Flag of Macedonia and The Megalithic Observatory Kokino

This is flag of Macedonia, but not the new one. On 11 August 1992, the newly independent Republic of Macedonia adopted the new flag to replace the old Communist "red star" insignia. The flag depicted the "Vergina Sun" symbol. This ancient symbol was named after the Greek town where it had been discovered in archaeological excavations of the ancient Macedonian city of Aigai.The Vergina Sun was regarded by Greece as a symbol of continuity between ancient Macedonia and modern Greek culture, and in particular as a symbol of the Argead dynasty of Philip II of Macedon and his son Alexander the Great.The flag, the new state's constitution and its name all became the focus of a dispute between the two countries, during which Greece imposed an economic blockade on the Republic from February 1994. The blockade was lifted in October 1995 when an agreement was reached to change the flag.

The Kokino megalithic observatory consists of two platforms of a combined area of about 5000 square meters, the site covers about 30 hectares. From this area, an abundant amount of fragments of ceramic vessels, dated to between the 19th and the 11th centuries BC. Also found was a mould for casting bronze axes, and a pendant. The remains of vessels filled with offerings were found deposited in cracks in the rocks, which gave rise to the interpretation of the site as a "holy mountain".

The claimed archaeo-astronomical site itself consists of two platforms with an elevation difference of 19 m. The claim of the site representing an astronomical observatory was made by Stankovski and by Gjore Cenev in 2002. According to this interpretation, the site includes special stone markers used to track the movement of the Sun and Moon on the eastern horizon. The observatory used the method of stationary observation, marking positions of the Sun at the winter and summer solstice, as well as the equinox. Four stone seats or "thrones" are placed in a row on the lower platform. According to Cenev, A stone block with a marking on the upper platform marks the direction of sunrise on summer solstice when viewed from one of the seats.

I have received this postcards in envelope with five nice stamps:
Mushrooms: Cantharellus cibarius, issued on 07.11.1997.
The 100th Anniversary of the Birth of Dimitar Pandilov, issued on 14.03.1999.
Waterfall on Maminska River, issued on 19.09.2007.
Coat of Arms, issued on 19.06.2002.
Christmas, issued on 20.11.2002.


Thank you very much Predrag!

Russia: Postcrossing 2016

Russian post has issued again stamp dedicated to Postcrossing. I have received this nice maxicard and matching cover with new Postcrossing stamp.

Stamps on cover:
Pokrovsky Cathedral, issued on 25.07.2008.
Postcrossing, issued on 25.03.2016.


Thank you very much Aleksei!

Greetings from Åland Islands

I have received postcard from famous series Greetings from... by Postallove.

The Åland Islands or Åland is a region of Finland that consists of an archipelago lying at the entrance to the Gulf of Bothnia in the Baltic Sea. It is autonomous, demilitarised and is the only monolingually Swedish-speaking region in Finland. Collectively, the islands in the archipelago form the smallest region of Finland, constituting 0.49% of its land area and 0.50% of its population.

Stamp is High-class Contemporary Crafts (from set of three), issued on 18.05.2007.

Very nice postmark :)

Thank you very much Nina!

Star Wars: Return of the Jedi

One more beautiful Star Wars postcard in my collection! And i already have one postcard related to Return of the Jedi, but it's different, and you can see it here http://braneandnina.blogspot.com/2015/11/star-wars-return-of-jedi.html

Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi is a 1983 American epic space opera film directed by Richard Marquand. The screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan and George Lucas was from a story by Lucas, who was also the executive producer. It was the third film released in the Star Wars saga and the first film to use THX technology. The film is set one year after The Empire Strikes Back and was produced by Howard Kazanjian for Lucasfilm Ltd. The film stars Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, David Prowse, Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew and Frank Oz.

Stamps:
Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes), issued on 02.01.2014.
Centaurium, issued on 03.07.2014.
Numeral 2, issued on 02.11.2013.


Thank you very much Tanja!

Motocross postcard

I have received this beautiful motocross postcard from Lithuania. Author is Andrius Matvejevas.

Three very nice and totally different stamps:
Kazimero LDK denaras, 1440-1492. (from set of six), issued on 02.01.2015.
Lithuanian Vytis on Flags (from set of six), issued on 02.01.2016.
EUROPA Stamps - Old Toys (from set of two), issued on 09.05.2015.


Thank you Rūta!

