Sunday Stamps - 'S'

2012, Lithuania, World Heritage Objects, Curonian Spit

The Kursiu Nerija, or Curonian Spit, has the largest rolling sand dunes in Europe.  It is 98 km long and  varies from 400 metres to 4 kms wide with the Curonian Lagoon on east side and the Baltic Sea on the west.  It has been a UNESCO Heritage Site since 2000 shared by Lithuania and Russia.

for the letter S - sand dunes, spit

Sunday Stamps - 'R'

2003, Canada, Masterpieces of Art

Jean-Paul Riopelle died in 2002 after a successful career as a modernist painter and sculpture.  This is one of seven stamps of details of his Hommage de Rosa Luxembourg painted in 1992. It is a huge fresco (40 metres) made entirely by aerosol spray paint incorporating a succession of images of animals and nature.

for the letter R - Riopelle

Sunday Stamps - 'Q'

2006 Ireland, Quercus petraea

The Sessile Oak is the national tree of the Republic of Ireland. It can grow up to 130' (40 metres) and is native to most of Europe.  Apart from being a good source of wood fuel, the timber is also used for building, cabinetmaking and veneers.  The acorns are used to fatten grazing animals in the autumn.

for the letter Q - Quercus

Suynday Stamps - 'P'

1953, Canada, Polar Bear
designer: John A Crosby
engraver: Silas Robert Allen

As one of the ten stamps issued for the National Wildlife series (1953-57) this polar bear is of the lowest value. They are the largest animals in the world. The scientific name is Ursus  maritimus (sea bear) and the Inuktitut name is Nanuq (Nanuk). Two thirds of the population live in Canada, but they can also be found in Greenland, Russia, Alaska and Norway (on the Svalbard archipelago)

for the letter P - polar bear

Sunday Stamps - 'O'

2015, Japan, Dekopon

A dekopon is a sweet, seedless variety of mandarin orange that was developed in 1972 in Japan.

for the letter O - orange

Sunday Stamps - 'N'

1993, Germany

Issued for the 360th anniversary of Isaac Newtons birth. Newton developed three laws of motion, of which the second law is shown in the equation on the stamp. Also shown is his experiment where he refracts white light with a prism into its constituent colours of red, orange, yellow, green, blue and violet.

for the letter N - Newton

Sunday Stamps - 'M'

1972, Canada, Mountain Sheep, definitive
designed by Reinhard Derreth
based on a photograph by Harry Rowed

These bighorn sheep live in the Canadian Rockies. These are rams, as can be seen by their massive curled horns which can be as long as 125cm and together can weigh up to 13kg.

for the letter M - mountain sheep 

Sunday Stamps - 'L'

1998, Canada Wildlife
illustrator: Robert-Ralph Carmichael

The Common Loon is characterized by its large size and sharply pointed bill (unlike those of ducks and geese). Their legs are positioned far back on their bodies which makes them strong propellers in the water but also makes it difficult for walking on land. They spend almost all of their time on water, except to nest and even then, the nests are very close to water. Usually two eggs are laid in early June with an incubation period of around four weeks. 

for the letter L - loon

Sunday Stamps - 'K'

2002, Greenland
engraver - Martin Morck

The Hvidbjornen was crushed by an iceberg after being trapped in some cliffs near Nunarsuit, an island in Greenland, in 1895. Greenland is the world's largest island (that is not a continent) and has only around 57,000 inhabitants. Denmark has sovereignty over the country and Greenlandic and Danish are its official languages. Kalaallit is Greenlandic for the name of the native Inuit people.

for the letter K - Kalaallit Nunaat, krone

4 krone would be 0.84 CAD, or 0.47 GBP, or 0.54 euros today

Sunday Stamps - 'J'

2007,  US - Navajo Jewelry
illustrated by Lou Nolan from a painting by Peter Furst

A silver and turquoise squash blossom necklace with Naja pendant. The Naja is an inverted crescent believed to be based on colonial Spanish bridle designs that were in turn based on Moorish crescent design. For the Navajo it is decorative rather than spiritual yet is still held in high esteem. The squash blossom is based on a Spanish-Mexican ornament that was a stylized pomegranate blossom. The necklace shown on this stamp was made in the 1940s.

for the letter J - jewellery (or, if you prefer, 'jewelry')

Sunday Stamps - 'I'

1981 Ciskei
artwork: Dick Findlay

David Findlay (b 1928) is a prolific ornithological artist and has produced over 30 stamps of birds of Ciskei from 1981-1991. This ibis lives in Sub Saharan Africa and has an extremely loud, and boisterous call - the name Ingangane is onomatopoeic in Zulu, resembling its cry. In English it is known as hadeda ibis.

for the letter I - ibis, ingangane

Sunday Stamps - 'H'

1956, Canada
designer: James Simpkins
engraver: Silas Robert Allen

Issued in 1956 to honour the skill of Canada's amateur hockey players and the prestige they earned for international competition. 

