Europa CEPT 2020 Ancient Postal Routes on cover from Germany

 

This years theme for Europa CEPT stamps is Ancient Postal Routes, and German Post issued this souvenir sheet with one stamp on 7.5.2020. for this join issue of all European postal operators. This cover was sent of first day of issue with nice special postmark with postal horn.

Thank you, Jens!

Year of the Rat on FDC from China

An interesting Chinese legend about the ranking of the Rat goes that the Chinese supreme deity Jade Emperor held a birthday party and would decide the order of the zodiac animals according to their arrival times. Originally, the hardworking Ox departed early and should be the first one to reach. However, the Rat hid in the Ox’s ear and jumped down when arriving, occupying the first place. Thus the Rat had since been the No. 1 in the 12-year cycle and represents spirit, wit, alertness, delicacy, and flexibility. This year is Year of the Rat and Chinese post issued this really cute stamps set on 5th January. 

Thank you, Xu Wei!
 

Military working dogs on cover from USA

 

US Post issued stamps set dedicated to military working dogs: German shepherd, Labrador retriever, Belgian Malinois, and Dutch shepherd.  DKNG Studios created the stamp artwork by first hand-sketching the dogs, then using Adobe Illustrator to bring them to life with basic shapes and layers of color. The red, white, blue, and gold color scheme represents the American flag and the patriotism displayed by military working dogs. Stamp set is issued on 1.8.2019. This nice cover is sent from Randolph Air Force Base, located at Universal City, Texas.

Thank you so much, Ria!

Flatten the curve slogan on cover from Canada

Flattening the curve is a public health strategy to slow down the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus during the COVID-19 pandemic. The curve being flattened is the epidemic curve, a visual representation of the number of infected people needing health care over time. During an epidemic, a health care system can break down when the number of people infected exceeds the capability of the health care system's ability to take care of them. Flattening the curve means slowing the spread of the epidemic so that the peak number of people requiring care at a time is reduced, and the health care system does not exceed its capacity. Flattening the curve relies on mitigation techniques such as social distancing. 

This nice cover is designed by Trevor Ashman and he used nice embossed matching stamp Health Professionals. Thank you, mate!

Eastend, home of Scotty the T.rex

Eastend is a town in southwest Saskatchewan, Canada. It is situated approximately 55 kilometers  north from the Montana border and 85 kilometers from the Alberta border. The town is best known for the nearby discovery of a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton nicknamed "Scotty" in 1994. The town has used the discovery of this fossil as the main centerpiece in the construction of a museum called the T.rex Discovery Center, which opened on May 30, 2003. The center is operated by the Royal Saskatchewan Museum, and contains the RSM Fossil Research Station. And you can see beautiful postmark dedicated to Scotty the T.rex on this postcard.

Thank you, Trevor!

CCCC cover from Taiwan

I received my first CCCC cover and this is also my first foreign mail after star of coronavirus pandemic. There's 4 stamps on cover, but only herb stamps are cancelled.

This absolutely gorgeous souvenir sheet depicts marine lief of Taiwan and its issued on 26.6.2018.

This is set Herb plants from 11.6.2013.

And there was also this Europa CEPT stamp set from Greece.

Thank you so much, Su!

Hologram stamp on prepaid cover from UN New York

I received this prepaid cover from UN New York. Cover is overprinted with additional value of 6 cents and there's also beautiful matching hologram stamp. So, everything is dedicated on this cover  to the Headquarters of the United Nations in New York, a complex designed by a board of architects led by Wallace Harrison, and built by the architectural firm Harrison & Abramovitz. The complex has served as the official headquarters of the United Nations since its completion in 1952. It is located in the Turtle Bay neighborhood of Manhattan, on 6.9 to 7.3 ha of grounds overlooking the East River.

It's hard to show beauty of this stamp on scan, so i made this GIF file to show you changing of colors under different angles of light source.

Thank you, Mike!

Leap year on cover from USA

I received one more cover dedicated to Leap year, but this time from USA. A leap year is a calendar year that contains an additional day added to keep the calendar year synchronized with the astronomical year or seasonal year. Because astronomical events and seasons do not repeat in a whole number of days, calendars that have the same number of days in each year drift over time with respect to the event that the year is supposed to track. By inserting an additional day or month into the year, the drift can be corrected.On this cover from Miami you can see stamps dedicated to Year of the Rat and in the middle definitive stamp with American eagle.

