Micro creatures on miniature stamps

For the first time in Belgian philatelic history, a series of stamps in the mini format of 1 by 2 centimeters is being released. A technical and artistic tour de force, dedicated to five almost invisible, but ecologically indispensable micro-creatures. Issue date: October 20, 2025. Did you know? Artis-Micropia who contributed to this release? Do you know our scientist Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, the inventor of the microscope? Have you already seen these micro-creatures with a magnifying glass?

Micro-animals

Most of life is invisible. Two-thirds of life on Earth consists of microorganisms and cannot be seen without a microscope. We put five surprising micro-creatures on postage stamps. Special effect: Extra-small postage stamps (10 mm x 20 mm ).

Sven Bellanger, the designer of the series, beams when he thinks back to the commission: “There was a quiet hope that I would one day be allowed to develop this theme into a stamp. It was one of the subjects I had suggested myself, and I was therefore particularly pleased that it was chosen and entrusted to me.” The microworld has always fascinated him: “How wonderful it is to make the invisible visible and to be able to share the complex beauty of this hidden world with a broad audience?”

2 cm²: a major challenge

When he learned that the size would be only 1 by 2 cm, there were initially some doubts. “I was, of course, very happy and honored to have the honor of designing the smallest stamp. On the other hand, I was initially a bit overwhelmed and worried.”

The limited space, together with mandatory particulars such as the value indication and 'België-Belgique', called for creative solutions. This led to the creation of a dual format: the stamp can be used individually on 1×2 cm, or with extra perforation as 2×2 cm, on which more details are visible.

 

A diverse selection

From countless species, five representative micro-animals were selected, in close collaboration with Artis-Micropia“The tardigrade, for example, was an absolute must; that left only four spots that we were able to fill well and with variety,” says Bellanger. From copepod to roundworm: every animal was carefully chosen for both scientific relevance and visual appeal.

The scientific input from Artis was indispensable, their expert explains: “Micro-animals are often overlooked. That is not surprising: they are so small that they are difficult to see with the naked eye. But when you look through a microscope, you see that a gigantic world lies hidden there with a great variety. Unfamiliarity breeds contempt; and that is why it is fantastic that a few micro-animals have now been immortalized on stamps.”

Stamps from top to bottom and from left to right:

• Daphnia pulex (from water flea)
• Cyclops strenuus (the copepod)
• Caenorhabditis elegans (the roundworm)
• Rotifera, Philodina sp. (the rotifer)
• Tardigrada, Hypsibius sp. (het berdiertje)

Sheet: A neutral grey-blue background with sketches of the micro-creatures and wriggling lines.

Source: bpost press release.

 

Microscopes

How the earliest microscopes came into being is unclear, but at the beginning of the 17th century, the Republic had two renowned lens makers in Middelburg. Hans Lippershey (1570-1619) and Sacharias Jansen (c. 1585-1632) are associated with the invention of the microscope and the telescope. As a result, the cloth merchant Van Leeuwenhoek had access to lenses and loupes for inspecting fabrics. In 1648, he got his hands on a magnifying glass for the first time: a loupe for the textile trade with a magnifying power of three – a thread counter.

The Dutchman Jan Swammerdam (1637-1680) and the Englishman Robert hooke (1635-1703) already used a compound microscope with an eyepiece and objective, but the magnifying power of these devices paled in comparison to the strong lenses that Van Leeuwenhoek would produce. For instance, Hooke's compound microscope magnified only 30×, whereas the magnifying power of Van Leeuwenhoek's simple microscope could reach up to 270×, as evidenced by an example manufactured by Van Leeuwenhoek in the possession of the University Museum in Utrecht.

[One_half]

[/ One_half] [one_half_last]

 

 

 

 

 

 

[/ One_half_last]

Hooke's microscopic scientific research led in September 1664 to the groundbreaking book Micrographia: or Some Physiological Descriptions of Miniature Bodies Made by Magnifying Glasses. In it, Robert Hooke meticulously describes, among other things, a plant cell, a fly's eye, and a vlo.

[One_half]

[/ One_half] [one_half_last]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[/ One_half_last]

It is possible that this publication indirectly inspired Van Leeuwenhoek to focus his lenses on something other than sheets. Van Leeuwenhoek was a self-taught man: without any scientific training and without knowledge of foreign languages, he taught himself the art of observation and description in a back room of the shop. But he was also an amazing craftsman who taught himself to blow, grind, and polish glass. Unlike Hooke's compound microscope, Van Leeuwenhoek almost always clamped a single lens between two metal plates; the subject to be studied was clamped with screws and positioned so that it could be observed sharply.

His scientific status stood or fell with his exclusive knowledge of lens production, and for this reason, he jealously guarded his method. He recorded his observations and conclusions in letters written to acquaintances, through which the Delft physician and anatomist Reinier de Graaf introduced him to the Royal Society in London in 1673. From 1674 onwards, his findings were published in the Philosophical Transactions, but eventually, his wondrous observations aroused so much disbelief that a delegation was dispatched to behold the microscopic creatures with their own eyes. In 1680, the Society appointed him a member, and he received recognition for his scientific work. Van Leeuwenhoek sent many preparations to London. In 1981, the British microscopist Brian J. Ford discovered that Van Leeuwenhoek's original preparations were preserved in excellent condition and of high quality in the Royal Society's collections. Until his death in 1723, Van Leeuwenhoek sent letters containing his findings to the Royal Society.

[One_half]

[/ One_half] [one_half_last]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[/ One_half_last]

According to the theory of spontaneous generation, life arises from inanimate material (for example, maggots from rotting meat or fleas from dirty sheets). Due to the natural unity Van Leeuwenhoek observed, such as sperm cells in animals and plants, he rejected this theory and concluded that all dead and living matter consisted of small spherical particles: globules, in accordance with the prevailing doctrine of Descartes. However, after studying muscle tissue, he acknowledged that meat is not composed of such globules, but of 'striations' found from insects to mammals.

 

<strong> More info: </strong>

Van Leeuwenhoek microscopes in Boerhaave Museum:

https://www.rijksmuseumboerhaave.nl/artikel/microscopen-leeuwenhoek