2017-06-20 Tue

The adjacent 0.30+0.10 French Franc stamp was issued by La Poste on 27th June 1966 to commemorate the love of Odysseus and Penelope. The stamp also portrays Gabriel Faure, the famous composer who wrote the three-act opera- Penelope.

When all had come to marry Helen, Odysseus fell in love with her cousin Penelope. They were married on the condition that Odysseus and all the remaining suitors would protect Helen and her suitor. Such a situation later arose and the Trojan War began. As promised Odysseus and other Greek Kings left to protect Helen.

10 years later it was time to return home. Odysseus could not return home as Poseidon, the sea God, had other plans for him; his return was indefinitely postponed. Post 10 years of futile attempts, Athena- the Greek Goddess of wisdom convinced Poseidon to let Odysseus return home. He returned to Ithica!

In the 20 years, he was away, suitors from far and near asked Penelope’s hand in marriage as they believed Odysseus dead. Penelope, a loyal wife still in love with Odysseus refused to marry anyone. Both she and Prince Telemachus- their son believed Odysseus is alive. She tried different ways to extend the marriage while the suitors planned to execute Telemachus who could not fight them due to lack of skills. One day she gave up and announced that she would marry whoever could string Odysseus’s long bow by hand and fire an arrow through the holes of 12 axis.

Despite considering it a futile contest, none of the suitors could do it. Finally, Odysseus, dressed as an old man, managed to do that. Everyone realized he is back and started running away; they were caught and killed. He was not sure if Penelope had remained loyal but still went to her in their bedroom. She was not sure if it was him and decided to test him.

When Odysseus was a young king, he had built his bedroom around a great, magnificent olive tree that grew in his palace. He had lopped off the very top of the tree, smoothed the trunk out and made it into one of the bedposts of his bed. This was the bed – literally rooted to the ground – which he shared with his wife during their time together. It was their special secret. Penelope asked the maidservant to move his bed and Odysseus lashed out on her if she had gone mad! How can his bed be moved? Penelope realized it’s him and fell in his arms; they were united forever.

Mintage World is proud to present a stamp set of eternal love stories depicted on stamps like Orpheus and Eurydice, Eros and Psyche and Napoleon and Josephine. Read on!