Recent issues Stamps & coins

2023 Year of the Rabbit

The story of Chinese New Year starts with the Jade Emperor, who created the Zodiac calendar, a 12-year cycle to help track the passage of time. The Rabbit was chosen to represent the fourth year in the Zodiac after it came fourth in the Jade Emperor’s great race. The Rabbit would have come first, as it was fast and nimble. However, the Rabbit was also cocky and chose to take a power nap midway through the race. He woke to see the Rat, the Ox and the Tiger taking home the medals.

The design of the 2023 Year of the Rabbit stamps is inspired by the style of the Chinese nianhua poster. The stamps are intended to evoke a sense of nostalgia while also looking forward to a prosperous year ahead.

Katherine Mansfield 1888-1923

Katherine Mansfield is Aotearoa New Zealand’s most internationally recognised historical literary figure, remembered for her distinctive prose and adventurous life.

Mansfield's time in Wellington had a significant influence on many of her stories. These stamps celebrate the writer’s legacy, her work, and her New Zealand connections.

Created with support from Katherine Mansfield House & Garden and the Alexander Turnbull Library in Wellington, each stamp includes a quote, a photo of Mansfield at a stage of her life and a significant item in the background. Together they uniquely commemorate the author’s life and legacy.

Technical information

Date of issue: 7 December 2022

Designer: YMC Design, Wellington, New Zealand

Printer: Brebner Print, Napier, New Zealand

Withdrawal date: 3 December 2023

Technical information

Date of issue: 1 February 2023

Designer: Caitlin McArthur, NZ Post, Wellington, New Zealand

Printer: Brebner Print, Napier, New Zealand

Withdrawal date: 31 January 2024

Avatar: The Way of Water

Set more than a decade after the events of the first film, Avatar: The Way of Water continues to tell the story of the Sully family (Jake, Neytiri, and their kids), the trouble that follows them, the lengths they go to to keep each other safe, the battles they fight to stay alive and the tragedies they endure. Shot in Aotearoa New Zealand, the new film combines industry-leading technology with pristine locations to take audiences even deeper into the alien world of Pandora.

In combining breathtaking, real-world landscapes with boundary-pushing technologies, the Avatar filmmakers have created spectacular new worlds and populated them with compelling characters and themes on a scale the likes of which audiences at the time of its opening had yet to experience.

Hairy Maclary from Donaldson’s Dairy

In celebration of the 40th anniversary of Hairy Maclary from Donaldson’s Dairy, written and illustrated by Dame Lynley Dodd, this stamp issue showcases the original canine characters and story.

Hairy Maclary literally fell out of Dame Lynley’s scrapbook. She recalls how, when looking for a new idea, a tiny sketch of a dog, drawn years earlier on a slip of notepaper, dropped out from between the pages. That original sketch would evolve over time into the dog we have come to know, but the essential elements were all there. With just a few strokes of her pen, Dame Lynley’s extraordinary ability to convey character, expression and movement brought Hairy Maclary to life.

Today, Hairy Maclary continues to be a much-loved character, both in New Zealand and around the world.

Technical information

Date of issue: 1 March 2023

Designer: Chris Jones, Graphetti, Wellington, New Zealand

Printer: Brebner Print, Napier, New Zealand

Withdrawal date: 29 February 2024

Technical information

Date of issue: 1 March 2023

Designer: Hannah Fortune, NZ Post, Wellington, New Zealand

Printer: Brebner Print, Napier, New Zealand

Withdrawal date: 29 February 2024

Forest & Bird 100 Years

For a century, Forest & Bird has worked with supporters, members, communities and government to protect and restore Aotearoa New Zealand’s environment and native species. Funded solely by memberships, donations and bequests, the organisation is a singular voice for nature.

Featuring paintings by New Zealand artist Rachel Walker, these stamps were created to celebrate Forest & Bird’s 100th birthday in 2023. The stamps feature four main areas of Forest & Bird’s conservation workterrestrial, freshwater, marine and climate - and significant flora and fauna. They pay tribute to the people who have worked to protect and restore nature for the past 100 years.

Ngā Hau e Whā - The Four Winds

Well known whakataukī (proverb) ‘E hoki ki ō maunga, kia purea koe e ngā hau o Tāwhirimātea’ encourages people to refresh themselves by returning home: ‘Return to your mountains that you may be cleansed by the winds of Tāwhirimātea’. Tāwhirimātea is the father of the four winds. Te Hau Raki is the warm wind that blows from Te Hiku o Te Ika (the Tail of the Fish), the Māori name for Northland. Follow the tail to the end, to Te Reinga, to where two seas meet and mark the pathway of the spirits to Hawaiki, the spiritual homeland of Māori.

