The Irish word for “Moon” was misspelled on two of four stamps recently issued by Ireland’s national postal service, An Post, for the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission.
Each of the stamps features an astronaut with Irish ancestry, including Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins, who are shown alongside the phrase “50th Anniversary of the First Moon Landing” in both English and Irish. The latter inscriptions, however, misspell the translation for “Moon” as “Gaelach,” which means Gaelic, Irish or relating to the Scottish Highlands.
The correct Irish spelling of Moon is “Gealach.”
The €1 stamps were designed by Detail Design Studio.
“While the original Irish text was correct, the transposition of letters in a later draft was not picked up during final proofing, ahead of the printing and release of the stamps” this July 4, reads a statement issued by An Post after the error was discovered on social media.