Issue date: November 2nd.

From Details magazine:

The Secular Stamps:
This year, Canada Post continues its long tradition of Christmas stamps with a secular issue that’s designed to inspire plenty of warm thoughts. The three stamps – domestic, U.S. and international rates – display colourful folk-art inspired depictions of traditional cold-weather wear, the very items you’ll likely find under many trees this Christmas.

Did you know European settlers brought wool- producing sheep to North America, as early as the mid-17th century, to keep their families’ feet warm with knitted socks? Or that worsted caps worn by voyageurs are possibly the predecessor of what we now call toques? What about early Canadians who definitely warmed up with fur-lined mitts made of animal skin, a style that likely originated with the Inuit? In Canada, even dressing for the cold connects us with the past.

At this gift-giving time of year, Canada Post will deliver on the wish list of discerning collectors with a limited edition uncut production press sheet that features multiple booklets from this issue, along with booklets of the 2018 sacred Christmas stamp (page 10). Also included is a bonus pack of all four stamp booklets plus two Official First Day Covers and a souvenir sheet. Unlike uncut press sheets specifically designed as collectibles, the production press sheet is made up of actual booklets before they’re cut for sale. This Canada Post first is sure to make the season very merry and bright for collectors.

The religious stamp:
Few stories have inspired as many creative interpretations as the Nativity. For centuries, artists have used the methods and media of their time to express their vision of the birth of Christ.
This year’s stamp, designed by Montréal-based Paprika and illustrated by Daniel Robitaille, employs the simple but rich symbolism of traditional folk art to revitalize the essential elements: the Holy Family, their humble accommodations, the makeshift crib and the heralding star of Bethlehem. Imagery on the Official First Day Cover continues the story, showing the intrepid Magi following the star to seek the Infant King. Warm colours evoke a sense of family intimacy and peace that befit the season.

[press release]
Annual Christmas stamps mark the beginning of the festive season
Canadians can choose either sacred or secular themes for their holiday greetings.

OTTAWA – Nothing marks the beginning of the holiday season like the arrival of the first Christmas card or letter. That’s been so for a long time: Canada issued the world’s first Christmas stamp – bearing a map of the British Empire and the words “Xmas 1898,” and since 1964, Canadians have been treated to holiday-themed stamps every Christmas.

This year, holiday mailers can again choose stamps with a sacred or secular theme. The sacred PERMANENT™ domestic-rate stamp features a rendering of the Nativity that is inspired by folk art.

The secular stamps offer bright and colourful illustrations of knitwear – socks (PERMANENT domestic rate), a hat (US rate) and mitts (International rate) – that evoke the warm and cozy items traditionally found under many a Canadian Christmas tree.

Both stamp issues are designed by the firm Paprika (Montréal), illustrated by Daniel Robitaille and printed by Colour Innovations (Toronto).

In a philatelic first, Canada Post is making available a limited edition of 500 uncut production press sheets, which feature several of each of the stamp booklets. This collectible is packaged for gift-giving. It includes a bonus gift of both the sacred and secular booklets (four in all); a secular souvenir sheet; and two Official First Day Covers, which are cancelled in St. Joseph, Man., (sacred) and Cardigan, P.E.I. (secular).

Stamps are available online or at postal outlets throughout Canada. The uncut press sheet is available online only at canadapost.ca/shop.

[press release]
Stamp marks 100th anniversary of Armistice of 1918
Our soldiers’ immense sacrifice had a profound impact on Canada

OTTAWA, Oct. 24, 2018 /CNW/ – Canada Post unveiled a stamp today that celebrates the 100th anniversary of the armistice that ended the First World War, a conflict that irrevocably changed Canada and its status on the world stage.

Canadian soldiers stood fast at Ypres, stormed the Regina Trench, climbed the heights of Vimy Ridge, captured Passchendaele and, on November 11, 1918, entered Mons. The immense sacrifice of our soldiers earned the country widespread recognition and had a profound impact on Canada.

The stamp depicts a dove suspended above barbed wire and includes the image of a poppy, a powerful symbol of remembrance and the principal emblem of The Royal Canadian Legion. The imagery symbolizes struggle, peace and remembrance and honours those who made the supreme sacrifice in defence of freedom and democracy.

The stamp was unveiled at the Perley and Rideau Veterans’ Health Centre, which has a responsibility to provide care for veterans. The stamp is cancelled in Ottawa, home of the National War Memorial, which appears on the back of the Official First Day Cover. At the unveiling event, Thomas D. Irvine, Dominion President of The Royal Canadian Legion, introduced the Legion’s Bells of Peace Initiative in partnership with Veterans Affairs Canada. At the setting of the sun on November 11, the Parliament Hill carillon and bells at Legion branches and spiritual centres across the country will ring 100 times to mark the sacrifices of our veterans and the joy that peace brought at the end of the war. Youth will also be engaged to research locations and place flags on the graves of Canadian Veterans of the Great War.

Canada’s war effort was remarkable, but victory came at a terrible price. Of the more than 650,000 Canadians who served with the Allies, more than 66,000 were killed and 172,000 wounded.

After more than four years of horrific trench warfare, fighting came to an abrupt end at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918. The armistice signed earlier that morning in a railway car near Compiègne, France, silenced the guns on the Western front and brought relief to the world that had never before seen such a conflict.

The stamp, which comes in a booklet of 10 is available on canadapost.ca and at postal outlets across Canada. From Details magazine:

After more than four years of bitter struggle, the fighting in the First World War came to an end at “the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month” of 1918. This stamp celebrates the silencing of the guns and commemorates those who fought and died for peace. Of the more than 650,000 Canadians who served with the Allies, over 66,000 were killed and 172,000 wounded.