In memory of the Humboldt Junior Hockey Team who were involved in a bus crash which killed 16 and injured 14 as they were en route to a semi-final playoff game in Saskatchewan.

for the letter H - Hockey, Humboldt

Sunday Stamps - 'G'

1986 - Canada  Birds of Canada series

This stamp, with a painting of the Snow Goose in flight by Jean-Luc Grondin, was issued in 1986 during the year Canada hosted the XIX Ornithological Congress. Co-incidentally, the Congress will be again be hosted by Canada this year, for only the second time since 1884. The Snow Goose breeds in the high Arctic and migrate south for the winter in flocks of thousands.

for the letter G - goose

Sunday Stamps - 'F'

1979, US

Toleware is tin, usually kitchen related such as this coffee pot, that has been painted and lacquered.

for the letter F - folk art

Sunday Stamps - E

2010,  Finland,  Easter Twins

This year, Easter falls on April 1.  Both eggs and rabbits symbolize new life and fertility and are also closely associated with Spring and rebirth.

for the letter E: Easter

Sunday Stamps - D

2014,       Netherlands, Ceramics of The Netherlands

This 1700s vase was featured as part of a 5 series of stamps for Mooi Nederland (Beautiful Netherlands).

Delftware is a tin-glazed earthenware (also called faience and majolica). The opaque glaze is added to the fired piece and then fired a second time. The potting industry in Delft began after the brewers left the town with several abandoned buildings and polluted canal water. Around the same time war in China put an end to the making of their blue and white porcelain and Delft deftly picked up the trade.

for the letter D - Delft

Sunday Stamps II - C

2016, Russia, commemorative, joint issue

Russia and Slovenia issued this stamp to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Russian Chapel below Vrsic. In 1915, a Prisoner of War camp was opened near the present borders of Slovenia, Austria and Italy. Most of the POWs were Russian soldiers who were given the job of building a road across the Vrsic Pass. On March 12, 1916 a group of prisoners were clearing the road of snow when an avalanche killed more than 500 people. Local Slovenians buried the dead in a mass grave and to honour them, the remaining prisoners built a small wooden chapel at the site.

for the letter C - chapel, commemorative, centenary,

Sunday Stamps II - B

2017, Belarus

This badger stamp is from a series of "The Red Book of Mammals of Belarus" which is a collection of animals that are rare and/or endangered. The book is updated every 10 years with the latest edition being in 2015. Badgers have been on the endangered list for 25 years.

The M on the stamp designates it as airmail postcard abroad.

for the letter B - Belarus, badger (barsuk in Russian)

Sunday Stamps II - A

2018, Canada, Olympic
Female Athletes

Clara Hughes is the most decorated female Canadian Olympian and competed in both Summer (cycling) - Atlanta ('96), Sydney ('00) Salt Lake City ('02) London ('12) and Winter Games (long-track speed skating) - Salt Lake City ('02), Turin ('06) and Vancouver ('10)

Sonja Gaudet was the first wheelchair curler to win multiple Paralympic gold medals at Turin ('06), Vancouver ('10) and Sochi ('14)

Nancy Green won gold and silver at downhill skiing in Grenoble ('68) and was named Canadian female athlete of the century in 1999.

