B4101

Crops of the Americas

Beans

Collins Cover Announcement 

Jack and the Beanstalk

Crops of the Americas 

Beans

When it was first announced that the Postal Service was going to issue a small set of vegetable stamps, I was not particularly excited. I knew that I would be able to come up with decent artistic designs for the cachets (the "Berry" stamps of a few years ago came to mind), but, to be honest, I didn't envision what they would eventually become. After much contemplation, I decided to approach each stamp as an individual subject. The resulting covers turned out to be special indeed.

Folklore, fables, and storybook characters are highly collectible, so for the green beans I decided to do that childhood favorite, "Jack and the Beanstalk". I don't want to say too much now about the covers still to come, but I will say that one of them will be my first ever Halloween First Day Cover, and that subject has become very hot with collectors.

My hand painted cachet shows a massive beanstalk with vibrant leaves and huge bean pods growing in the countryside with fields and cottages far below. Jack is climbing down, holding onto the vine with one arm while clutching the hen that lays the golden eggs under the other. The unseen villainous giant is chasing the boy but will meet his fate when Jack reaches the ground and chops down the stalk. His pursuing nemesis will crash to earth, peimanently ending his threat and enabling Jack and his family to live happily ever after.

Because of its unique famous fable theme, this individually watercolored cover has the potential to be-, come a highly collected Collins, and acquiring it now is recommended. In the years ahead, its ultimate value will be real compared to the golden eggs of childhood fiction. I'm pleased to offer you your piece of the storybook beanstalk with the brave Jack descending toward safety — Collins #B4101 — $13.25