BanksyUkraine issues Banksy mural postage stamp
Stamp features British artist’s mural on a demolished wall in Borodianka, bombed at the start of the invasion
Ukraine has issued a postage stamp with a reproduction of a Banksy mural depicting a boy defeating a grown man in judo, to mark the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion.
It was painted by the British street artist on a demolished wall in the town of Borodianka, north-west of Kyiv, where many buildings were reduced to rubble by Russian aircraft at the start of the invasion.
The image draws inspiration from the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, known to be a black belt in judo, and depicts a young judoka representing Ukraine knocking down a grown man.
The phrase “FCK PTN” in Cyrillic has been added to the lower left part of the new stamp.
Residents of the capital flocked to buy the new stamps on Friday from Kyiv’s main post office.
Svetlana, a 50-year-old economist, was keen to get her hands on one “because I support the Ukrainian armed forces” and “the stamp is printed at a historic moment”, one year after the start of the Russian invasion.
Maxime, 26, another who was buying the first-day issue, was delighted to see a “first stamp from one of Banksy’s works”.
“It’s a very cool gesture for the world to understand Ukraine, that we remain in the spotlight,” they said.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaJmiqa6vsMOeqqKfnmR%2FcX6SaJ2eml9ngnDByquYoqaVYra0v9SeqmaakaO4tMWMpqyrmZxivbC%2F05qenmWjqa6uvA%3D%3D