of the stamp is U (corresponds to the tariff for sending a domestic ordinary letter without declared value weighing up to 50 grams or a postcard, equivalent to UAH 15.00). The number of stamps per sheet is 8+1 coupon.

Circulation of the ‘Shirt (fragment). Kharkiv region’ stamp is 800,000 copies.  The stamp face value is F (corresponds to the tariff for sending a domestic registered letter without declared value weighing up to 50 grams or a postcard, equivalent to UAH 30.00).