Featuring the Te Hau Raki design from the 2020 Ngā Hau e Wha coin set, this 100mm, 1kg silver proof coin has a maximum worldwide mintage of 100.

Technical information

Date of issue: 5 April 2023

Designer: Nick Jarvie, NZ Post, Wellington, New Zealand

Printer: Brebner Print, Napier, New Zealand

Withdrawal date: 4 April 2024

Technical information

Date of issue: November 2022

Designer: Dave Burke, Tauranga, New Zealand

Mint: BH Mayer’s Kunstprägeanstalt GmbH

Worldwide limited mintage: 100

2023 New Zealand Proof Currency Set

New Zealand is known around the world for its bee-related exportsmānuka honey, the Buzzy Bee toy and even live insects. Less known is the significance of New Zealand’s native bees - they don’t make honey, nor do they look much like the stereotypical specimen, but they are critical to our unique ecosystem.

Alongside a 1oz silver coin depicting a ngaro huruhuru - native bee - this set features proof versions of New Zealand’s circulating currency coins. Each coin is specially dated 2023.

Collectively, the coins feature many well-known New Zealand symbols, such as the Māori carved mask, known as a ‘kōruru’ on the 10-cent coin, and the HMS Endeavour, the ship of Captain James Cook, on the 50-cent coin. This set will be the final New Zealand

2023 Kiwi

The tokoeka is one of five kiwi species. It resides in the South Island, with three geographically distinct populationsHaast, Fiordland and Rakiura (Stewart Island).

It is estimated that before humans arrived in Aotearoa New Zealand, the kiwi population was as high as 12 million. In the centuries since, exacerbated by European colonisation in the 1800s and the impacts of deforestation and predation have led to their dramatic decline to an estimated 68,000 birds.

Unusual among kiwi, tokoeka are sometimes active during the daytime. On Rakiura they are often spotted by visitors and can sometimes be seen on the beach foraging for food. Tokoeka protect each other by living in family units, with offspring staying as helpers to their parents for up to seven years,

Technical information

Date of issue: February 2023

Designer (silver proof coin): Sacha Lees, Wellington, New Zealand Mint (silver proof coin): BH Mayer’s Kunstprägeanstalt GmbH Mint (proof currency coins): Royal Dutch Mint Worldwide limited mintage: 750 sharing the task of incubating their siblings. The combined population numbers for the three tokoeka taxa make it the most numerous kiwi species, with more than 30,000 birds in the wild.

Technical information

Date of issue: September 2022

Designer: Stephen Fuller, Wellington,

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 20th Anniversary

After 12 long months of eagerly anticipating part two of the trilogy, in late December 2002 fans were rewarded with the release of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. After the unbridled success of The Fellowship of the Ring, which was nominated for 13 Academy Awards, the second instalment had a tough act to follow. Nevertheless, the enthusiastic audiences for the sequel ensured it was not only the highest grossing film of that year but, at the time of its release, the third-highest grossing film of all time.

Each of the coins in these sets features one of the towers alluded to in the film’s title - Orthanc, the stronghold of evil wizard Saruman, and Barad-dur, where the spirit of the Dark Lord Sauron resides.

2023 Limited Edition New Zealand Five-Coin Proof Set

This limited-edition set features New Zealand’s iconic currency coins in magnificent proof quality. Each coin is specially dated 2023, and there are only 250 available worldwide.

New Zealand’s Māori culture is a vital part of our national identity. The 10-cent coin features a Māori carved mask, known as a ‘koruru’, with rafter patterns. Traditionally, a koruru is carved into the gables of a meeting house and is seen as the ‘guardian of the house’. The 20-cent coin portrays an 18th-century carving of Māori leader, Pukaki. After his passing, he was depicted in a carving that featured as part of a gateway to strengthen Ōhinemutu in preparation for attack. The carving today can be viewed in the entrance to the Rotorua District Council building. The 50-cent coin features the HMS Endeavour, the ship, Captain Cook sailed to become the first

Technical information

Date of issue: March 2023

Designer: Sacha Lees, Wellington, New Zealand

Mint: Royal Dutch Mint

Worldwide limited mintage:

• Set of two silver proof coins: 499 Set of two brilliant uncirculated coins: 1,000

Briton to reach New Zealand in October 1769.

New Zealand’s wildlife is celebrated on the one- and two-dollar coins. The one-dollar coin features New Zealand’s national bird, the kiwi, and the two-dollar coin features the kōtuku (white heron). In Māori oratory,

Technical information

Date of issue: February 2023

Mint: Royal Dutch Mint

Worldwide limited mintage: 250 referring to someone as a kōtuku is the highest compliment, as kōtuku are considered beautiful and rare.