Overview
Australia Post has been issuing special seasonal stamp designs for Christmas mailing since 1957 and, since 1975, stamps with reduced denominations for Christmas card postage. As in previous years, this year’s designs span both traditional Christmas scenes and secular elements.
This year’s religious stamps feature illustrations by Gavin Ryan, which pay homage to the use of stained glass as an architectural art form in churches and other public buildings. This year is the United Nations International Year of Glass. The Christmas 2022 minisheet illustration presents a Gothic-style church facade, with the stamps comprising two stylised stained-glass windows, with scenes that feature the Archangel Gabriel and the Madonna and Child.
The secular stamp designs present Christmas greetings and good tidings, together with a colourful Christmas star motif, using shapes and colours not unlike sections of stained glass.
Technical specifications
| Issue date | 1 November 2022 |
| Issue withdrawal date | 31 December 2023 |
| Denominations | 65c x 3, $2.60 x 2 |
| Stamp illustration (religious) | Gavin Ryan |
| Stamp design (secular) | Simone Sakinofsky, Australia Post Design Studio |
| Product design | Simone Sakinofsky, Australia Post Design Studio |
| Paper: gummed | Tullis Russell 104gsm Red Phos |
| Paper: self-adhesive | Arconvert Securepost MC90, Raflatac Cast s/a sheet 10 |
| Paper: s/a sheetlet of 10 | Raflatac Cast |
| Printer (religious) | RA Printing |
| Printer (secular) | EGO |
| Printer (secular sheetlet of 10) | Rapid Labels |
| Printing process | Offset lithography |
| Printer process (secular sheetlet of 10) | Inkjet 1200 dpi |
| Stamp size (mm) | 26 x 37.5 |
| Minisheet size (mm) | 135 x 80 |
| Sheetlet of 10 (mm) | 192 x 120 |
| Perforations | 14.6 x 13.86 |
| Sheet layout | Modules of 50 |
| FDI postmark | Merrylands NSW 2160 |
| FDI withdrawal date | 29 November 2022 |
Stamps in this issue
Joy
“Joy” represents the feelings of happiness experienced during the festive season.
Peace
“Peace” represents the hope that at this special time of year there will be peace on Earth for all.
65c Madonna and Child
This stamp illustration portrays the Madonna tenderly holding the Christ Child in her arms and is presented in the style of a stained-glass window.
Noël
Based on the Latin word natalis, the old French word “Noël” means Christmas but also a carol or song in English-speaking cultures. In France “Merry Christmas” is expressed as Joyeux Noël.
Archangel Gabriel
This stamp illustration depicts the Archangel Gabriel, an important character in the Christmas story, who announced to the Virgin Mary that she had been chosen to be delivered of a son, Jesus Christ. The design is presented as a stained-glass window scene.
Shop our stamp collectables
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Set of Christmas 2022 Gummed Stamps
This set of stamps contains all five stamps from the Christmas 2022 stamp issue
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Christmas 2022 Stamp Pack
The Christmas 2022 stamp pack contains all five stamps and minisheet from the stamp issue presented in a high-quality folder.
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Christmas 2022 Minisheet
The Christmas 2022 minisheet consists of the two religious stamps from the issue incorporated into a miniature stamp sheet.
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Set of Christmas 2022 Maxicards
This maxicard set contains the five maxicards from the Christmas 2022 stamp issue.
Additional products
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Embellished Self-adhesive Sheetlet Pack
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Embellished 65c Joy Self-adhesive Sheetlet of 10
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Embellished 65c Peace Self-adhesive Sheetlet of 10
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Christmas 2022 Perth Mint Postal Numismatic Cover
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Christmas 2022 Royal Australian Mint Postal Numismatic Cover
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Sheetlet of 5x $2.60 International Secular Stamps
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Sheetlet of 5x $2.60 International Religious Stamps
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Booklet of 20x 65c Secular Stamps
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Booklet of 20x 65c Religious Stamps
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Gutter Strip of 10x 65c Secular Stamps
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Gutter Strip of 10x $2.60 International Secular Stamps
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Gutter Strip of 10x 65c Religious Stamps
This content was produced at the time of the stamp issue release date and will not be updated.
Related stamp issues
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Issue date: 31 October 2014
Christmas 2014
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Issue date: 30 October 2015
Christmas 2015
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Issue date: 31 October 2016
Christmas 2016
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Issue date: 30 October 2020
Christmas 2020