Russia 1966
Luna 10 and Luna 11
These two stamps were issued in 1966 as part of a set of five commemorating Soviet space achievements.
Left: Trajectory of Luna 10, the first lunar orbiter, from Earth into orbit around the Moon. Luna 10 took no photographs of the lunar surface but simply investigated the Moon’s environment. The date on the stamp, 3 April 1966, is the date of arrival at the Moon.
Right: A symbolic representation of Luna 11’s arrival in orbit around the Moon on 28 August 1966. No pictures of Luna 11 itself were released at the time so it is not shown on the stamp. Like Luna 10, it investigated conditions around the Moon.
The three other stamps in the set showed Venera 3, the space dogs Ugolek and Veterok, and a Molniya communications satellite.
Stanley Gibbons catalogue numbers:
3315, 3317