Inside cover was this FDC dedicated to wild orchids. There are more than 30,000 species of wild orchids in the world. And these two stamps are from set of ten stamps which shows orchid species from USA.

Thank you, Mike!

Dahlias on cover from Canada

Dahlias are part of the Asteraceae family, which includes sunflowers, daisies, chrysanthemums and zinnias. Single or double flowering, dahlias come in a rainbow of colours (except blue). Considered an annual in Canada, these robust plants will bloom in most parts of the country from mid-summer until the first frost. In the Victorian era, dahlias were exchanged by couples as a show of commitment. They are still widely used in weddings and are said to symbolize honesty, balance, inner strength, creativity, positive change and kindness. More recently, the dahlia has become symbol of diversity, given the seamless way each petal fits into the whole flower head. The stamp was designed by Lionel Gadoury, Umaymah Motala and Malika Soin of Context Creative, with photography by Veronique Meignaud.

Thank you, Kenneth!

Giant sausage replica from Mundare, Canada!

Here's interesting postcard with giant sausage replica from Mundare, Canada. Mundare is a small town in central Alberta. The Canadian National Railway tracks run through the town. Mundare was named after William Mundare, a railway station agent. It is also home of the world's largest garlic sausage (on postcard), which cost about $120,000 to build and erect.

Mundare have interesting postmark, but this one is little bit smudged and upside down, probably during machine cancelling.

Thank you, Trevor!

Leonard Cohen on registered jumbo cover from Canada

Born in 1934, Cohen was an award-winning poet during his days at McGill University. More poetry and two novels followed after he graduated, including Beautiful Losers in 1966. The following year, Cohen launched a new career in music with an appearance at the Newport Folk Festival and the release of his debut album, Songs of Leonard Cohen. In 1984, Cohen released the album Various Positions. It features “Hallelujah,” his most popular and most covered song. A member of the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame, Cohen has also been honoured with multiple JUNO awards and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Canada Post decided to issue set of stamps in his honor on 21.9.2019. There is also many other stamps, including five Star Trek stamps, English queen, Christmas stamps, white tailed deer, set Mail delivery...

Thank you so much, Trevor!

Defence Day Golden Jubilee Celebrations on Leap year cover from Pakistan

I received cover sent on Leap day from Pakistan with stamp set dedicated to Defence Day golden jubilee celebrations, day when country pays tribute to all those who laid down their lives and lost loved ones in the 1965 and 1971 wars and in the ongoing war against terrorism.There's few nice cancellations on this cover, round one from Rawalpindi post office and square cancellation from International mail office in Islamabad. This beautiful stamps set is issued on 7.9.2015.

Thank you, Faisal!

Leap year on cover from Canada

On February 29th 2020 many cover collectors celebrated this event by sending out many covers on exact day, by some of them did more and designed commemorative covers, like this one, designed ans sent by my friend Trevor Ashman. A leap year is a calendar year that contains an additional day added to keep the calendar year synchronized with the astronomical year or seasonal year. Because astronomical events and seasons do not repeat in a whole number of days, calendars that have the same number of days in each year drift over time with respect to the event that the year is supposed to track. By inserting an additional day or month into the year, the drift can be corrected.

Thank you, Trevor!

Soviet Winnie-the-Pooh with matching stamp!

Winnie-the-Pooh is a 1969 Soviet animated film trilogy by Soyuzmultfilm directed by Fyodor Khitruk. The film is based on chapter one in the book series by A. A. Milne. Khitruk studied the original book by Milne first in English and only later in Russian, translated by Boris Zakhoder who became a co-writer of the first two parts of the trilogy. Khitruk had not seen the Disney adaptations while working on his own. He created the prototype drawings of the characters together with Vladimir Zuikov.

There's four beautiful stamps on this postcard, but most important for me is matching Winnie-the-Pooh stamp, from set Characters of Domestic Cartoons, issued on 3.12.2012.

Thank you so much, Natalia!

USA: Cactus Flowers sent from Cactus, Texas!