Germany: Island Rügen

Very nice bottle-shaped postcard! Rügen is Germany's largest island by area. It is located off the Pomeranian coast in the Baltic Sea and belongs to the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Rügen has a maximum length of 51.4 km (from north to south), a maximum width of 42.8 km in the south and an area of 926 km². The coast is characterized by numerous sandy beaches, lagoons (Bodden) and open bays (Wieke), as well as projecting peninsulas and headlands. In June 2011, UNESCO awarded the status of a World Heritage Site to the Jasmund National Park, famous for its vast stands of beeches and chalk cliffs like King's Chair, the main landmark of Rügen island.

Nice matching stamp Baltic Sea - Bodden landscape, issued on 02.01.2015, and Elves Krokus, issued on 11.08.2005.


Thank you very much Corinna!

Postcard from Czech Republic

Nice spring multiview postcard from Czech Republic. Ideal for these days :)

And this matching stamp is Iris, issued on 15.09.2010.

Thank you Eliška!

Czech Republic: Krtek and Ježek

Very nice postcard with Krtek and Ježek, but i have already received this postcard month a go, so this is my first duplicate.

Stamp is Iris, issued on 15.09.2010.

Thank you Pavlina!

Postcard from Taiwan

I have received this cute postcard from Taiwan. I think this postcard doesn't need description, is speaks for itself :)

Stamp is Solanum americanum, issued on 2012-01-12.

Thank you Tina!

Russia: Aleksandr Pokryshkin - Top Soviet flying ace

This is monument of Aleksandr Pokryshkin in Novosibirsk. He was a top Soviet flying ace and a Marshal of the Soviet Air Force. He was made a Hero of the Soviet Union on three separate occasions. He made a total of 650 sorties, participated in 139 air battles, and has an official record of 59 downed enemy planes.

 Stamps are Bears from Fifth definitive issue, issued on 29.08.2008.


Thank you Elena!

Belarus: Church of Saints Simon and Helena

Church of Saints Simon and Helena is a Roman Catholic church on Independence Square in Minsk, Belarus.

This neo-Romanesque church was designed by Polish architects Tomasz Pajzderski and Władysław Marconi. The cornerstone was laid in 1905 and the church was completed in 1910. The bricks for its walls were sourced from Częstochowa, whilst the roof tiles came from Włocławek. Its construction was financed by Edward Woyniłłowicz (1847-1928), a prominent Belarusian-Polish landowner, businessman and civic activist. The church was named and consecrated in memory of Woyniłłowicz's two deceased children, Szymon and Helena.

Stamp is The Belarus ornament, issued on 27.01.2012.

Thank you Vasia!

Serbia: Science 2016

In this year's Science edition, Serbian Post will introduce two new stamps, with two First day covers.

First stamp is 50th Anniversary of the Mathematical Grammar School in Belgrade. This is a special school for gifted and talented students of mathematics, physics and informatics located in Belgrade, Serbia. It is ranked number one at International Science Olympiads by the number of medals won by its students (more than 400).

Second stamp is 225th Anniversary of Grammar School in Sremski Karlovci. This is the high school (gymnasium) located in the town of Sremski Karlovci. It is the oldest secondary school in Serbia. This type of school is comparable to U.S. college preparatory schools or English grammar schools.

There is a very nice postmark with owl on this covers. Owls are symbol of learning and wisdom.

Issue date for this stamps is 13.04.2016.

Cover and stamps from Canada

I have received cover from Canada with really nice stamps on cover, and two awesome complete sets of mint stamps inside!

First set is Prehistorical Animals - Dinosaurs of Canada, issued on 13.04.2015. On these stamps you can see Euoplocephalus tutus, Ornithomimus edmontonicus, Tyrannosaurus rex, Chasmosaurus belli and Tylosaurus pembinensis. These stamps have 3-D-like design, and you can feel it under fingers, very nice!

This is backside of Dinosaurs of Canada with short description on English and French.

Second set is Love Your Pet, issued on 02.05.2015.This collectible celebrates the key ingredients for a happy and healthy pet. Designed to raise public awareness about the need for responsible pet ownership, 5 animated stamp images are set against a blue sky background and reveal 5 reminders for good pet care: spay/neuter; exercise; vet care; hydration; and identification.

And this is backside of same set.

On this covers you can see one more complete set: International Year of Astronomy, issued on 02.04.2009. You can see on left stamp Eagle Nebula and Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, and on right stamp is Horsehead Nebula, Dominion Astrophysical Observatory.

On right side of cover  is minisheet The 100th Anniversary of the Titanic Disaster, issued on 05.04.2012.


