1986 Hungarian Recapture of Buda Castle Stamp

The Hungarian stamp from 1986 depicting the recapture of Buda Castle.

I think anyone who is lucky enough to own this stanp will agree that this is one of the largest stamps, if not the largest, to grace the pages of their stamp album! However, it's a stamp that's not only humongous in size, but rich with Hungarian history and art.

This 4-forint stamp, which was issued by the Hungarian postal service in September 1986, commemorates the 300th anniversary of the recapture of Buda Castle from the Ottoman Turks by the Holy League in 1686. Featured on the stamp face is Hungarian artist Gyula Benczúr's (1844-1920) famous painting from 1896 titled Budavár visszavétele, or The Recapture of Buda Castle in 1686 in English.

This stamp was also significant in that a year later, UNESCO would designate Buda Castle a Budapest World Heritage Site.

This stamp definitely has a special place in the collection of anyone who collects Hungarian stamps!