Last year USPS issued set of ten stamps dedicated to cactus flowers. Cactus flowers generally occur singly, although many separate blossoms might appear on a plant at the same time. Flowering occurs at different times of the year and even different times of the day or night. Most cactus flowers are large and flamboyant, with colors of white, red, pink, orange or yellow. This cover is sent from small American city Cactus in Texas, nice matching with stamps!

Thank you, Ria!

Historic land vehicles on cover from Canada

This wonderful souvenir sheet is first from Historic land vehicles series, which represents cars and other land vehicles from various eras. First set is issued on 23.9.1993.On this sheet you can see six legendary cars: Henry Seth Taylor Steam Buggy, Ford Model T, McLaughlin-Buick Model 28-496, Russell Model L, Studebaker Champion Deluxe, and Gray-Dort 25 SM.

Thank you, Marie!

Ferari's World title in year 2000 on cover from Modena!

The 2000 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 54th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. Michael Schumacher became Ferrari's first World Drivers' Champion for 21 years having clinched the Drivers' title at the penultimate race of the season. Ferrari successfully defended its Constructors' title.

Inside cover was this beautiful old postcard from Modena  Modena is, along with Turin, one of Italy's main centers of the automotive industry, with a rich history and tradition in this field. The iconic Ferrari brand was founded in Modena by Modenese legendary car tycoon Enzo Ferrari, and today is headquartered just outside the city, in the suburb of Maranello. Several other Italian luxury automobile manufacturers such as Pagani, Lamborghini, and Maserati are headquartered in the Modena area.

On this stamp you can see winning car Ferrari F1-2000. The chassis was designed by Rory Byrne, Aldo Costa and Nikolas Tombazis with Ross Brawn playing a vital role in leading the production of the car as the team's Technical Director and Paolo Martinelli leading the engine design. The car was a direct development of the F300 and F399 from the previous two seasons, using the same basic gearbox and a new engine with a wider V-angle (90 degrees vs. 75 degrees in the 048 engine); this new wider angle improved and lowered the centre of gravity of the car. It also featured improved aerodynamics over the F399 most noticeably a flatter underside of the nose area, which put it on par with that year's McLaren MP4/15.

Thank you so much, Gabriele!

Postcard from Côte landaise, France

Côte des Landes or Côte landaise is a touristic name given to a section of the French seashore.
In the southwest of France along the Atlantic Ocean, "la Côte des Landes" begins in the north at Arcachon Bay and continues south to the mouth of the Adour River. The area is famous for surfing and beach acivities.

A lot of nice stamps on postcard, but postcard is cancelled by machine, and I'm not big fan of this.


Thank you, Pascal!

Star pufferfish on cover from Palau

I received cover from Palau with star pufferfish on stamp, from souvenir sheet issued on 1.1.2019. Star pufferfish (Arothron stellatus) is a demersal marine fish belonging to the family Tetraodontidae. It is found in tropical and subtropical waters from the Indian Ocean and Red Sea as far as Polynesia, southern Japan, the western, northern and eastern coasts of Australia and Lord Howe Island. It is a relatively uncommon species and lives close to external reef slopes and sheltered lagoons with clear water, but mainly in close proximity to sandy areas, at depths from the surface down to about 58 m.


Thank you, Li Ming!

Map of Texas on big shaped postcard

I received inside cover this nice nice big shaped postcard with map of Texas, a state in the South Central Region of the United States. It is the second largest U.S. state by area (after Alaska) and population (after California). Texas is nicknamed the "Lone Star State" for its former status as an independent republic, and as a reminder of the state's struggle for independence from Mexico. The origin of Texas's name is from the word taysha, which means "friends" in the Caddo language.The term "six flags over Texas", refers to several nations that have ruled over the territory.

Postcard arrived in this cover with souvenir sheet The Art of magic, printed in lenticular technique. This wonderful minisheet is issued on 7.8.2018.


Thank you, Ria!

Hummingbirds as a endangered species on cover from Dominica

Dominica issued in 2005 WWF stamp set with endangered hummingbirds. On this two stamps you can see green-throated carib (Eulampis holosericeus) and purple-throated carib (Eulampis jugularis).