Shirley and Sharon Firth were twins who are the only female Canadian (cross country) skiers who competed in four consecutive Olympics (Sapporo ('72), Innsbruck ('76), Lake Placid ('80) and Sarajevo ('84)

for our new round of stamps by alphabet
A - athletes

Sunday Stamps II - 165

2018, Canada
illustration: Meimei Mao
calligraphy: Albert Ng

The Year of the Dog begins on February 16, 2018 and ends on February 4th, 2019. People born under the sign of the Dog are said to be loyal, trustworthy and easy going. (full disclosure: me!) This stamp features an eager looking little dog in front of  a Chinese lantern with the traditional red and gold colour scheme.

for the Lunar New Year in China, Korea, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Hong Kong

Sunday Stamps II - 164

1968, Zambia

Zambia is a landlocked country in southern Africa bordering eight other countries. The name comes from the Zambezi River which may mean 'River of God'. Before independence in 1964 it was known as Northern Rhodesia. About half the population are under 16 years of age. UNICEF is vital in helping with education, poverty, and widespread AID/HIV as well as malaria.

for the letter Z - Zambia

Sunday Stamps II - 163

1981, Ciskei

Under Apartheid, Ciskei was designated as one of the 'homelands' for the Xhosa speaking people of South Africa. The Maxronyx capensis, or Cape longclaw, is found in coastal and mountain grasslands of Southern Africa and can often be found standing on top of stones or clumps of grass. This stamp shows a male with his bright orange throat and yellow underparts.

for the letter Y - yellow

Sunday Stamps II - 162

1968, Australia, Olympics

112 countries participated in 18 sports at the 1968 Summer Games in Mexico City from October 12-27, 1968. This stamp features the Mexican flag on the right and an Aztec calendar stone on the left. As an extra X, the first Aztec calendar was called the Xiuhpohualli, the counting of years (18 months of 20 days, plus 5 'unlucky' days when disasters may happen). There is also a second calendar on the stone for the days - each week had 13 days. It was carved from solidified lava in the 15th C, but somehow was lost for 300 years, later found buried in the central square of Mexico City.

for the letter X - Mexico, Xiuhpohualli

Wacker Drive

1920s
Chicago

Wacker Drive runs along the south side of the main branch (and east side of the south branch) of the Chicago River in the downtown area of Chicago called the Loop. It's a double decker road with the upper level for local traffic and the lower level for through traffic and service trucks. It was named for businessman and city planner Charles Whacker.

sharing with Postcards for the Weekend - aerial views

Sunday Stamps II - 161

1996, Canada

For International Stamp Week, this set of stamps on the 30th anniversary of Disney's first appearance of Winnie the Pooh was issued. 

Walt Disney acquired the rights in 1961 and Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree came out in 1966 (voiced by Sterling Holloway). 

Originally from White River in northern Ontario, Winnie was named after Lt Colebourne's hometown of Winnipeg.

for the letter W - 

Winnie-the-Pooh, White River, Walt Disney

Pieck

Anton Pieck, 1895-1987

Anton Pieck was an illustrator and painter known for his nostalgic fairy tale depictions of city and winter scenes in Holland.

sharing with Postcards for the Weekend - winter scenes

Sunday Stamps II - 160

1984, Viet Nam

Hon Am, an UNESCO site at Ha Long Bay

for the letter V - Viet Nam

Sunday Stamps II - 159

1989, USSR, Samovar

The first samovar factory was founded in Tula by gunmakers moving in a new direction, in 1778. By the mid 1800s, the town had 70 samovar manufacturers. The peak period for production was in the 1880s and Tula became synonymous with samovars. 

for the letter U - USSR

Sunday Stamps II - 158

1977, Australia
designer: Roger Roberts

This Surfing Santa stamp was controversial when it was issued in 1977. Apparently, Santa could be too irreverent. This was only the second year a secular Christmas stamp had been issued, and the following year, AusPost returned to issuing only religious themed stamps. In 2007, it was reissued for a 50th year celebration of Christmas stamps. 

Merry Christmas to one and all!

For Christmas

Sunday Stamps II - 157

1990, Trinidad & Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago are the most southerly islands in the Caribbean. They became independent nations in 1962 after being ruled by the Spanish and British - and in Tobago's case, also French and Dutch. This stamp, showing the more commonly called bamboo fungus, was issued for the World Stamp Exhibition.

for the letter T - Trinidad and Tobago

Sunday Stamps II - 156

1995, South Africa, endangered animals

The Serinus citrinipectus is more commonly known as a lemon breasted canary. They are completely dependent on the lala palm where they breed and build their nests. These palms are increasingly being used for crafts and curios (the fruit) and even beer or wine (the sap) and the fronds for thatching and weaving. Successful breeding of these birds rarely happens outside of the protected areas.

for the letter S - South Africa

Sunday Stamps II - 155

2017 Russia, Literary Heritage/Russian Fables

designer: V Beltukov

The Rooster and the Pearl is a Russian fable by V.K. Trediakovsky. It also seems to be accredited to other authors, including Aesop.

