Take International Mail in a New Direction

1794 Compass Rose Global Forever stamp issued today

WASHINGTON, Jan. 24, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the U.S. Postal Service released 1794 Compass Rose, a Global Forever stamp featuring a colorful 18th-century compass rose, at the Southeastern Stamp Expo in Peachtree Corners, GA.

Expo attendees were able to purchase the stamps and get a commemorative first-day-of-issue postmark.

For customers and stamp collectors who were unable to attend the expo, the stamps and the commemorative postmark are available at the Peachtree Corners Post Office. The Compass Rose Forever stamps are also available at Post Office locations nationwide and the online Postal Store.

A compass rose is a round figure on a map that helps users orient themselves by showing the direction of north and other points of the compass. The earliest known compass rose was drawn in the 1300s and was used to indicate the directions of the eight principal winds. Now compass roses are typically shown as the four cardinal directions (north, south, east and west) and four intercardinal directions (northeast, southeast, northwest and southwest).

More elaborate compass roses show the directions not only of the eight principal winds, but also the half-winds and quarter-winds, which were used as points of orientation. The term "compass rose" comes from the resemblance of the directional points to rose petals.

The 32-point compass rose depicted on the stamp is from the Collections of the Maine Historical Society and was drawn in 1794 by 10-year-old Lucia Wadsworth in her school geography notebook. She colored the directional points in bright blue, red, yellow and green on a beige background. Wadsworth is the aunt of poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

The pane of 10 round stamps is arranged in two horizontal rows of five stamps. The text, repeated twice around the stamp edge, reads "Global" in red and "USA" "Forever" and "2025" in green lettering. Greg Breeding, an art director for USPS, was the stamp designer.  

The 1794 Compass Rose is a Global Forever stamp. The stamp can be used to mail a 1-ounce letter to any country where First-Class Mail International service is available.

Global Forever stamps will always be equal in value to the current, single-piece First-Class Mail International 1‑ounce price.

News of the stamp is being shared with the hashtag #1794CompassRoseStamp.

Postal Products

Customers may purchase stamps and other philatelic products through The Postal Store at usps.com/shopstamps, by calling 844-737-7826, by mail through USA Philatelic or at Post Office locations nationwide. For officially licensed stamp products, shop the USPS Officially Licensed Collection on Amazon. Additional information on stamps, First Day of Issue Ceremonies and stamp inspired products can be found at StampsForever.com.

Please Note: The United States Postal Service is an independent federal establishment, mandated to be self-financing and to serve every American community through the affordable, reliable and secure delivery of mail and packages to 169 million addresses six and often seven days a week. Overseen by a bipartisan Board of Governors, the Postal Service is implementing a 10-year transformation plan, Delivering for America, to modernize the postal network, restore long-term financial sustainability, dramatically improve service across all mail and shipping categories, and maintain the organization as one of America's most valued and trusted brands.

The Postal Service generally receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

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Media contact: Kim Frum
kimberly.a.frum@usps.gov
usps.com/news

Local contact: Tiffany Rowland
tiffany.c.rowland@usps.gov
usps.com/news

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SOURCE U.S. Postal Service