Add nostalgic flair to your holiday letters with these vintage unused Christmas Issue "Mistletoe" postage stamps! This nostalgic holiday design is perfect for adding a touch of class to your holiday cards and letters or winter save-the-dates and weddings. In pristine mint condition and valid for current postage use, each stamp holds a face value of 5-cents. These USPS postage stamps are suitable for current mailing when used with the total required postage based on the weight of your correspondence. Embrace the charm of winter with this enchanting vintage postage stamp!

Purchase includes a total of TWENTY (20) mint condition 5-cent "Mistletoe" vintage postage stamps shown in the product listing photos.

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STAMP INFORMATION:

• Name: Mistletoe
• Series: Third Christmas Issue
• Year Issued: 1964
• Face Value: 5-cents (USD) per stamp
• Topic(s): Christmas, Holidays, Winter Flora, Kissing, Holiday Plant, Holiday Decor
• Color(s): Red and Green
• Printing Method: Giori Press
• Scott Number: 1255
• Adhesion Type: Gummed (see adhesion instructions below)
• Condition: Genuine Unused USPS Postage Stamps, Ready to Use for USPS Mailings, Mint Condition

GENUINE USPS POSTAGE: These unused vintage postage stamps are perfectly valid for use as current postage for mailing with USPS as long as you use an adequate amount of additional postage to achieve standard postage rates according to the weight of your mailing. Check current postage rates on the USPS website.

STAMP HISTORY: The 1964 5¢ “Mistletoe” Christmas stamp was issued by the U.S. Post Office Department on November 9, 1964, as part of a four-stamp se-tenant (connected) set celebrating the holiday season. The 1964 Christmas issue—comprising Holly, Sprig of Conifer, Poinsettia, and Mistletoe—marked the third consecutive year of Christmas postage in U.S. history and the first time multiple designs were released together for the same holiday.

The Mistletoe stamp features a graceful green sprig of mistletoe adorned with small white berries, set against a clean white background. The design was created under the direction of Jim Crawford, the Post Office Department’s art director, and the stamp was printed by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing using the Giori multicolor press, which enabled multiple colors to be precisely applied in a single pass—an innovation that gave the design its vivid, balanced appearance.

The choice of mistletoe reflected the Post Office Department’s growing preference for non-denominational, nature-inspired imagery that could appeal broadly to Americans of all faiths. While the earliest Christmas stamps (1962–63) featured more overt Christian or national themes (a wreath and candles, the White House and Christmas tree), the 1964 quartet represented a shift toward seasonal symbols of goodwill and renewal found in nature—holly, pine, poinsettia, and mistletoe—each with its own blend of tradition, beauty, and meaning.

The inclusion of mistletoe, in particular, drew on centuries of legend and folklore. In European and Druidic traditions, mistletoe was revered as a symbol of peace, fertility, and eternal life, often associated with midwinter rituals and the renewal of nature’s cycle. In Christian-era customs, it evolved into a token of affection and reconciliation—hanging in doorways during Christmas as an emblem of love and forgiveness.

Together, the four 1964 Christmas stamps formed a harmonious and visually unified set—the first of its kind in the United States—each design celebrating a different aspect of the season’s spirit. The Mistletoe stamp, with its gentle green curves and quiet elegance, perfectly captured the softer, more human side of Christmas: warmth, affection, and the shared hope for harmony.

STAMP MEANING & SPIRITUAL SIGNIFICANCE: The 1964 5¢ “Mistletoe” Christmas stamp embodies the sacred themes of peace, reconciliation, and the healing power of love. Though small and simple in design—a soft green sprig with white berries—it carries profound spiritual symbolism rooted in both ancient and Christian traditions, reminding us that the deepest meaning of the holiday season lies in forgiveness, unity, and renewed connection.

In ancient Celtic and Druidic spirituality, mistletoe was revered as a divine plant of the heavens, growing not from the earth but high in the branches of trees, as though bridging heaven and earth. Because it flourished in the heart of winter, evergreen and alive when most plants had died, it symbolized immortality and renewal—the assurance that life endures beyond darkness. Druids considered it a gift from the gods, using it in rituals to bring peace, healing, and fertility to the land and the spirit alike. This early reverence for mistletoe as a life-giving and peace-bringing plant laid the foundation for its later association with Christmas harmony.

In Christian symbolism, mistletoe came to represent reconciliation and divine love—the very heart of the Christmas message. According to folklore, it was once a tree whose wood was used to make the cross of Christ; in remorse, it was transformed by divine grace into a humble, parasitic plant that would never touch the earth again. Thus, it became a symbol of humility redeemed by love, an emblem of forgiveness and peace. Hanging mistletoe in the home during Christmastime came to signify the suspension of conflict—a moment when enmity ceased and love reigned, symbolized in the custom of kissing beneath it. Spiritually, this act can be seen as a ritual of grace and unity: a reminder that in love and vulnerability, all divisions can be healed.

The white berries of the mistletoe carry their own symbolic resonance. White—the color of purity and spirit—signifies peace, compassion, and divine light entering the human heart. Their round form echoes the eternal cycle of life, death, and rebirth, suggesting that love, once awakened, never dies but renews itself in every season. The green leaves, vibrant even in winter, represent vitality and the continuity of life through faith and devotion.

On the 1964 Christmas stamp, these sacred meanings are distilled into a gentle, universal image. It does not depict religion overtly, yet it embodies the spiritual essence of Christmas itself: the reconciliation of differences, the renewal of faith in one another, and the embrace of love as the bridge between all souls. Where holly symbolizes endurance and poinsettia represents divine love, mistletoe is the spirit of peace—the gentle reminder that love heals and unites where reason and pride cannot.

GUMMED STAMPS: These postage stamps have a traditional moisture-activated gum on the back. These stamps require licking or wetting to adhere to envelopes or other surfaces. To ensure good adhesion, apply vintage gummed stamps to your mailings with a glue stick (we recommend using Elmer's "Re-Stick" glue sticks).

PROCESSING & SHIPPING: Orders are typically processed and shipped within 1-3 business days of placing your order. All orders are shipped from California — please allow additional time for transit.

QUESTIONS? We love hearing from our customers and replies to inquires are usually answered the same day. Need more of this stamp? Looking for a particular stamp not found on our website? Want a curated postage set for your special event? Contact us with questions about vintage postage stamps and our services…

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