"While pecking in a compost mound,

A Rooster came upon a Pearl

And cried, amazed 'What's this I found?!

It has no use in all the world'

What fools are men to treasure such

Tough grains that no one can digest

Now, barley does not shine as much,

But fills the belly. Which is best?"

Thus, often in the world of man, a fools deems useless what he does not understand

for the letter R: Russia, rooster

Sunday Stamps II - 154

1972, Canada, Quebec City
designer: Reinhard Derreth

Quebec City is one of the oldest cities in North America and has the only remaining fortified wall north of Mexico. Vieux Québec is a Unesco World Heritage Site. One of its most prominent buildings, shown here on the stamp, is the grand railway hotel, the Chateau Frontenac. Quebec has always been a capital city, from its earliest settlement in New France to Lower Canada to the Province of Quebec.

for the letter Q - Quebec

Sunday Stamps II - 153

1940 Portugal
Designer: Antonio Lima
Engraver Gustavo de Almeida Araujo

Showing the emblem of the Portuguese Legion.

for the letter P - Portugal

Sunday Stamps II - 152

1955 Canada, wildlife series
designer: Emanuel Otto Hahn
engraver: Silas Robert Allen

The Musk Ox (Ovibos moschatus) lives in the tundra of the Arctic. The name comes from the musky odour of the males during the rutting season. In winter, they live on roots, lichen and mosses and during the summer  months they feast on Arctic flowers and grasses. Its long, shaggy coat makes it appear larger than they really are. They are smaller than bison and about half the weight (4'-5', 400-900 lbs).

for the letter O - ox, ovibos

Sunday Stamps II - 151

1975, Japan, Nature Conservation

designer: Takao Yamouchi

The Red crowned crane, also known as the Japanese crane, is among the largest of the cranes and can reach a height of 5' 2" (150-158 cm) with a wingspan of between 7' to 8' (220-250 cm). Hokkaido is a special breeding area and these cranes migrate less than 100 miles for the winter. Cranes are said to grant favours in return for acts of sacrifice. It is also the logo for Japan Air Lines. The name Japan is mostly used by for foreign branding, while Nippon is the name used since the seventh century. The kanji characters mean 'origin of the sun'.  In the Tang dynasty, the earliest record of the use of Nippon comes from a message brought to China by a delegation from Japan from the "Emperor of the land where the sun rises to the Emperor of the land where the sun sets" which refers to the fact that Japan lies east of China.

for the letter N - Nippon, nature

Sunday Stamps II - 150

1954, Madagascar

This is a Uratelornis chimaera, or a long-tailed ground-roller that is only found in a small section of south-western Madagascar only 30-60 km wide and 200 km long. They were considered threatened in 1988 and have been vulnerable since 1994. The forests where it lives are not protected by the Malagasy government and there is widespread slash and burn agriculture as well as logging. This bird has the longest tail of the ground rollers at up to 12" of the bird's 19" length. It has a plump body and short wings and rarely flies, but it apparently can run very fast. Also, the female loses her magnificent tail feathers when nesting.

for the letter M - Madagascar

Sunday Stamps II - 149

2014, Latvia, Lighthouses
designer: Arta Ozola Jaunaraja

This octagonal lighthouse on the Gulf of Riga was built in 1930. It has been painted white with an orange vertical stripe and orange roof. The harbour at Ainazi was bombed by the Germans during the war which meant the loss of the areas fishing industry - and the need for a lighthouse. The village and harbour was rebuilt by the Soviets and the lighthouse restored.

for the letter L - Latvia, Lighthouse

lighthouses

received 2014

Eight very different lighthouses on the Atlantic coast of North Carolina.

