Romfilatelia introduces into circulation on Wednesday, February 12th this year, a new postage stamps issue titled Peleș National Museum, Stained Glass Windows, showcasing artistic creations from a valuable collection of stained glass, part of the heritage of Peleș Castle. The issue consists of four postage stamps and a First Day Cover.
The stained glass collection of Peleș Castle is practically unique in Romania and South-eastern Europe. Commissioned by King Carol I at the Zettler workshops in Munich, the stained glass windows were created in an initial phase between 1881 and 1882. Their artistic design includes flags, shields, heraldic symbols, coats of arms of German cities, portraits of royal family members, tilts, hunting scenes, and more.
Religious themes also find their place, with compositions depicting Saint George, Archangel Michael, Saint Nicholas, and Adam and Eve. Additionally, there are compositions illustrating scenes from European fairy tales such as Snow White and The Beautiful Mélusine, found in Queen Elisabeth’s study. Romanian fairy tales are also represented, including Ana Doamna [Lady Ana], Înșir-te mărgărite [Get strung, pearl], and Ciocârlia [Skylark] by Alecsandri, which can be seen in the Old Music Hall. The last stained glass windows were created to decorate the New Audience Hall of the Castle, arranged between 1911 and 1914.
A new order for stained glass, designed in a modern concept, was entrusted by King Carol I to August Zwölfer from Vienna. Through his Bucharest branch, he created the stained glass windows of the Moorish Salon, featuring arabesques, between 1887 and 1890. Between 1900 and 1910, he continued with stained glass in the Art Nouveau style, including those made for the apartment of Grand Voivode Mihai and the Golden Room of Queen Marie.
The execution techniques of the period, while preserving the tradition of glass production and the use of colours inherited from 16th-century art, were beneficially complemented by new discoveries in glass manufacturing and colour chemistry.
Applied and thoroughly heat-treated, the colours have remained vivid and brilliant even after more than a century and a half since the works were created.
It is worth mentioning that Franz Xaver Zettler initiated the creation of a catalogue that includes all works made using the stained glass technique up until 1883. The reproduced lithographs serve as an original exhibition of the images and themes of the stained glass windows.
The postage stamps reproduce images depicting scenes from the fairy tale Snow White (the stamps with face values of Lei 4 and Lei 6), a wedding ceremony titled Bridal Procession (in Romanian, Cortegiu nupțial) (the stamp with the face value of Lei 5), and the overall architecture of Hohenzollern Castle, which belonged to the family of King Carol I (the stamp with the face value of Lei 14).
The design of the First Day Cover features an interesting scene from the commercial domain under a well-thought-out title: The Jewellery Merchant.
Romfilatelia thanks the manager Narcis-Dorin Ion and the documentation team of the Peleş National Museum for the support provided in the development of this postage stamps issue.
