Canada Post to unveil Leonard Cohen commemorative stamp to mark late singer’s birthday

Sep 20, 2019 | 1:05 AM

MONTREAL — Canada Post is set to honour the late singer Leonard Cohen with a new set of stamps to be revealed today.

The three-stamp set — distinct designs celebrating the life and work of the beloved Montreal-born artist — will be unveiled at an event at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts this afternoon.

Cohen died in Los Angeles on Nov. 7, 2016 at age 82.

Canada Post says it will produce four million stamps, a number it believes will be sufficient for fans and collectors worldwide.

The stamps will be available to the public as of Saturday — which would have been Cohen’s 85th birthday — with Canada Post hosting a special event at a downtown Montreal post office.

The design of the stamps has been a closely guarded secret ahead of Friday’s event, which will take place in the shadow a massive Cohen mural on Crescent Street that has become a mainstay of the Montreal landscape.

Jim Phillips, director of stamp services at Canada Post, says the Crown corporation worked closely with the singer’s family and estate to ensure the stamps will be a fitting tribute.

“This particular one of Leonard Cohen is one of the most significant stamps we’ve ever issued,” Phillips said. “We’re so honoured and thrilled at having the responsibility to do this … in a proper, classy, professional way that would have made Leonard and his family extremely happy and proud.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 20, 2019.

The Canadian Press

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