IF YOU ARE sick of the sharp taste of glue when you lick a stamp before putting it on an envelope (unless you just lick stamps for fun, and in that case – each to their own), then An Post has some rather great news for you.

Its latest set of stamps celebrate the five senses – and An Post says the five stamps “mix augmented reality technology with lots of production magic”.

Touch

This all means that we will have one stamp to match each sense:

• A 70c stamp with strawberry-flavoured adhesive gum celebrates Taste
• A€1.05 Touch stamp features thermochromic ink which changes colour when touched
• An ‘eye’ graphic on an otherwise transparent €1.25 stamp represents Sight
• A€ 1.70 Hearing stamp features an ear illustration containing embedded particles which produce a sound when rubbed.
• The surface of a €2.80 stamp has a mint fragrance to celebrate Smell

Each stamp can also be scanned with the CEE App on a smartphone to access an augmented reality video about the five senses stamps.

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The set was designed by Dublin company Zinc Design, and the stamps are available individually, in sheets of 16 and on a first day cover envelope from main post offices, the GPO, and online at irishstamps.ie

Donal Connell, An Post Chief Executive, said that technology and innovation are at the heart of the mails and retail business these days.

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We like to innovate wherever possible so we’ve added a new technical dimension to stamps, and the novelty of being able to taste, smell, hear and see through them – and even change their colour with a simple touch.

What do you make of this new twist on the ordinary stamp? Tell us in the comments below.

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