About This Stamp
Two stamps issued on September 19, 1958, honored Lajos Kossuth (1802–1894) as the third person featured in the Champions of Liberty series that honored men who fought for freedom in their homelands and offered a counterpoint to the totalitarianism of the Soviet Union. The ceremony, held at the Department of Interior Building in Washington, D.C., featured delegations of prominent Hungarians, the postmaster general, and Vice President Nixon.
Lajos Kossuth, a Hungarian radical who fought for Hungarian independence, served briefly as president of an independent Hungary in 1849. The regime quickly collapsed, and in 1851 he fled to the United States.
The 8-cent multicolored Kossuth stamps were perforated 11 and were printed on the sheet-fed Giori press. The 288-subject sheets were cut into panes of 72 stamps each for distribution to post offices. Four plates were used for the vignette: 26092, 26095, 26098, and 26119. Plates used for the frame were 26056, 26062, 26088, and 26091.
William K. Schrage of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing modeled both the 4-cent and 8-cent Kossuth stamps after a photograph of Kossuth furnished by the American Hungarian Federation. Both were based, as were all the stamps in the series, on the previously issued Magsaysay commemorative.
Richard M. Bower, John S. Edmondson, and Howard F. Sharpless of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing engraved the 4-cent Kossuth stamp. Richard M. Bower, John S. Edmondson, and Charles A. Brooks engraved the 8-cent version.