Canada Post French Settlement Series
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To commemorate the 400th Anniversary of the founding of the first French settlement in North America, Canada Post issued a series of stamps to commemorate the event. The first stamp was released in 2004 and was a joint issue between Canada and France. The Series Years (inclusive dates) are: 2004-2008
Contents |
[edit] 2004
Pierre Dugua de Mons, 1604
The first stamp in the series commemorates 400th anniversary of the first French settlement in Acadia at St. Croix Island. Located on the border between Canada and the United States in the state of Maine, the former settlement is now an International Historic Site. A joint issue with France, the stamp was designed by Réjean Myette of Montréal-based Fugazi and illustrated by Suzanne Duranceau. [1]
It features a portrait of nobleman Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Mons, who led the expedition of five ships carrying 120 men. His boat, Le Don de Dieu, was the theatre of this incredible adventure. The portrait on the stamp is printed through intaglio, a gravure process. The remainder of the Canada Post-issued stamp is printed in lithography. [2]
Stamps issued by La Poste in France will bear the same design, created through the intaglio and lithography processes. Pierre Dugua's group set sail from Havre-de-Grâce (now Le Havre), France in March 1604, and included explorer and cartographer Samuel de Champlain, as well as craftsmen, soldiers, a surgeon, a Roman Catholic priest and a Huguenot minister. [3]
after reaching dumb land he ran away the group split up, and Dugua and 78 of his men sailed into Passamaquoddy Bay and up the St. Croix River. There they found an island near what appeared to be the confluence of three rivers that resembled the arms of a cross, which led Dugua to name it St. Croix Island. [4]
Scurvy overtook the men and by winter's end, nearly half had died. The next summer, the settlement on St. Croix Island was dismantled and the group left the island to settle at Port Royal, as named by Champlain, an area near the Annapolis Basin in Nova Scotia. [5]
| Details | Figures |
|---|---|
| Date of Issue | June 26, 2004 |
| Last Day of Sale | June 25, 2005 |
| Denomination | 1 x 49 cents |
| Design | Designed by Réjean Myette which was based on a sculpture by Hamilton Plantagenet McCarthy, and designed by Francois Martin |
| Illustration | Suzanne Duranceau |
| Printer | Canadian Bank Note |
| Quantity (Stamp) | 4,000,000 |
| Dimensions (Stamp) | N/A |
| Perforations | 13 x 12.5 |
| Gum Type | N/A |
| Printing Process | N/A |
| Paper Type | N/A |
| Tagging | General, 4 Sides |
| Official First Day Cover Cancellation | N/A |
[edit] 2005
Port Royal
The French settlers who survived the disastrous winter of 1604 on St. Croix Island relocated to a new location on the Annapolis River in Nova Scotia. Samuel de Champlain was one of the settlers drew a detailed plan of the settlement in his journal. This drawing proved a starting point for the design of a new stamp depicting Port-Royal. [6]
The stamp was the second in a series dedicated to French settlement in North America, and is consistent in design with last year's stamp recognizing St. Croix Island. Fugazi placed the engraving over a background of bright, modern colour for a more lively, contemporary look. The engraving was created by illustrator Martin Côté, and is quite faithful to Champlain's original. [7]
The drawing was simplified in places, but many small details remain and are visible even at stamp size. For example, the microscopic inscription in Old French in the upper left corner. This level of precision was attributed to intaglio printing, a technique appropriate for this historic image. [8]
Technically, the registration is difficult to maintain when printing two techniques on two different presses. Once colours are printed through a lithographic process, a second pass through the intaglio press applies the engraved image in black. But on these presses, the paper often shifts during the second pass, resulting in misalignment between litho inks and intaglio inks. The solution was that background colours were printed in an imprecise, watercolour style that did not depend on alignment with the engraved image. [9]
| Details | Figures |
|---|---|
| Date of Issue | July 16, 2005 |
| Last Day of Sale | July 15, 2006 |
| Denomination | 1 x 50 cents |
| Design | Fugazi |
| Illustration | Designed by Réjean Myette |
| Printer | Canadian Bank Note |
| Quantity (Stamp) | 3,000,000 |
| Dimensions (Stamp) | N/A |
| Perforations | 13 x 12.5 |
| Gum Type | N/A |
| Printing Process | N/A |
| Paper Type | N/A |
| Tagging | General, 4 Sides |
| Official First Day Cover Cancellation | N/A |
- The original drawing as published in Champlain's journals in 1613 can be viewed on the Library and Archives Canada website at: http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/h27/f1/nlc003352-v6.jpg.
