Statue of Liberty stamp shows replica

First issued in December, with a coil version released in April, the non-denominated stamp shows the head of the famous statue. But it has now been confirmed that the image shown is that of the replica statue located outside the New York-New York Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, one of many replicas of the statue found around the world.

Roy Betts, US Posts’ Manager of Community Relations told Stamp & Coin Mart: ‘We’ve been investigating, and can confirm that the photograph is of the replica – not the original. That said, we still love the stamp design and would have selected this photograph anyway. We were looking for a different treatment of this icon that has been on 23 different stamps. We should have attributed the photograph to being of the replica and not the Statue of Liberty on Liberty Island.

‘We have updated the subject and design briefs accordingly. We regret this error and are now re-examining our processes to prevent this situation from happening in the future.’

Claims that the statue stamp was not as it seemed arose thanks to an initial report in Linn’s Stamp News which pointed out that the credited photographer for the stamp is associated only with an image of the Las Vegas replica and that the subtle differences between the two monuments can clearly be seen on the stamp.

The USA has a long history of issuing stamps showing the iconic statue, which was gifted to the USA from the people of France and unveiled in 1886.