The green-throated carib is a species of hummingbird in the genus Eulampis, which contains one other species. It is found in the Caribbean islands and Lesser Antilles, locations including Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Montserrat, Puerto Rico, Saba, Saint-Barthélemy, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Martin, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Sint Eustatius, the British Virgin Islands and the U.S. Virgin Islands. 

The purple-throated carib is a species of hummingbird in the family Trochilidae. It breeds on Antigua, Dominica, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Montserrat, Saba, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and Sint Eustatius. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and open spaces.


Thank you, Jinesh!

The 200th Anniversary of the Discovery of Antarctica on cover from Ukraine

I received in March this cover from Ukraine dedicated to The 200th Anniversary of the Discovery of Antarctica. On 27 January 1820, a Russian expedition led by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev discovered an ice shelf at Princess Martha Coast that later became known as the Fimbul Ice Shelf. Bellingshausen and Lazarev became the first explorers to see and officially discover the land of the continent of Antarctica. Three days later, on 30 January 1820, a British expedition captained by Irishman Edward Bransfield sighted Trinity Peninsula, and ten months later an American sealer Nathaniel Palmer sighted Antarctica on 17 November 1820. The first landing was probably just over a year later when American Captain John Davis, a sealer, set foot on the ice. Ukrainian Post issued this beautiful stamp on 28.1.2020.


Thank you, Roman!

Under the uplifted banner of self-reliance on FDC from North Korea

Finally i received my first cover from North Korea after two unsuccessful attempts. This is first day cover Under the uplifted banner of self-reliance, issued on 1.1.2020.  Designer is Choe Kuk Chol and print run is 20.000.

There's a three stamps at the back of the cover for additional postage:
National Flag, issued on 9.9.2008.
Paektu Mountain, issued on 20.11.2002.
Hormotoma fossil, issued on 10.11.2013.


Thank you so much, Li Ming!

Bay Islands on postcard from Honduras

The Bay Islands is a group of islands off the coast of Honduras. Collectively, the islands form one of the 18 Departments of Honduras. The departmental capital is Roatan, on the island of Roatán. The total surface area of the islands is 250 km2. The Bay Islands consist of eight islands and 53 small cays lying 15 kilometers to 60 kilometers off the northern coast of Honduras.

Both stamps are from Animals, issued on 24.5.2004. Left one is Tawny Treefrog (Rana arboricola) and right stamp is Brown-throated Sloth (Bradypus variegatus).


Thank you, Cesar!

Birds on on cover from Brazil

I received cover from Brazil with stamps from set Brazilian birds released for specialized philatelic exhibition Birdpex 8, which was held on 19-21st May in Luxembourg. On this stamps you can see Purple-winged Ground-Dove (Claravis geoffroyi) and Blue-eyed Ground-Dove (Columbina cyanopis). Stamps are issued on 19.6.2017.


Thank you, Damião!

TAAF: Cover from Scattered Islands in the Indian Ocean - Glorioso Islands

The Scattered Islands in the Indian Ocean consist of four small coral islands, an atoll, and a reef in the Indian Ocean, and have constituted the 5th district of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands (TAAF) since February 2007, though sovereignty over some or all of the Islands is contested by Madagascar, Mauritius, and the Comoros. None of the islands has ever had a permanent population.

This cover was sent from Glorioso Islands. It's a group of French islands and rocks totaling 5 square kilometers. The archipelago consists of two islands, Grande Glorieuse and Île du Lys, as well as eight rock islets. They form part of a coral reef and lagoon, and they have an Exclusive Economic Zone of 48,350 square kilometers.The islands are today nature reserves with a meteorological station garrisoned by The French Foreign Legion.


Thank you so much Eric!

Guernsey: Postcard from Sark, Channel Islands

Sark is a part of the Channel Islands in the southwestern English Channel, off the coast of Normandy, France. It is a royal fief, which forms part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, with its own set of laws based on Norman law and its own parliament. It has a population of about 500. Sark (including the nearby island of Brecqhou) has an area of  only 5.44 km2. Sark is one of the few remaining places in the world where cars are banned from roads and only tractors and horse-drawn vehicles are allowed.

