Description: This vintage 30 h (30 haléřů) definitive postage stamp was issued by the Czechoslovak Republic to commemorate the IX International Peace Race (IX. Mezinárodní Závod Míru). The main vertical illustration is executed in fine black line engraving against an atmospheric blue-gray backdrop. It captures two competitive cyclists leaning forward in full sprint, their faces fixed in deep concentration, with the numbers "1956" sweeping across the upper sky. Below the secondary rider, a miniature blue emblem portrays a flying peace dove alongside the bold initials "WBP". The text "IX. MEZINÁRODNÍ ZÁVOD MÍRU" runs vertically down the left border, while the country name "ČESKOSLOVENSKO" caps the upper edge. Tiny signatures along the bottom margin credit the graphic composition to artist Jaroslav Černý and the hand-cut intaglio carving to master engraver Ladislav Jirka.
Circa: 1956
Condition: Used - Hinged
Notes:
The capitalized "WBP" acronym printed on the lower emblem stands for Warsaw, Berlin, and Prague (Warszawa, Berlin, Praha). These three Eastern Bloc capitals rotated duties as the starting, transitional, and final stages for the Peace Race, which was widely celebrated as the Soviet sphere's equivalent to the Tour de France.
The stylized white dove on the blue flag directly reflects Pablo Picasso's famous 1949 peace dove motif. Incorporating this specific emblem was highly political, casting the grueling cross-border athletic tourney as a peaceful diplomatic bridge between socialist European nations during the Cold War.