With all the Santa Clauses and “Merry Christmas”, simple stamps that impress with their simplicity are almost always lost in the month of December. Therefore, I have chosen for my stamp of the month this time a stamp from Romania, which shows a very beautiful image of the Christmas rose.
The Christmas rose belongs to the genus hellebore in the plant family Ranunculaceae and is very toxic. The Christmas rose – also called snow rose or black hellebore – with its strikingly large, white flowers is known primarily for early blooming and also for its use as a garden ornamental. The popular name “snow rose” refers to the extremely early flowering time, “Christmas rose”, on the other hand, to the tradition of cultivating it so that the flowers unfold at Christmas, which is why the plant is also called “Christmas rose”. In the wild it is protected and classified as endangered (3) according to the Red List Germany.
The Christmas rose is an evergreen winter bloomer and belongs to the poisonous plants. In naturopathy, the roots are used. The folk medicine used the Christmas rose already in ancient times against heart failure, epilepsy and mental illness. The plant was also used as an emetic and laxative. Currently, however, due to its toxicity, it is used almost exclusively in finished preparations or in homeopathic preparations.
- Country: Romania
- Series: Winter flower
- Date of issue: 2020-12-10
- Stamp size: 36 x 36 mm
- Printing: Offset Lithography
- Number: 10,923
- Description: Issued in sheets of 28 and in miniature sheets of five stamps and one decorative label