Jefferson Memorial Cherry Blossoms - Washington, DC
Posted by: 
YoSam.
N 38° 52.883 W 077° 02.200
18S E 323339 N 4305585
DC loves their Cherry Blossoms, and use it a lot
Waymark Code: WMXFBW
Location: District of Columbia, United States
Date Posted: 01/06/2018
Views: 9
County of site: District of Columbia
Location of site: E. Basin Drive, off US-1, Washington
"WASHINGTON — The U.S. Postal Service celebrates the centennial of the gift of more than 3,000 cherry blossom trees from the city of Tokyo to Washington, DC, by dedicating the Cherry Blossom Centennial Forever stamps at the National Cherry Blossom Festival today. All 100 million stamps are now available at Post Offices nationwide and online at www.usps.com/shop or by calling 1-800-STAMP24.
"Joining Donahoe in dedicating the stamps Ambassador of Japan Ichiro Fujisaki; National Cherry Blossom Festival Executive Director Diana Mahew; stamp artist Paul Rogers; and, National Building Museum Executive Director Chase Rynd. U.S. Postal Service Consumer and Industry Affairs Vice President Susan LaChance served as emcee.
'“These Cherry Blossom trees were planted 100 years ago as a gift for generations to come,” said Ambassador Fujisaki. “And like the trees, these stamps and the stamps that Japan will issue next week will serve as a cherished gift for future generations.”
"The se-tenant stamps — one scene across two stamps — picture cherry trees in full-bloom around the Tidal Basin. In the stamp on the left, trees arch over two girls dressed in bright kimonos and a family on a stroll with the Washington Monument in the background. On the second stamp, the Jefferson Memorial forms the backdrop for tourists taking in the sights under a canopy of pink blooms. Working with art director Phil Jordan of Falls Church, VA, artist Paul Rogers of Pasadena, CA, created the near-mirror stamp art images. Visit this link to get the back story on the stamps and preliminary sketches of the artwork.
"A brief history of how the cherry trees came to Washington appears on the back of the stamp pane along with a modern translation by Emiko Miyashita and Michael Dylan Welch of a traditional, circa ninth-century poem written by Ki no Tomonori (c.850–c.904)." ~ United States Postal Service
"The National Cherry Blossom Festival is this year celebrating the 100th anniversary of the planting of cherry trees in Washington, D.C. The trees planted during the spring of 1912, however, were not the first ones imported from Japan for the beautification of the Capitol. Two years earlier, on January 6, 1910, 2,000 flowering cherry trees arrived from Japan and were inspected by the U.S. Bureau of Entomology. Although the Bureau lacked authority to inspect private plant imports, acting chief Charles Marlatt determined that the trees were afflicted with "practically every pest imaginable" and should be destroyed. President Taft subsequently ordered the burning of the entire shipment, which took place at the Washington Monument." ~ The Common Curator