{"title":"2013","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"forever-stamps-2013-mid-atlantic-lighthouses-coastal-collection-first-class-postage","title":"Mid-Atlantic Lighthouses 2013 Forever Stamps — Coastal Collection, Pane of 20","description":"\u003ch2\u003eIssue facts\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIssue Date: August 6, 2021\u003cbr\u003eFirst Day City: Highlands, NJ\u003cbr\u003ePrinted by: Banknote Corporation of America\u003cbr\u003ePrinting Method: Offset\u003cbr\u003eFormat: Pane of 20\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eThomas Point Shoal Light\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Chesapeake Bay light in this series does not stand on land. It sits on metal posts screwed directly into the floor of the bay.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn onshore stone tower was built on Thomas Point in 1825 and replaced in 1838, the point eroding too quickly to hold it. In 1875 Congress authorized a screw-pile structure offshore instead, and Thomas Point Shoal Light was lit for the first time that November, its cast iron beams driven twelve feet into the bay bottom.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe bay tested it immediately. Winter ice tore out and destroyed the original lens in 1877; when the lens was replaced, additional supports were added to the screw-pile foundation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eWhy it matters\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBy 1964 it was the last manned lighthouse in the Chesapeake, and it was automated in 1986. As of 2021 it remained the only unaltered screw-pile cottage-type lighthouse still standing on its original foundation anywhere in the bay — which is why Maryland treats it as a piece of state history rather than just a navigation aid.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Forever Stamp Center","offers":[{"title":"100 Stamps (5 Sheets)","offer_id":47100607594695,"sku":"ST13-A2-5","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"300 Stamps (15 Sheets)","offer_id":47100607627463,"sku":"ST13-A2-15","price":54.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"500 Stamps (25 Sheets)","offer_id":47100607660231,"sku":"ST13-A2-25","price":89.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"1000 Stamps (50 Sheets)","offer_id":47100607692999,"sku":"ST13-A2-50","price":149.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"5000 Stamps (250 Sheets)","offer_id":47100607725767,"sku":"ST13-A2-250","price":699.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0770\/6250\/4647\/files\/464CA94D-8769-C773-EBC4-8358A5BFFE1C-1-1-800x800_bd3b8b45-6ce1-4d80-9ecf-d600c68a17bc.jpg?v=1788604175"},{"product_id":"forever-stamps-2012-holy-family-religious-christmas-scene-first-class-postage","title":"Holy Family 2013 Forever Stamps — Flight into Egypt, Religious Christmas Issue","description":"\u003ch2\u003eIssue facts\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eValue: 66¢ 1-ounce first-class letter rate\u003cbr\u003eIssued: October 11, 2013\u003cbr\u003eFirst Day City: New York, NY\u003cbr\u003ePrinted by: Banknote Corporation of America for Sennett Security Products\u003cbr\u003eMethod: Offset printing in sheets of 200, 10 panes of 20\u003cbr\u003ePerforation: Serpentine Die Cut 11\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eThe scene\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJoseph leads a donkey carrying Mary and the infant Jesus beneath a shining star. Art director William Gicker, designer Greg Breeding and artist Nancy Stahl produced the stamp.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eThe story it depicts\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAfter the Wise Men came looking for the \"King of the Jews\" and honored the child with gold, frankincense and myrrh, Herod saw a rival and set out to destroy him. Warned in a dream, Joseph took his family and left.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe journey to Egypt ran roughly 200 miles and began immediately. The Magi's gifts, whatever else they meant, were what paid for it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eLegends from the road\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSeveral attached themselves to the flight. In one, Mary grew hungry and Jesus caused a palm tree to bend down so she could reach the dates. In another, idols toppled and shattered as he passed. Churches still stand at sites believed to be where the family sheltered along the way.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Forever Stamp Center","offers":[{"title":"100 Stamps (5 Books)","offer_id":47100625715399,"sku":"ST12-A3-5","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"300 Stamps (15 Books)","offer_id":47100625748167,"sku":"ST12-A3-15","price":54.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"500 Stamps (25 Books)","offer_id":47100625780935,"sku":"ST12-A3-25","price":89.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"1000 Stamps (50 Books)","offer_id":47100625813703,"sku":"ST12-A3-50","price":149.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"5000 Stamps (250 Books)","offer_id":47100625846471,"sku":"ST12-A3-250","price":699.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0770\/6250\/4647\/files\/39197_source_1742315468_9f812194-403b-436a-85c5-503dd0543538.jpg?v=1788604118"},{"product_id":"forever-stamps-2013-gingerbread-houses-holiday-celebration-first-class-postage","title":"Gingerbread Houses 2013 Forever Stamps — Block of Four, Holiday Issue","description":"\u003ch2\u003eIssue facts\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIssue Date: November 6, 2013\u003cbr\u003eCity: New York, NY\u003cbr\u003ePrinted by: Banknote Corporation of America\u003cbr\u003ePrinting Method: Offset\u003cbr\u003ePerforations: Serpentine Die Cut 11\u003cbr\u003eColor: Multicolored\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eThe set\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOne of a block of four issued for the 2013 holiday season. The houses were not photographed from stock — designers built them specifically for these stamps.