Baldhead Island, first lit in 1794, current lighthouse lit in 1817, automated in 1985
Cape Lookout, first lit in 1812, current lighthouse lit in 1859, automated in 1950
Cape Hatteras, first lit in 1803, current lighthouse lit in 1870, automated in 1950
Currituck Reach, lit in 1875, automated in 1939
Ocracoke, first lit in 1798, current lighthouse lit in 1823, automated in 1955
Bodie Island, first lit in 1847, current lighthouse lit in 1872, automated in 1940
Oak Island, first lit in 1849, current lighthouse lit in 1958, automated in 1958
Prices Creek, lit in 1849, never automated

for Postcards for the Weekend - lighthouses

Sunday Stamps II - 148

2000,  Denmark,  commemorative,

Showing the front page of the newspaper Kristeligt Dagsblad (Christian Daily Newspaper) from 5th of May, 1945 commemorating the liberation of Denmark. The man in the photo is Kong Christian X. This stamp was part of the Twentieth Century series issued for the Millennium. The Kristeligt Dagsblad was originally an evangelical newspaper when it was established in 1896, publishing articles on morality and religious and cultural topics, and no sports. King Christian X was King of Denmark from 1912 - 1947, and symbolized Denmark's resistance to the German occupiers during WWII. Occupation began in 1940 and after a speech in 1943 against the occupation forces he was imprisoned until the end of the war. He was known as the Riding King as he was often seen riding on horseback through the streets of Copenhagen to show he had not abandoned his claim to sovereignty.  Here you can see a video of him with his horse and his family.

for the letter K - King (Kong, in Danish), Kristeligt, København

Morse Country

received 2014
M Peck

Marian Fielding Peck was a painter who produced over 60 maps of Great Britain for Salmon Postcards until her death in 1974. Oxford is the "sweet city of the dreaming spires".

for Postcards for the Weekend

Sunday Stamps II - 147

1964, Jamaica

Jamaica is the fourth largest island country in the Caribbean. It was claimed for Spain in 1494 by Christopher Columbus, though the Awarak people had been living there since about 4000-1000 BC. The British claimed it for themselves in 1655. Independence was granted in 1962 and their new flag was adopted. It is the only country flag that does not feature any red, white, or blue. The gold saltire represents the natural wealth, and beauty of sunshine. The green triangles are for natural resources and hope; the black triangles for strength and creativity of the people.The original interpretation was that there are hardships (black) but the land is lush (green) and the sun shineth (gold). Jamaica was also the first British colonial territory to establish a postal service, in 1688.

for the letter J - Jamaica

Sunday Stamps II - 146

1947, India International Postage
12 annas

One of three stamps issued by the newly independent Dominion of India. It wouldn't be until December that they were finally released, and the stock of old King George VI stamps would continue to be overprinted until they were finally used up and replaced in 1949. The stamp shows a Douglas DC4 Skymaster flying over the date of independence with the value of 12 annas on the bottom left and Jai Hind (Victory to India) in Devanagari script on the upper left. 

for the letter I - India, Independence, International

Arizona

1940s, Curt Teich
unused

On the reverse is a listing of each image within the individual letters

A - Boulder Dam
R - San Francisco Peaks
I  - Saguaro Cactus
Z - Queen Creek Gorge
O - Petrified Forest
N - Hopi Snake Dance
A - San Xavier Mission

sharing with Postcards for the Weekend - multiview

Sunday Stamps II - 145

2017, Switzerland, Postcrossing
illustrator: Max Spring

A brand new stamp, issued September 7, 2017, this is the international rate stamp showing a postcard flying off to various parts of the world. Switzerland uses four different variations of its name - Schweiz (German), Suisse (French), Svizzera (Italian), Svizra (Romanish) and for official purposes adds 'Confederation of' in front of the country name. The latin name Helvetia comes from the Helvetii who were a Celtic tribe that were settled in the area during Julius Caesar's time, and CH (Confoederatio Helvetica) is used for all banknotes, postage stamps, and the internet.

for the letter H - Helvetia

solid fall

received 2016 from Russia

Leonid Afremov is a Russian artist whose works are created by using only a canvas, oil paints and a pallet knife - no brushes.

for Postcards for the Weekend - fall scenes

Sunday Stamps II - 144

2004, Canada, 100th anniversary of the Canadian Open

These stamps are the same size as a golf ball (43mm or 1.6"), complete with dimpled edges. The left stamp depicts a scene from 100 years ago with a silver silhouetted golfer driving, while the one on the right shows a scene from this century with a silver silhouetted golfer putting. The crowd scenes are from the RCGA archives. Off to the right is the cup as it would have been in each of those years. The first Canadian Open (36 holes in one day) was held at the Montreal Royal Golf Club and the 100th (72 holes over four days) was held at Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville.

for the letter G - Golf