- Champlain's drawing was also a source for the 1939 reconstruction of Port-Royal. For more information, see the Parks Canada website at http://www.pc.gc.ca/lhn-nhs/ns/portroyal/natcul/index_E.asp.
[edit] 2006
Champlain Surveys The East Coast
In 1606, Samuel de Champlain explored the east coast of North America and his early maps and drawings of North America were considered accurate. The challenge for Canada Post was the fact that Champlain never had a likeness of himself. This stamp was a joint issue with the United States Postal Service. [11] The special feature of this stamp was that the Official First Day Cover and the Souvenir Sheet featured both the Canadian domestic rate (51 cents) stamp and the American domestic rate (39 cents) stamp. [12]
As there were no reliable portraits, Canada Post decided to use the type of vessel that would have been used during the 1606 expedition. The stamp depicts a barque, a small, two-masted sailing ship built by the French to explore coastal waters too shallow for larger ocean vessels. [13]
The design of the ship was a reconstruction by Montreal historian and illustrator Francis Back. He had re-imagined the barque based on historical information in Champlain’s journals and records, including supply lists. He produced a detailed sketch, which was then reproduced as a line drawing suitable for intaglio printing by illustrator Martin Cote. [14]
The Montreal design firm Fugazi was responsible for the stamp design. The stamp featured a design of bright and dull colours, while Fugazi placed a traditional, engraved image of the boast against a contemporary map of the East Coast. [15]
The 2006 Champlain stamp was the second joint issue in the French Settlement series. The first was in 2004 with the postal service in France.
| Details | Figures |
|---|---|
| Date of Issue | May 28, 2006 |
| Last Day of Sale | May 27, 2006 |
| Denomination | 1 x 51 cents |
| Design (Stamp) | Fugazi |
| Design (Souvenir Sheet) | Terrence McCaffrey, US Postal Service |
| Illustration (Stamp) | Francis Back, Martin Cote |
| Printer (Stamp) | Canadian Bank Note |
| Quantity (Stamp) | 4,000,000 |
| Quantity (Souvenir Sheet) | 300,000 |
| Dimensions (Stamp) | 39.7 mm x 40 mm |
| Perforations | 13+ |
| Gum Type | P.V.A |
| Printing Process | Lithography in 6 colours plus 1 intaglio |
| Paper Type | Tullis-Russell Coatings |
| Tagging | General, 4 Sides |
| Official First Day Cover Cancellation | Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia |
[edit] Commemorative Envelope
Another aspect of the French Settlement series was the issuing of a commemorative envelope featuring Benjamin Franklin. Benjamin Franklin left a direct legacy on Canada in 1763, as one of North America’s first joint Deputy Postmasters General. [17] This extended to include Quebec, due to the Treaty of Paris. Franklin oversaw the birth and evolution of an efficient postal system, establishing services from Montreal and New York, which allowed for European mail service, 12 months of the year. [18]
In recognition of Benjamin Franklin’s 300th Birthday, Canada Post issued a commemorative envelope on May 28, 2006. The envelope featured the Champlain Surveys the East Coast stamp on the upper right hand corner of the envelope.
