President Husni Zayim - 50 piastre

This definitive and commemorative issue was released by Syria in mid-1949 to mark the consolidation of political power by Colonel Husni al-Zaim following his historic March 30 coup. After initially seizing control of the government, al-Zaim organized a national referendum in June 1949 that formally elevated him to the position of President of the Republic and subsequently saw him assume the rank of Field Marshal. The postal administration produced these stamps to project state legitimacy and introduce the face of the new military-backed executive authority to the public, celebrating a new, albeit short-lived, era of centralized leadership.