Illustration of a historical stamp for learning, shown at screen size. Not valid for postage.
How to read it
LATVIJA arched across the top.
- 1LATVIJA
- 2KAP. 5 KAP.
- Inscription
- LATVIJA · KAP. 5 KAP.
- Meaning
- LATVIJA is Latvian for Latvia; KAP. is kapeikas (kopecks).
- Issued by
- Republic of Latvia
- Today
- Latvia
- Year
- 1918. Issued 18 December 1918.
- Made by
- Ansis Cīrulis (design, died 1942)
One fact
Latvia’s first stamp, designed by Ansis Cīrulis, was printed on unused German army map sheets.
Source and public-domain rule
Creators died more than 70 years ago. Designer died 1942. Copyright lasts for the life of the author plus 70 years, counted from 1 January of the year after death. Every named designer and engraver of the stamp died before 1 January 1956; any contributor who was never named counts as anonymous, whose term is 70 years from publication, and the stamp was published before 1956. Legal sources: Directive 2006/116/EC, Art. 1(1) life + 70 years; Art. 1(3) anonymous works 70 years from publication; Art. 7(1) comparison of terms for works from outside the EU; Art. 8 terms run from 1 January, Switzerland, Norway.
Scan: StampLatvia1918Michel1.jpg on Wikimedia Commons (revision 877009837), licence templates {{PD-old}}. Downloaded 2026-10-19, sha256 3923970b1f6b…; cropped and cleaned for this site. Facts checked 2026-10-19 against source 1 and source 2. Research record, not legal advice; a human rights review is pending. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
