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Maya Angelou Forever Stamp Revealed by U.S. Postal Service

The stamp features a 4-foot-square oil-on-canvas hyper-realistic portrait of the literary icon.

The U.S. Postal Service unveiled a preview image of the Maya Angelou Forever Stamp on Wednesday, The Grio reports.

A First-Day-of-Issue stamp dedication ceremony is scheduled for April 7 at 11:00 a.m. in Washington, D.C.

The stamp features a 4-foot-square oil-on-canvas hyper-realistic portrait of Angelou painted by Bulgaria-born artist Ross Rossin in 2013.

“I wanted to capture her laughter, her cry and the forgiveness and blessings that came from her face,” Rossin reportedly said in the USPS announcement. “It is not only her portrait that is bigger than life. It is she herself who is bigger than life. The portrait is evidence of her magic.”

Also included in the stamp’s design are two of the late author, poet and activist’s quotes: “A bird doesn’t sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song” and “Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud,” the latter of which can be found in the stamp pane.

The stamp is currently available for pre-order and is to be delivered after the April 7 event.

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(Photo: 2015 U.S. Postal Service)

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