1957-11-28 USSR Overprint Tsiolkovsky stamp

A First Day Cover featuring a Tsiolkovsky 100th anniversary stamp with a Sputnik 1 commemorative overprint, postmarked in Khimki with a hand cancel on November 28, 1957.

Following Sputnik 1's historic launch on October 4, 1957, the Soviet postal authorities used the existing Tsiolkovsky stamp to create a special black overprint commemorating the achievement.

A Tsiolkovsky 100th anniversary stamp with an overprint.

The overprint was issued on November 28, 1957. It reads:

"4 X 57 г. Первый в мире искусственный спутник Земли"

meaning approximately:

"4 October 1957 - First Artificial Satellite of the World"

It was also a very small issue, with only about 115,000 overprinted stamps, compared with roughly 2 million of the original Tsiolkovsky stamp. This makes the overprint considerably scarcer.

A First Day Cover featuring a Tsiolkovsky 100th anniversary stamp with a Sputnik 1 commemorative overprint, postmarked in Sverdlovsk with a hand cancel on November 28, 1957.