Ben Franklin, America’s Postage Stamp Star — on the Wane?
This paper is an assessment of Ben Franklin’s evolving figure in U.S. postage stamps, focusing especially on the contrast between the 2006 tercentennial Franklin 4-stamp panel, a rather high-brow representation of Franklin as an intellectual, and his traditional image as a homely, common face. The s...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Association Française d'Etudes Américaines
2010-01-01
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| Series: | Transatlantica |
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| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/4402 |
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| author | François Brunet |
| author_facet | François Brunet |
| author_sort | François Brunet |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This paper is an assessment of Ben Franklin’s evolving figure in U.S. postage stamps, focusing especially on the contrast between the 2006 tercentennial Franklin 4-stamp panel, a rather high-brow representation of Franklin as an intellectual, and his traditional image as a homely, common face. The singular history of U.S. postage stamps, with their innovative choice of historical figures as subject matter and their broader emphasis on commemoration, is briefly summarized. The evolution of the Franklin figure — the most common postal image, along with George Washington — is then detailed, showing how the traditional image prevailed until the 1950s, before being progressively displaced by a more cultural and, lately, intellectual image of the nation’s “electrizer”. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-3a1d8ee49dad446bbc02f1a77cb5492c |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1765-2766 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2010-01-01 |
| publisher | Association Française d'Etudes Américaines |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Transatlantica |
| spelling | doaj-art-3a1d8ee49dad446bbc02f1a77cb5492c2025-01-30T10:44:43ZengAssociation Française d'Etudes AméricainesTransatlantica1765-27662010-01-01210.4000/transatlantica.4402Ben Franklin, America’s Postage Stamp Star — on the Wane?François BrunetThis paper is an assessment of Ben Franklin’s evolving figure in U.S. postage stamps, focusing especially on the contrast between the 2006 tercentennial Franklin 4-stamp panel, a rather high-brow representation of Franklin as an intellectual, and his traditional image as a homely, common face. The singular history of U.S. postage stamps, with their innovative choice of historical figures as subject matter and their broader emphasis on commemoration, is briefly summarized. The evolution of the Franklin figure — the most common postal image, along with George Washington — is then detailed, showing how the traditional image prevailed until the 1950s, before being progressively displaced by a more cultural and, lately, intellectual image of the nation’s “electrizer”.https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/4402Benjamin Franklinpostage stampsAmerican national memorypolitics of memory |
| spellingShingle | François Brunet Ben Franklin, America’s Postage Stamp Star — on the Wane? Transatlantica Benjamin Franklin postage stamps American national memory politics of memory |
| title | Ben Franklin, America’s Postage Stamp Star — on the Wane? |
| title_full | Ben Franklin, America’s Postage Stamp Star — on the Wane? |
| title_fullStr | Ben Franklin, America’s Postage Stamp Star — on the Wane? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Ben Franklin, America’s Postage Stamp Star — on the Wane? |
| title_short | Ben Franklin, America’s Postage Stamp Star — on the Wane? |
| title_sort | ben franklin america s postage stamp star on the wane |
| topic | Benjamin Franklin postage stamps American national memory politics of memory |
| url | https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/4402 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT francoisbrunet benfranklinamericaspostagestampstaronthewane |