Thank you very much Brenda!

China: Xin Qiji house

Xin Qiji was Chinese poet and master soldier whose ci (poems written to existing musical patterns) are considered by many critics to be the best of the Southern Song dynasty (1127–1279).

Xin Qiji became a soldier to avenge the dishonourable victory of the Jin over the Song, but he found no chance to carry out his great ambitions because he moved to the south in 1162. After a nearly 20-year military career, he finally retired to a retreat in beautiful Shangrao county, where he spent his time reading and creating the ci that were to bring him lasting fame. His 623 carefully crafted ci are important for their controlled experimentation with, and expansion of, the existing ci form; he added to it an emotional depth untapped until that time and widely imitated afterward.

Stamps:
Special Brand of Bow - Peony, issued on 31.07.2004.
Flowers - Personalized Stamps (from set of ten), issued on 01.09.2011.
Flowers (from set of four), issued on 12.12.2000.


Thank you Wen!

Costa Rica - Pura Vida

I have received my first postcard from Costa Rica, and it's beautiful!

Costa Rica (literally meaning, "Rich Coast") is a country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Ecuador to the south of Cocos Island. It has a population of around 4.5 million, of whom nearly a quarter live in the metropolitan area of the capital and largest city, San José.

Stamps are also nice:
Pre-Columbian Art (from set of five), issued on 04.05.2007.
The 50th Anniversary of the Coope Ande, issued on 04.11.2015.


Thank you very much Randall!

The 350th Anniversary of Isaac Newton

Sir Isaac Newton (25 December 1642 – 20 March 1726/27) was an English physicist and mathematician (described in his own day as a "natural philosopher") who is widely recognised as one of the most influential scientists of all time and a key figure in the scientific revolution. His book Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica, first published in 1687, laid the foundations for classical mechanics.

Stamp is issued on 14.01.1993.


Thank you Jens!

Easter Bunny from Germany

The Easter Bunny is a folkloric figure and symbol of Easter, depicted as a rabbit bringing Easter eggs. Originating among German Lutherans, the "Easter Hare" originally played the role of a judge, evaluating whether children were good or disobedient in behaviour at the start of the season of Eastertide.

Stamps is Narzisse, issued on 02.01.2006.

Thank you Julka!

Russia: Caucasian Shepherd Dog

The Caucasian Shepherd Dog is a large breed of dog that is popular in Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and North Caucasus area. It is extremely popular in Georgia which has always been the principal region of penetration of the Caucasian shepherd dogs, and the official standard of this breed is fundamentally based on the Georgian-type Caucasian shepherds for being the largest, muscularly built dogs with attractive long hair. This nice maxicard is issued on 28.05.2015.

I have also received few stamps from Soviet Union.

 

Winter Olympic Games - Calgary, Canada (from set of five), issued on 04.01.1988.
Armenian Architecture (from set of five): Griffon, Erebuni fortress, issued on 12.09.1978.

This is mini sheet XXII Summer Olympic Games in Moscow, issued on 12.03.1980.

I have received this maxicard and stamps in nice cover with map of Russia, and stamps are Russian Kremlins from 2009.


Thank you very much  Anna!

Denmark: Jens Lund

This is drawing by Jens Lund, Danish painter and illustrator. Born in Copenhagen, he was the son of the master carpenter Jens Gustav Lund who ran a successful furniture business. After first studying law and forestry, he turned to art becoming a student of J. Jensen Egebjerg and Axel Hou. In 1896, he went to Paris where he attended the Académie Julian, studying under Tony Robert-Fleury.In Paris he associated with the Danish Symbolists Rudolph Tegner, Johannes Holbek and Niels Hansen Jacobsen who inspired him to espouse Symbolism and Art Nouveau. He began to create simple pen-and-ink drawings depicting ornamental sketches and landscapes, considered to be forerunners of Surrealism.

Stamp is Coat of Arms, issued on 20.10.2010.

Thank you Rasa.

Malta: Valletta

This is my first postcard from Malta, and what a nice sight! I must go there someday!
A UNESCO's World Heritage Site, Valletta  was founded on 28 March 1566. Its magnificent network of fortifications extend over 27 km and are perfect example of Renaissance military architecture. The dignified palaces and churches built by the knights of St John form an impressive architectonic complex that led it ti being described as "a city build by gentlemen for gentlemen."

Stamp is Christmas (from set of three), issued on 14.11.2015.

Thank you very much Silvan!