Romania launches 'Gold of the Dacians' stamp issue after historic treasure recovery

Romania’s National Museum of History, Romfilatelia and the Romanian National Postal Company launched the postage-stamp issue “The Gold of the Dacians. The Restoration of the Historical Treasure” in Bucharest on 17 September 2026. The issue is dedicated to the Coțofenești helmet and two Dacian bracelets stolen from the Drents Museum in Assen, Netherlands, in January 2025, recovered by Dutch authorities in 2026 and returned to Romania’s national heritage.

Artist Mircea Cantor created the issue. The stamp and first-day envelope use imagery of the Dacian bracelets and a detail from the helmet, while the miniature sheet presents actual images of the three recovered objects from the National Museum’s collection. The launch material also incorporates a visual treatment using yellow and a rope motif linked to the gold artefacts.

The launch was scheduled for 2 p.m. at the National Museum of Romanian History on Calea Victoriei in Bucharest, with Cantor attending and signing autographs. Visitors were also offered postcards that could be mailed free of charge within Romania during the event.

The issue is notable because the postal commemoration is tied directly to a recent recovery of nationally important archaeological objects rather than only to an anniversary. It brings together archaeology, museum heritage, an international art theft and its recovery in a single contemporary philatelic issue.