Designers Larry Burke and Anna Stredulinsky, of Halifax’s Burke & Burke, placed the dove – a universal symbol of peace – at the centre of the stamp. The bird hovering over barbed wire in a devastated landscape serves as a poignant metaphor for the return of peace to a war-torn world.

“To us, the armistice was less about the moment of its signing than the lasting peace it brought,” explains Burke, adding that photos of the celebrations in 1918 were selected for the booklet, pane and Official First Day Cover to convey the relief, joy and hope that Canadians felt when the fighting stopped.

After the war, Armistice Day was observed on a Monday in early November until 1931, when a campaign led by the Canadian Legion resulted in a fixed date of November 11 and a new name: Remembrance Day. Every year on this day – when the clock strikes eleven – Canadians observe two minutes of silence in honour of the brave individuals who have served Canada in times of war, military conflict and peace. This year, on the 100th anniversary of the First Word War armistice, we once again reflect on their sacrifices and renew our solemn promise never to forget.

[media advisory]
Canada Post and Royal Canadian Legion mark the 100th anniversary of the Armistice

OTTAWA, Oct. 19, 2018 /CNW/ – Canada Post and The Royal Canadian Legion will hold a special event to mark the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Armistice, which ended the First World War, with the unveiling of a new stamp and the launch of the Bells of Peace initiative across Canada.

What: The unveiling of the stamp commemorating the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Armistice and the launch of the Bells of Peace initiative

Who:

• The Honourable Seamus O’Regan, Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence
• Thomas D. Irvine, CD, Dominion President, The Royal Canadian Legion
• Major (Retired) Gerald “Jerry” Bowen, Veteran of the Second World War and Korean War
• LCdr James Brun, Royal Canadian Navy
• Jay Davis, Vice-President of Engineering, Canada Post
• Katie Quinn, 2018 Vimy Pilgrimage Award alumna

When: Wednesday, October 24, 10:30 am EDT

Where: The Perley and Rideau Veterans’ Health Centre
1750 Russell Road, Ottawa

Issue date: September 24, 2018

From Details magazine:
The release of the Canada Post Community Foundation’s fundraising semi-postal stamp signals the start of Canada Post’s annual fundraising campaign. Your dollar donation for a booklet of 10 stamps and 10 cents for the Official First Day Cover goes directly to support Canadian children and youth, through the funding of programs for breakfast, anti-bullying, special education, camps for children fighting illness, early literacy and other programs.

Designer Matthew Warburton of Emdoubleyu Design says of the inspiration behind the stamp, “Everyone can recall days from their childhood, spending a hot summer afternoon lying in the grass looking up at the clouds rolling by. This design recreates that feeling of freedom, wonderment and joy with a child sitting on a grassy, flower-speckled hilltop, looking up at the sky and seeing animal shapes in the fluffy clouds.” The stamp was illustrated by Julie Morstad, one of Canada’s top illustrators of children’s books, whose work is honoured frequently in the Alcuin Society Book Awards.

Thanks to the generosity of our customers in 2017, the Canada Post Community Foundation provided $1.1 million in funding to grassroots and community-based child and youth organizations across the country.

[press release]
Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep scales high-value stamp
New issue created using traditional intaglio printing process

OTTAWA, Oct 10, 2018 – A legendary climber of the Rocky Mountains’ sheer crags pauses in a majestic pose on Canada Post’s newest large-format, high-value definitive stamp. Valued at $4, the stamp is part of an ongoing Canadian wildlife series.

Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis canadensis) live on the steep grasslands and rugged terrain of the Rocky Mountains in British Columbia and Alberta, and south to Colorado and New Mexico. Their split hooves make them legendary climbers, known to scale high rocky peaks. Overhunting, loss of habitat and diseases that spread from domestic livestock significantly reduced their numbers in the late 1800s and early 1900s. While conservation efforts have helped to increase some populations, the bighorn sheep is designated of “special concern” in British Columbia.

The stamp was created using both lithographic and intaglio printing. The background was created using lithography, the process used to create most modern Canadian stamps. This base was then overprinted with a four-colour intaglio plate that added the detailed engraving of the sheep, mountains and foliage. At one time, all Canadian stamps were engraved or intaglio; lithography was introduced to Canadian postage in 1952. As with previous stamps in the high-value series, the stamp incorporates hidden security features.

The intaglio plates were created by master engraver Jorge Peral, who worked on other stamps, including the $8 Grizzly (which launched the wildlife series in 1997) and $10 Blue Whale (2010). He has also engraved paper currency in Canada and several other countries.

The stamps are available in a pane of four (souvenir sheet) (shown at right). Additional collectibles include an Official First Day Cover (OFDC) cancelled in Jasper, AB (shown above); a limited edition uncut press sheet with nine panes of four stamps signed by master engraver Jorge Peral (shown below); a framed and numbered lithographic print signed by illustrator Rodrigo Peral; and a framed enlargement of the stamp image, plus the actual stamp.

The bighorn sheep has been featured on numerous U.S. issues: Sc. 1467 in 1972, Sc. 1880 in 1981, Sc. 1949 (1982), Sc. 2288 (1987’s North American Wildlife), Sc. 4138 (2007), and Sc. 4331 (Wyoming Flag). [VSC]

Stamps and collectibles can be pre-ordered online at canadapost.ca/shop.