About This Stamp
The U.S. Postal Service recognizes the goal of international peace with a stamp featuring an origami crane — a symbol of global peace.
The origins of the crane as a symbol for peace began with Sadako Sasaki, who was two years old when she was exposed to the atomic bomb in Hiroshima in 1945. She was diagnosed with leukemia at age 12, in February 1955. While hospitalized, she began folding origami cranes (called orizuru in Japanese). In Japanese folklore, cranes are mythical creatures representing longevity because they are believed to live for 1,000 years. The practice of the senbazuru (folding 1,000 cranes) is believed to grant one wish to anyone who completes the task. Sadako continued folding cranes for the remainder of her life, passing away on October 25, 1955.
Sue DiCicco, artist and founder of the Peace Crane Project, was chosen to fold the crane used on the stamp, and Sally Andersen-Bruce was selected to photograph it after working with art director Antonio Alcalá on the 2023, 2024, and 2025 Lunar New Year stamps.
While the stamp may look like a simple design, art director Alcalá says it’s more complicated than it seems. After Andersen-Bruce photographed the crane, he had to adjust the shadows to make the crane look like it was in flight. He said arranging the text around the crane so it would appear in a natural position and fitting it on the small size of the stamp was a challenge.
Alcalá says these stamps carry a message that is as relevant as ever.
“One reason these stamps are important is that they enable people to send and receive a message of peace — a condition everyone hopes to live in.”
The International Peace stamp is being issued as a Forever® stamp in panes of 20. This Forever stamp will always be equal in value to the current First-Class Mail® one-ounce price.
Stamp Art Director, Stamp Designer
Antonio Alcalá
Antonio Alcalá served on the Postmaster General’s Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee from 2010 until 2011, when he left to become an art director for the U.S. Postal Service's stamp development program.
He is founder and co-owner of Studio A, a design practice working with museums and arts institutions. His clients include: the National Gallery of Art, Library of Congress, National Portrait Gallery, National Museum of Women in the Arts, The Phillips Collection, and Smithsonian Institution. He also lectures at colleges including the Corcoran College of Art + Design, SVA, Pratt, and MICA.
In 2008, his work and contributions to the field of graphic design were recognized with his selection as an AIGA Fellow. He has judged international competitions for the Society of Illustrators, American Illustration, AIGA, and Graphis. Alcalá also serves on the Smithsonian National Postal Museum and Poster House Museum’s advisory councils. His designs are represented in the AIGA Design Archives, the National Postal Museum, and the Library of Congress Permanent Collection of Graphic Design.
Alcalá graduated from Yale University with a BA in history and from the Yale School of Art with an MFA in graphic design. He lives with his wife in Alexandria, Virginia.
Photographer
Sally Andersen-Bruce
Sally Andersen-Bruce has been the president and sole proprietor of her photography business for more than 30 years. Based in Connecticut, her assignments have taken her all over the world for clients such as IBM, Polaroid, AT&T, Pepsi, Fortune, and the Wall Street Journal.
Her portfolio includes photographic content for corporations, institutions, and publications, focusing on executives, products, food, architecture, financial reports, and websites.
In addition to her commercial work, she has collaborated with several museums, including the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe, New Mexico; the Shelburne Museum in Shelburne, Vermont; and the Strong Museum in Rochester, New York.
Andersen-Bruce’s photographs have appeared on numerous U.S. postage stamps, among them Classic American Dolls (1997); Neuter and Spay (2002); Nutcrackers (2008); Animal Rescue: Adopt a Shelter Pet (2010); Weather Vanes (2012); Gingerbread Houses (2013); Diwali, first issued in 2016; four stamps in the latest Lunar New Year series (2023–2026); and International Peace (2026).
