Piñatas 2023 Forever Stamps — Four Traditional Designs, Double-Sided Booklet of 20

Issue facts

First Day of Issue: September 8, 2023
First Day City: Roswell, New Mexico
Printed by: Ashton Potter (USA) Ltd.
Printing Method: Offset
Format: Double-sided booklets of 20

The designs

Four digital illustrations by Victor Meléndez of traditional Mexican piñatas, donkeys and seven-point stars among them. The first-day ceremony was held during Roswell's 36th annual Piñata Festival.

Where the shapes come from

The star and the donkey are the two most common piñata forms in Mexico, and both arrived in the 1500s with Spanish missionaries, who used piñatas as a way of connecting with local communities and chose shapes tied to the Nativity. The star stands for the Star of Bethlehem — its seven points for the seven deadly sins — and the donkey for the burro that carried Mary to the manger.

How they have changed

Early piñatas were clay pots decorated with bright feathers and paper and filled with fruit and sugar cane. Cardboard and papier-mâché replaced the clay over time, and candy replaced most of the fruit, though toys and other fillings are common.

Mexico's Museum of Folk Art has run an annual piñata contest since 2006, holds workshops, and keeps piñatas in its permanent collections. For scale: Philadelphia built the world's largest in 2022 — 61 feet tall, 60 feet long, 23 feet wide, holding 8,000 pounds of candy.

Ships from our U.S. warehouse within 1 business day.

Secure checkout with major cards and PayPal.

Tracking information will be provided once your order ships.