The stamp of the month of July 2023 comes from Hungary. It was issued for the 100th anniversary of Szerencsi chocolate. The history of this chocolate dates back to 1923.
At that time, next to the sugar factory, the chocolate factory opened its doors. After the Second World War, the factory became state property and was taken over by Nestlé in 1990. Today, the traditional products are manufactured by Szerencsi Bonbon Kft. These traditional products include the cat’s tongues depicted on the stamp but also the world-famous handmade cognac cherries. Szerencsi Bonbon Kft. is a small company committed to tradition.
Since October 2015, Szerencs chocolate has held the title of “Outstanding National Value” and has been included in the collection of Hungarian cultural assets. In 2018, the family business also regained the logo of the traditional products – a cat with a red neck bow – through the city of Szerencs, after the city regained the corresponding rights from Nestlé.
But back to philately: the standard issue of a pair of stamps for the centenary is issued in sheets of 36 stamps. The sheets contain self-adhesive stamps in the shape of a cat’s tongue in alternating colours of milk and dark chocolate. The pair of stamps are also issued as a miniature sheet of six stamps, with the peculiarity that the surface of the stamps is finished with spot varnish together with chocolate-scented varnish. The first-day cover (FDC) and the imprint of the special postmark on the envelope bear the centenary logo.
- Country: Hungary
- Issued on: 2023-07-07
- Colours: Multicolor
- Designer: Baticz Barnabás
- Printer: Codex Értékpapírnyomda Zrt.
- Format: Commemorative
- Perforation: Die Cut
- Printing: Flexography
- Gum: Self-Adhesive
- Face value: 300 Ft – Hungarian forint
- Print run stamps: 54,000
- Print run sheetlets: 6,000