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eWhere gingerbread comes from\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe word traces to \u003cem\u003egingerbras\u003c\/em\u003e, borrowed from thirteenth-century France, meaning preserved ginger. Before refrigeration, cooks added the spice to dishes partly to cover the smell of meat that had turned. By the following century the term had become gingerbread.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOne of the earliest known recipes, from the 15th century, called for boiling breadcrumbs in honey, spicing the mixture and pressing it into carved wooden molds. English bakers of the 16th century swapped the breadcrumbs for flour and added eggs and sugar. Queen Elizabeth I, who took dessert seriously, is credited with the first gingerbread man.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eRegional variations\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCandy-decorated houses became a holiday fixture soon after. Recipes still differ widely: wine, brandy or ale in some countries; candied citrus peel, pepper or anise in place of ginger in others; honey or molasses instead of sugar. The medieval version and the American one share a name and not much else.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Forever Stamp Center","offers":[{"title":"100 Stamps (5 Books)","offer_id":47100625879239,"sku":"ST13-A1-5","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"300 Stamps (15 Books)","offer_id":47100625912007,"sku":"ST13-A1-15","price":54.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"500 Stamps (25 Books)","offer_id":47100625944775,"sku":"ST13-A1-25","price":89.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"1000 Stamps (50 Books)","offer_id":47100625977543,"sku":"ST13-A1-50","price":149.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"5000 Stamps (250 Books)","offer_id":47100626010311,"sku":"ST13-A1-250","price":699.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0770\/6250\/4647\/files\/1-5-1-1-800x800_c5a813d7-b4e7-487d-84c4-4bac82888bf9.jpg?v=1788603836"},{"product_id":"forever-stamps-2013-a-flag-for-all-seasons-patriotic-symbol-seasonal-celebration-first-class-postage","title":"A Flag for All Seasons 2013 Forever Stamps — Booklet Format, Four Designs","description":"\u003cp\u003eFour stamps, one flag, four seasons. Laura Stutzman of Maryland painted the gouache illustrations from her own photographs; each design shows the U.S. flag from below, with the trees and sky establishing the time of year.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eThe guard that never leaves\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe servicemen in the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier are Known But to God, and they belong to every American family. A perpetual guard and the United States flag have stood over them since July 2, 1937.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe sentinels are drawn from the Army's 3rd Infantry Regiment and hold the post around the clock in any weather.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eThe routine\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe guard marches the length of a black mat behind the tomb, turns to face east, turns to face north, and marches back. After each turn comes a shoulder-arms movement — a signal that the sentinel is ready to meet any threat.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChanges occur every 30 to 120 minutes depending on season and time of day, and the schedule does not bend for weather. The Sentinel's Creed commits each guard to walk the tour in humble reverence through years of diligence and the discomfort of the elements.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThrough blizzards, hurricanes and the quiet of a summer night, the guard and the flag stay with the unknown soldiers — the standing promise that a grateful nation has not forgotten.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Forever Stamp Center","offers":[{"title":"100 Stamps (5 Books)","offer_id":47100626043079,"sku":"ST13-K0-5","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"300 Stamps (15 Books)","offer_id":47100626075847,"sku":"ST13-K0-15","price":54.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"500 Stamps (25 Books)","offer_id":47100626108615,"sku":"ST13-K0-25","price":89.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"1000 Stamps (50 Books)","offer_id":47100626141383,"sku":"ST13-K0-50","price":149.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"5000 Stamps (250 Books)","offer_id":47100626174151,"sku":"ST13-K0-250","price":699.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0770\/6250\/4647\/files\/2025-1-4-57-1-1-1-800x800_63dfcb1b-a866-490c-9046-38da546c090d.jpg?v=1788604026"},{"product_id":"forever-stamps-2013-four-seasons-u-s-flag-patriotic-symbol-first-class-postage","title":"Four Seasons U.S. Flag 2013 Forever Stamps — Coil Format, First-Class Postage","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe \u003cem\u003eA Flag For All Seasons\u003c\/em\u003e issue in coil, which feeds one stamp at a time from the roll.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eThe four designs\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEach shows an American flag at full staff, seen from below, against trees that place the scene in one of the four seasons. Looking up at the pole is what gives the set its consistency — the flag is identical each time, and everything behind it changes.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eCredits\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLaura Stutzman painted the artwork in gouache on illustration board, working from her own photographs of the flag as reference. 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