Fantastic selection of stamps:
First one is Maritime Heritage, issued on 4.8.2000.
Second one is map of Channel Islands, part of set Mailtransport from 1.10.1994.



Thank you so much, Wolfgang!

Canadian flag and nice postmark on postcard from Ralston

I received this postpaid postcard with Canadian flag adopted in 1965. Red is symbolic of England and white of France, the colors having been used representatively by those countries in the past. The maple leaf represents unity across the entire country- regardless of birthplace.

Postcard is sent from Ralston with this very nice postmark! The Crown Village of Ralston is located to the east of Highway 884 on CFB Suffield within Cypress County in southern Alberta, Canada, approximately 3 km north of the Hamlet of Suffield and the Trans-Canada Highway.


Thanks, Trevor!

Stamp day 2013 with engraver signature (!!!) on insured registered cover from Serbia

I received this insured registered cover in February with block of four stamps Stamp day 2013, issued on 25.10.2013. There's a specific philatelic specialty in philately of Yugoslavia and Serbia - hidden signature of engraver with long tradition over many decades.

On this block you can see hidden signature on bottom right stamp - NS. Location of signature is never revealed and you never know which edition will have it, and sometimes is really well hidden. And for your information, stamps with engraver signature cost much more on philatelic market!


Thanks a lot, Milorad!

70th Anniversary of the People's Republic of China on registered cover from Macau

Macao Post released set of stamps and souvenir sheet dedicated to 70th Anniversary of the People's Republic of China. The Communist Party of China had defeated the Kuomintang Party following the Chinese Civil War, which occurred intermittently between 1927 and 1950 In the aftermath of the civil war, the Kuomintang and its loyalists then retreated to the island of Taiwan, formerly a prefecture of the Qing Empire, which had been under Japanese colonial rule from 1895 to 1945. The founding of the People's Republic of China was formally proclaimed by Mao Zedong, the Chairman of the Communist Party of China, on 1 October 1949 at 3:00 pm in Tiananmen Square in Beijing.


Thank you, Li Ming!

The 50th Anniversary of International Federation of Stamp Dealers' Associations on cover from Grenada

I received my first cover from Grenada, small island state in the southeastern Caribbean Sea. It is located northwest of Trinidad and Tobago, northeast of Venezuela and southwest of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Before the arrival of Europeans in the Americas, Grenada was inhabited by the indigenous Arawaks and later by the Island Caribs. Christopher Columbus sighted Grenada in 1498 during his third voyage to the Americas. Although it was deemed the property of the King of Spain, there are no records to suggest the Spanish ever landed or settled on the island. French settlement and colonization began in 1650 and continued for the next century. On 10 February 1763, Grenada was ceded to the British under the Treaty of Paris. From 1958 to 1962 Grenada was part of the Federation of the West Indies, a short-lived federation of British West Indian colonies. On 3 March 1967, Grenada was granted full autonomy. Stamp on this cover is dedicated to The 50th Anniversary of International Federation of Stamp Dealers' Associations, and is issued on 16.12.2002.


Thank you, Wolfgang!

Arctic cover from German research vessel Polarstern on MOSAiC expedition

RV Polarstern (Polar Star) is a German research icebreaker of the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) in Bremerhaven. Polarstern was commissioned in 1982 and is mainly used for research in the Arctic and Antarctica. On September 20, 2019, she sailed from Tromsø, Norway, for a 12 to 14 month-long Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) expedition across the Arctic. She settled in an ice floe on October 4, 2019 and will drift in it past the North pole eventually reaching open water in the Fram Strait. This fantastic cover was sent on 13.12.2019. and i received this cover two months later.

 For the first time a modern research icebreaker will operate in the direct vicinity of the North Pole year round, including the nearly half year long polar night during winter. In terms of the logistical challenges involved, the total number of participants, the number of participating countries, and the available budget, MOSAiC represents the largest Arctic expedition in history. During its one-year-long journey, the central expedition ship, the research icebreaker Polarstern from Germany's Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI), will be supported and resupplied by the icebreakers Akademik Fedorov and Kapitan Dranitsyn (Russia), Oden (Sweden) and Xue Long II (China). In addition, extensive operations involving helicopters and other aircraft are planned.


Thank you so much, Jens, for this fantastic cover!