Mariachi Stamps
Forever 78¢ | Sheet Stamp Format

Filled with passion, rhythm, and stories of life, love, and loss, mariachi music is an integral element of Mexican American culture that has found fans around the world.

Each of the five stamps features a musician dressed in traje de charro, the traditional outfit of mariachi performers, playing one of five iconic mariachi instruments: guitar, guitarrón, vihuela, violin, and trumpet. The geometric shapes in the background of each stamp are a nod to Mexican villages where mariachi music originated. The digital illustrations started as rough sketches on paper, with the textures and colors added digitally. The artist used vibrant colors that evoke Mexican culture and capture the buoyant yet nostalgic feeling of mariachi music.

“Mariachi” refers to several things: to the music itself; to an individual musician or an ensemble of musicians; and, used as an adjective, to anything identified with the music, be it dance or costume or culture.

Though mariachi’s exact origins are obscure, it appears to have begun in western Mexico, where itinerant musicians made their living traveling from village to village to perform. The music of early mariachi included folk traditions from Spain, Mexico, and Africa that melded to create a new indigenous musical form, the son, which developed various regional styles.

The Mariachi stamps are being issued as Forever® stamps in panes of 20. These Forever stamps are always equal in value to the current First-Class Mail® one-ounce price.

Stamp Issuance:
July 15, 2022
Albuquerque, NM 87105

Made in the USA