A recent issue by Swiss Post shows two images not visible to the naked eye that relate to common garden flowers. A microscopic factor of nearly 3,000x was necessary to display the invisible scenery on this stamp.
The limited edition stamp series was created and designed by artist Martin Oeggerli, who explores unknown worlds in his work and enables people to see things in ways they have never experienced before.
The artist, who has a doctorate in molecular biology, uses a scanning electron microscope to capture his subject matter. Then, with painstaking precision, he colours the black-and-white original photographs down to the finest detail.
The 85 Rp stamp shows a handful of Forget-me-not pollen grains. Forget-me-not pollen are among the smallest existing grains within the pollen universe. The 100 Rp stamp exposes the miraculous self-cleaning (superhydrophobic) properties of a rose petal – which is often used as the symbol of love.
An elegant A4-size art postcard that includes two cancelled original stamps and is numbered and signed by the artist Martin Oeggerli has also been produced. On the left is the image of a Forget-me-not plant and on the right a rose, both flowers having inspired the artist.