| Date of Issue | Last Day of Sale | Denomination | Design | Quantity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 28, 2006 | May 27, 2007 | 1 x 51 cents | Canada Post Graphic Design Group | 10,000 |
[edit] 2007
Chief Membertou
This is the first stamp in the series to acknowledge the history of Aboriginal peoples in this period in history. One Aboriginal who played an important role in ensuring the survival of the French settlement in Eastern Canada was Chief Henri Membertou, Grand Chief of the Míkmaq. [20]
Chief Membertou recalls meeting Jacques Cartier in 1534, therefore, it is believed that the Chief was over 100 years old. His genialty and stature created a bond between the French and Mi’kmaq that helped to develop and prolong the historically important settlement in Port Royal. [21]
Similar to the 2006 stamp of Champlain, there were no reliable portraits of Chief Membertou. Therefore, Montreal design firm Fugazi called on illustrator Suzanne Duranceau to conjure an image. With the help of historian Francis Back, Duranceau was able to conceive a portrait. The stamp’s background shows part of a typical Mi’kmaq canoe, and wigwams standing beside Port Royal to show how Membertou and his tribe lived outside the walls during the three years that the Chief took care of the fort. [22]
The technical aspects of the stamp included a complexity which led to producing the entire stamp intaglio. [23] This led to the printing of all three colours on one engraved plate. [24] This was the first time that Canada Post has printed a three-colour intaglio stamp using chablong technology.
The stamp issue is also unique in that the Official First Day cover containing text in English, French and Mi’kmaq. The text was written by Stephen J. Augustine, Hereditary Chief of the Mi’kmaq Grand Council and Curator of Ethnology for Eastern Maritimes in the Ethnology Services Division of the Canadian Museum of Civilization in Gatineau, Quebec. [25]
| Details | Figures |
|---|---|
| Date of Issue | July 26, 2007 |
| Last Day of Sale | July 25, 2007 |
| Denomination | 1 x 52 cents |
| Design | Fugazi |
| Illustration | Suzanne Duranceau |
| Printer | Canadian Bank Note |
| Quantity (Stamp) | 3,000,000 |
| Dimensions (Stamp) | 39.7 mm x 40 mm |
| Perforations | 13+ |
| Gum Type | P.V.A |
| Printing Process | 3 colours intaglio |
| Paper Type | Tullis-Russell Coatings |
| Tagging | General, 4 Sides |
| Official First Day Cover Cancellation | St. Peter’s, Nova Scotia |
[edit] See also
- 1604
- 1605
- Aboriginal peoples in Atlantic Canada
- New France
- Port Royal, Nova Scotia
- Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Monts
- Samuel de Champlain
[edit] References
- ^ Canada's Stamp Details, Vol. 13, No. 2, 2004, p. 36-37
- ^ Canada's Stamp Details, Vol. 13, No. 2, 2004, p. 36-37
- ^ Canada's Stamp Details, Vol. 13, No. 2, 2004, p. 36-37
- ^ Canada's Stamp Details, Vol. 13, No. 2, 2004, p. 36-37
- ^ Canada's Stamp Details, Vol. 13, No. 2, 2004, p. 36-37
- ^ Canada's Stamp Details, Vol. 14, No. 3, 2005, p. 8-9
- ^ Canada's Stamp Details, Vol. 14, No. 3, 2005, p. 8-9
- ^ Canada's Stamp Details, Vol. 14, No. 3, 2005, p. 8-9
- ^ Canada's Stamp Details, Vol. 14, No. 3, 2005, p. 8-9
- ^ Canada's Stamp Details, Vol. 14, No. 3, 2005, p. 8-9
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, April to June 2006, Volume XV, No. 2, page 20
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, April to June 2006, Volume XV, No. 2, page 20
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, April to June 2006, Volume XV, No. 2, page 20
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, April to June 2006, Volume XV, No. 2, pp. 20-21
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, April to June 2006, Volume XV, No. 2, page 21
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, April to June 2006, Volume XV, No. 2, page 21
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, July to September 2006, Volume XV, No. 3, page 5
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, July to September 2006, Volume XV, No. 3, page 5
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, July to September 2006, Volume XV, No. 3, page 5
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, July to September 2007, Volume XVI, No. 3, page 20
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, July to September 2007, Volume XVI, No. 3, page 20
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, July to September 2007, Volume XVI, No. 3, page 20
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, July to September 2007, Volume XVI, No. 3, page 21
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, July to September 2007, Volume XVI, No. 3, page 21
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, July to September 2007, Volume XVI, No. 3, page 21
- ^ Canada’s Stamp Details, July to September 2007, Volume XVI, No. 3, page 21
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