CEPT - legends and legends - Austria / II. Republic of Austria 1997 - 7 Shilling

After this year's EUROPA stamp was dedicated to the theme of "legends and fairy tales", POST & TELEKOM AUSTRIA commissioned Austrian television to participate in an appropriate manner, expressly requesting that a competition be held among children who would contribute in the context of the topic in the form of drawings. From the large number of submissions, ten designs were short-listed. Finally, the design of nine-year-old Bettina Stocker from Breitenau in Lower Austria was selected as the winner: Bettina's favorite fairy tale "The Bremen Town Musicians". One of those numerous fairy tales that the Brothers Grimm wrote down in the "Children's and Household Tales" for posterity. The fairy tale is based on a special idea: Animals in a very human situation try to escape their fate - due to old age and the associated work disability or inability to work. In fact, they also find a place where every animal (every human being) can live and grow old in need and in peace and dignity; d. H. but in plain language: even the old should be granted until the end of life, the "gracious bread". But also the simple fact that unity makes strong. As this fairy tale mentions Bremen in its title, but in the actual events - except for the will of the four animals to get there - has absolutely nothing to do with the city of Bremen, could have happened everywhere. But with that, the fairy tale is once again a European one, and the stamp created in Austria is certainly a representative of the new, more and more united Europe.