(esc-bdph) The Essen Stamp Fair has been held regularly in Essen since 1976. Essen is thus something like the German “capital of living philately”. Ultimately, this long-standing connection and the experience associated with it is one of the reasons why the International Stamp Exhibition IBRA 2023 will be held in Essen.

Essen, that is philately. Essen is the Ruhr region. It is precisely through philately that many people from outside have travelled to the Ruhr region in recent years and have come to know and love it. Numerous visitors, also from other European and international countries, are expected at IBRA.
Reason enough for the BDPh to focus on the Ruhr area and honour it as a very special place with history, industrial culture, sports activities and nature with its own stamp issue “Individuell”. In cooperation with the Hagen-based photo artist Bernd Röttgers, the BDPh is issuing a special edition sheet with ten stamps at 85 cents each entitled “My Ruhr Area”. The sheet shows motifs from the entire Ruhr area and clearly bears the artist’s special signature. Bernd Röttgers is a well-known figure in the Ruhr area, and his pictures bring the colourfulness and diversity of the Ruhr region into focus. The stamp motifs were worked out individually for IBRA. Eric Scherer, member of the BDPh board and project manager of this special stamp issue, is pleased about the cooperation. He comments: “We have succeeded in creating a really great issue that is unique and interesting especially for the people in the Essen region and the entire Ruhr area – regardless of whether they are stamp collectors or not.” The sheet is meant to give pleasure.

The sheet is strictly limited and has a total edition of 1000 copies. The sheet is now available in advance via IBRA’s webshop at https://ibra2023.de/en/shop/. The sales price is EUR 20 including VAT. A commemorative envelope is also available to go with the sheet. All other BDPh commemorative sheets for IBRA can also be ordered in the IBRA webshop. Delivery will not take place until the beginning of May 2023.

The special post office of Deutsche Post has several matching special postmarks relating to the Ruhr region https://ibra2023.de/en/besuch-en/sonderstempel-en/