For the first and only time in the history of the Olympics, gold medal winners were also awarded a philatelic gift. The Government of the Republic of Korea presented a 5 x 8 1/4″ souvenir card with the two Olympic stamps issued by Korea with the special first day pictorial cancel. The card itself was embossed with the insignia of the 17th Olympiad in sepia and gold. The card was contained in a “brochure” (the term used by the Ministry of Communications of the Republic of Korea).
The brochure and souvenir card were presented to the 268 gold medal winners by the Hon. Giulio Onesti, President of the Italian National Olympic Committee. A number of these later came on the philatelic market.
(Originally published in B/W in Korean Philately, November 1997, page 8)
