Why the Stamp Was Issued: The stamp was released for use on Hanukkah greetings during the 2024 season.
About the Stamp Design: This Hanukkah stamp features an ink drawing of a menorah (or hanukkiah), the traditional nine-branched candelabra central to Hanukkah celebrations. The illustration was created digitally by USPS art director Antonio Alcala. Blue and white, traditional colors of the holiday, are prominently used on the stamp.
First Day City: The First Day of Issue ceremony for the Hanukkah stamp took place at the Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, DC.
About the Holiday Celebration Series: The USPS introduced the Holiday Celebration series in 1996 with a stamp honoring Hanukkah. This stamp marked the beginning of the series, which aimed to highlight different cultural or ethnic holidays each year. The second stamp in the series followed exactly a year later, celebrating Kwanzaa, an African-American holiday rooted in the traditional African harvest festival. The series continues to commemorate various cultural and religious holidays each year, including Eid, Cinco de Mayo, and more.
History the Stamp Represents: Hanukkah, often referred to as the Jewish Festival of Lights, begins on the 25th of the Hebrew month Kislev and lasts for eight days. On the first night, after dark, one candle is lit on the menorah, a special eight-branched candelabrum. Each night, an additional candle is lit until, by the eighth night, all eight candles are burning.
The origins of Hanukkah date back more than 2100 years to the time when Judah Maccabee and his followers liberated Jerusalem from Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Antiochus, devoted to Greek political and cultural ideals, had implemented numerous anti-Jewish decrees and defiled the Holy Temple in an attempt to eradicate the Jewish religion. After a three-year struggle, the Jews were able to miraculously defeat the Greek army.
Following their victory, the Jews set about cleansing and repairing the Holy Temple. When it came time to light the Holy Light, only one small jar of consecrated oil was found, enough to burn for just one day. Miraculously, the light burned for eight days and nights, long enough to prepare a new supply of pure oil. In remembrance of this miracle, the leaders of Israel declared that every year, on the 25th of Kislev, all Jews should celebrate the miracle of Hanukkah (dedication). Today, the menorah's flame symbolizes tolerance, diversity, strength, and perseverance.
