Front:
CHRISTMAS
CHRISTMAS
25
25
Antonello,National Galery
Antonello, National Gallery
0OT
18
1990
20066
Back:
THE HOLY TRADITION
First Day of Issue: October 18, 1990
First Issue Location: Washington, D.C.
In the early years of the 4th century, the first celebration
of Christmas was held in Rome. It was a celebration of
both the Nativity and the Baptism of the Redeemer and
was held on January 6. It was not until nearly a quarter
century later that the Christmas celebration was moved to
December 25. By the 12th century, all of Europe had
joined in celebration of the Birth of Jesus, with various
factions blending and combining both pagan and Chris-
tian practices into a unique celebration. Christian mis-
sionaries, upon the foresight of Gregory the Great who
advised adaptation of old customs with Christian ones in
597, helped spread the celebration to different corners of
the continent. Appropriately, these 1990 Christmas
stamps depict the Madonna and Child and were issued in
booklet and sheet formats. The design is a reproduction of
Antonello's Madonna and Child rendered by Bradley
Thompson of Riverside, Connecticut.
No. 90-44
©1990 The Maximum Card Collection
A Division of Unicover Corporation . Cheyenne, WY 82008-0007
® Original painting by Ed Little
