Youth stamps 1956 - Germany / Federal Republic of Germany 1956 - 10

The special postage stamp was issued to the Olympic Games held in 1956 in Melbourne. The Deutsche Bundespost was thus in competition with a whole series of countries which devoted stamp issues to the same cause. Two calls for tenders from a total of eight graphic artists did not bring the hoped-for success, although there was some interesting solution among the submitted works. But none was so convincing that the Art Council could have agreed without reservation. It was not until the third attempt that a draft emerged, which was characterized by an original idea and a brand-name concise formulation. The figure is dominantly set in the area and bearer of the brand design. The one decorated with the antique meander band points to the ancient Greece and thus to the origin of the Olympic Games. The zero, which is structured by white oval lines, is memorable as the outline of a sports stadium. The Olympic rings, the symbol of the international event, which returns every four years, are placed in white over these figures.