Add nostalgic flair to your holiday letters with these vintage unused Arctic Animals "Polar Bear" postage stamps! This nostalgic arctic design is perfect for adding a touch of class to your holiday cards and letters or winter save-the-dates and weddings. In pristine mint condition and valid for current postage use, each stamp holds a face value of 33-cents. These USPS postage stamps are suitable for current mailing when used with the total required postage based on the weight of your correspondence. Embrace the charm of winter with this enchanting postage stamp!

Includes a total of TEN (10) unused mint condition 33-cent "Polar Bear" vintage postage stamps shown in the photos.

MORE ARCTIC ANIMALS STAMPS:

"Snowy Owl" Postage Stamps | Arctic Animals Series | Unused USPS Postage 33c | Pack of 10

"Arctic Fox" Postage Stamps | Arctic Animals Series | Unused USPS Postage 33c | Pack of 10

"Gray Wolf" Postage Stamps | Arctic Animals Series | Unused USPS Postage 33c | Pack of 10

"Arctic Hare" Postage Stamps | Arctic Animals Series | Unused USPS Postage 33c | Pack of 10

STAMP INFORMATION:

• Name: Polar Bear
• Series: Arctic Animals
• Year Issued: 1999
• Face Value: 33-cents (USD) per stamp
• Topic(s): Winter, Snow, Christmas, Holidays, Wildlife, Alaska
• Color(s): White
• Printing Method: Lithographed
• Scott Number: 3291
• Adhesion Type: Gummed (see adhesion instructions below)
• Condition: Genuine Unused USPS Postage Stamps, Ready to Use for USPS Mailings, Mint Condition

GENUINE USPS POSTAGE: These unused vintage postage stamps are perfectly valid for use as current postage for mailing with USPS as long as you use an adequate amount of additional postage to achieve standard postage rates according to the weight of your mailing. Check current postage rates on the USPS website.

STAMP HISTORY: The “Polar Bear” stamp was issued on March 12, 1999, in Barrow, Alaska, as one of five designs in the U.S. Postal Service’s Arctic Animals series. This series spotlighted species adapted to extreme Arctic conditions and included the Arctic Hare, Arctic Fox, Snowy Owl, Gray Wolf, and the Polar Bear. The design showcases a majestic polar bear in a typical Arctic environment. The imagery emphasizes the bear’s powerful presence, its white fur blending with the frozen surroundings, giving both a realistic and evocative sense of its habitat and adaptation. The “Arctic Animals” issue was intended not just as a decorative series but as a reminder of the uniqueness, beauty, and vulnerability of northern ecosystems. The Polar Bear, being one of the most iconic animals of the Far North, serves as both a symbol of Arctic strength and a cautionary figure in the face of climate and ecological change.

STAMP MEANING & SPIRITUAL SIGNIFICANCE: The 1999 33-cent “Arctic Animals: Polar Bear” postage stamp carries a deeply resonant spiritual significance, embodying themes of strength, solitude, endurance, and guardianship of the natural world. More than an image of wildlife, the stamp presents the polar bear as a living symbol of sacred resilience — a creature that thrives at the very edge of the earth, where few others can survive. It invites reflection on the power of adaptability, the beauty of stillness, and the quiet authority of nature’s great teachers.

In many cultures, the polar bear is seen as a spiritual guardian and symbol of courage. Among Arctic Indigenous peoples, it represents both physical survival and spiritual endurance — the ability to move gracefully through life’s harshest landscapes with dignity and balance. Its vast white form, blending into the snow and ice, signifies oneness with creation, a state of harmony where strength is rooted not in dominance, but in coexistence. Spiritually, the polar bear teaches that power is not force — it is presence: the calm confidence of one who knows their place in the world and moves with reverence through it.

The white color that defines both the bear and its environment holds powerful symbolic meaning. In spiritual traditions, white represents light, truth, and divine consciousness — the state of purity from which all creation arises. The polar bear’s whiteness allows it to become part of its surroundings, disappearing into the snow, teaching that true mastery is not separation from nature, but unity with it. This invisibility is a lesson in humility and spiritual integration — the dissolving of ego into the larger flow of life.

Ultimately, the spiritual significance of the “Arctic Animals: Polar Bear” stamp lies in its quiet majesty. It speaks of inner strength, harmony with nature, and endurance of spirit — of facing life’s vast and frozen challenges not with fear, but with grace. The polar bear stands as a messenger of the North: a sacred reminder that even in the coldest places of existence, light persists, life endures, and the divine remains ever-present — silent, immense, and beautifully alive.

GUMMED STAMPS: These postage stamps have a traditional moisture-activated gum on the back. These stamps require licking or wetting to adhere to envelopes or other surfaces. To ensure good adhesion, apply vintage gummed stamps to your mailings with a glue stick (we recommend using Elmer's "Re-Stick" glue sticks).

PROCESSING & SHIPPING: Orders are typically processed and shipped within 1-3 business days of placing your order. All orders are shipped from California — please allow additional time for transit.

QUESTIONS? We love hearing from our customers and replies to inquires are usually answered the same day. Need more of this stamp? Looking for a particular stamp not found on our website? Want a curated postage set for your special event? Contact us with questions about vintage postage stamps and our services…

VISIT MY MINTED STORE: https://www.minted.com/store/heritageposthouse

TELL YOUR STORY IN STAMPS: We’ve worked with hundreds of couples and their stationers to custom design highly stylized personalized postage sets based on our customer’s life stories. We can help you curate personalized vintage postage sets to commemorate your save-the-date, wedding, shower, announcement, and other special occasions in a truly unique fashion. Drawing on our encyclopedic knowledge of every stamp ever issued by the USPS, and sourcing from our extensive inventory of collectable unused vintage stamps, we’ll help you tell your unique story in stamps!

ABOUT HERITAGE POST HOUSE: Jennifer Kramer is the founder of Heritage Post House, a boutique vintage postage house located in Northern California. Jennifer sources the most beautiful unused vintage postage stamps ever issued by USPS and artfully arranges them into curated postage sets that are sure to add a special touch to your invitations, announcements, and special mailings. In addition to creating pre-arranged postage sets, Jennifer also works with couples (and their stationers) to create one-of-a-kind custom postage arrangements for wedding invitations, save the dates, and other special occasions.


Product Specifications

Length: 1.57 in.
Height: 0.01 in.
Width: 1.26 in.
Weight: 0.01 lbs.