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Stamp Desk / Scripts of the world

Greece, 1896 (25 lepta, chariot race)

A chariot race, under a large round postmark.

A chariot race, under a large round postmark; stamp issued by Greece, 1896
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Illustration of a historical stamp for learning, shown at screen size. Not valid for postage.

How to read it

ΕΛΛΑΣ, Greek for Greece, under the words for Olympic Games.

  1. ΟΛΥΜΠΙΑΚΟΙ ΑΓΩΝΕΣ: Olympic Games
  2. ΕΛΛΑΣ: Greece
  3. 25 ΛΕΠΤΑ · ΑΘΗΝΑΙ
Inscription
ΟΛΥΜΠΙΑΚΟΙ ΑΓΩΝΕΣ · ΕΛΛΑΣ · 25 ΛΕΠΤΑ · ΑΘΗΝΑΙ
Meaning
ΕΛΛΑΣ (Hellas) is Greece; ΟΛΥΜΠΙΑΚΟΙ ΑΓΩΝΕΣ means Olympic Games and ΑΘΗΝΑΙ is Athens. ΛΕΠΤΑ: lepta, the small coin.
Issued by
Greece
Today
Greece
Year
1896. Issued in 1896 for the first modern Olympic Games in Athens.
Made by
Émile Gilliéron (designer, died 1924); Louis-Eugène Mouchon (engraver, died 1914)

One fact

Greece issued twelve stamps for the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896, designed by Émile Gilliéron and engraved by Louis-Eugène Mouchon; the 25 lepta shows a chariot race.

Source and public-domain rule

Creators died more than 70 years ago. Every named creator died more than 70 years ago: Émile Gilliéron (died 1924), Louis-Eugène Mouchon (died 1914). 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: Stamp 1896 Greece MiNr0101 pm B002.jpg on Wikimedia Commons (revision 1257725950), licence templates {{PD-old-70}}. Downloaded 2026-10-22, sha256 20d22fc635e1…; cropped and cleaned for this site. Facts checked 2026-10-22 against source 1 and source 2. Research record, not legal advice; a second check of these rights by a person is planned, and a stamp that turns out not to be free to use will be removed. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.