New issues on 31 May 2023  

In order to propose and organize the events which will celebrate the memory of Prince Rainier III on the occasion of the centenary of his birth, H.S.H. Prince Albert II has created a Commemoration Committee, placed under His honorary presidency and under the active presidency of H.S.H. Princess Stéphanie, which will pay tribute to the man who devoted fifty-six years of his life to the service of the Principality. This commemoration will begin in full with a big party on the Rock on May 31 for Monegasques and residents, and will continue until the International Monte-Carlo Circus Festival in January 2024. The various events will allow you to discover Rainier III in all his facets and to underline the multiple achievements to his credit: modern institutions, a diversified economy, an ambitious policy of development and extension of the territory, initiatives in the cultural, scientific and environmental fields and, above all, increased Monegasque sovereignty. The Office des Timbres will issue several stamps honoring Prince Rainier III from May 31, 2023 to January 2024.

PORTRAIT OF PRINCE RAINIER III

This portrait of Prince Rainier III in an American shot was made by the French painter and illustrator Hélier Cosson (1897-1976) in 1949.

Painting: Hélier COSSON (1897-1976)
Photo: © G. Moufflet - Archives of the Prince's Palace
Printing process: Offset
Size of the stamp: 30 x 40,85 mm vertical
Quantity of issue: 40 000 stamps
Sheet of 10 stamps with illuminations

30th ANNIVERSARY OF MONACO'S MEMBERSHIP TO THE UNITED NATIONS

Monaco has always been a committed actor on the international level long before its membership to the United Nations on May 28, 1993, of which Prince Rainier III was the main instigator. Security, human rights, health, the preservation of natural environments, the sustainable management of resources, the fight against poverty and exclusion, are all rights and duties that drive the action of the Principality. To commemorate the 30th anniversary of Monaco's membership to the UN, the Permanent Mission of Monaco to the United Nations is organizing a concert by the Prince's band of Carabiniers in New York, given in the heart of the emblematic General Assembly Hall on June 19, 2023.

Design and line-engraving: Martin MÖRCK
Printing process: Steel-engraving and offset
Size of the stamp: 40,85 x 30 mm horizontal
Quantity of issue: 40 000 stamps
Sheet of 10 stamps with illuminations

FRESCO OF THE ACHIEVMENTS OF PRINCE RAINIER III

This work by the naive Monegasque painter Claude Gauthier represents, in a colorful and original style, the main achievements of Prince Rainier III who, during his 56-year reign, profoundly shaped Monaco to make it the model and modern State that we know. We can thus find on the painting: the extension of the territory with the districts of Fontvieille, Larvotto, the new dyke, the development of urbanization and infrastructures with the Louis II Stadium, the undergrounding of the railway, an active cultural and artistic policy with the creation of the Department of Cultural Affairs, the Monte-Carlo Television Festival, the Museum of Stamps and Coins, the International Monte-Carlo Circus Festival, actions in favor of environmental protection , the development of parks and gardens such as the Animal Garden, the Princess Grace Rose Garden, the Japanese Garden, etc.

Design: Claude GAUTHIER
Printing process: Offset
Size of the stamp: 120 x 30 mm horizontal
Quantity of issue: 40 000 stamps
Sheet of 4 stamps with illuminations

RAINIER III PROTECTOR OF ENVIRONMENT

At the Rio Earth Summit in 1992, Prince Rainier III stressed the urgency of responses to the challenges facing humanity: the overuse of natural resources, pollution, climate change, erosion and land desertification, environmental refugees, growing inequalities and the degradation of seas and oceans. A scuba diver and sea lover, Rainier III initiated many actions, including opposition to the dumping of nuclear waste in the Mediterranean Sea, the hosting of high-level laboratories on the marine environment (IAEA and Monaco Scientific Center), or the launch of international agreements to fight against pollution and protect species. Monaco was one of the first signatories of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and at the initiative, with France and Italy, of the creation of the PELAGOS sanctuary in 1999 for the protection of marine mammals of the Mediterranean, the first marine protected area on the high seas. We should also note the signing of the RAMOGE agreement in 1976, ACCOBAMS in 1996, or even the action of the Principality within the framework of CITES in favor of the preservation of species.

Design: Thierry MORDANT
Printing process: Offset
Size of the pair: 104 x 31 mm horizontal
Quantity of issue: 40 000 pairs
Sheet of 4 pairs of stamps with illuminations

These issues will be on sale at the “Office des Timbres”, the “Musée des Timbres et des Monnaies”, the post offices and philatelic counters of the Principality, the Monaco stamp-dealers as well as the “Carré d’Encre” in Paris, France. They will be included, with other values, in the 2nd Part of the philatelic programme 2023 and offered to our subscribers and customers.