The Postal Picture

Friars Crag

2012-02-14T19:12:00.000Z

Jocelyn over on Cuckootree has starts a new meme today "Our Wonderful World Tuesday "to celebrate the beauty and diversity of the world" and also will be giving away a Mu & Me Postcard. How could I resist. I'll start on home ground with a view from Friars Crag, a promontory on the shores of Derwentwater, John Ruskin called this one of the three most beautiful scenes in Europe (no idea what he considered the other two to be). He may have been biased because like me he lived in the county and also his earliest memory was being taken to Friars Crag as a child. It is a popular place for tourist and photographers alike. If you took your camera there this week there would be a lot more snow than the sprinkling on this card.

Our Wonderful World Tuesday has a neat little badge too

Love Heart

2012-02-14T00:41:00.000Z

A heart sent through the post on 17 October 1906 on a pretty embossed card from an anonymous sender in Rhyl, north Wales

to Mr H Noble, an engineer on the SS Manchester Importer. Perhaps they had met in the seaside town of Rhyl. I wonder if he could guess who sent it? The ship was one of the Manchester Liners fleet which used to come from the Manchester Ship Canal and make regular sailings to the eastern seaboard of the USA and Canada.

Hearts and Flowers

2012-02-12T00:41:00.000Z

Cupid is drawing the bow on this "little drops of happiness" stamp from Finland. Once the arrow flies then two hearts will

become one. (The Shrek postal cancel covering this US stamp of two love hearts almost makes it a differently themed stamp). Both this stamp and

this one were both designed by Michael Osborne who was so enthused by the theme he presented lots of designs ideas for the 'Love' theme to the US Postal Service (see here) but there were no flowers. No problem the US Post always comes up with flowers on stamps

whether it is a bouquet of garden flowers like this designed by Richard Sheaff or

this pretty bouquet of white lilacs and pink roses, a reproduction of a chromolithograph probably printed in German circa 1880-1890, the artist and engraver unknown.

An entry to Viridian Postcard's Sunday Stamps on the theme of Valentines Day and Love

Outer Mani

2012-02-08T23:43:00.000Z

Lets bask in the warmth and abundance of flowers in the little fishing village of Agios Nikolaos on the Mani peninsula (the middle finger of the Peloponnese). Take a cooling drink in the taverna. There is a pleasant walk along the coast where if it is September you can pick figs off the the wild trees or watch the swifts dive through the air.

In The Post

2012-02-05T00:40:00.000Z

A lake and silver birch trees what a perfect place to pick up your post. I can almost hear the birds chirping and fish plopping in the water. Not only do Finland Posti produce fantastic stamps they also create wonderful maximum cards like this.

With all the details a collector could wish on the back. This was last years stamp issue on personal self designed mailboxes of which I have another two

I think if I ever visit Finland, apart from loading up with lots of postcards my camera would be on overdrive clicking mail boxes.

An entry to Viridian Postcard's Sunday Stamps

Candy Floss

2012-02-03T22:38:00.000Z

Ah the relief to kick off ones shoes and just relax. Here the Aunties are having fun eating candy floss, I love how Inge Löök has made the tree flowers look like candy floss too. Maybe they are the bees equivalent. My sender Ilona says Inge Löök's old ladies are her favourites. She likes their attitude and hopes to be like them when she grows old. Luckily she has a quirky friend to share this time of life. The card came with an appropriate stamp -

one of the "With Friendship - Kiss" stamp booklet from January 2004. These stamps showed people at different times of life and of course this one is old age. The words are from the singer/songwriter Juice Leskinen (1950-2006). How to translate them with no knowledge of Finnish? Bearing in mind that it is probably a song line so might be obscure anyway, but hey ho here goes: Kiss the other cheek. If you can hear your heart. (Correct translations welcome from any Finns out there)

I'll end with Juice Leskinen song

China Town Arch

2012-02-01T21:33:00.000Z

I'm continuing my Chinese theme from Sunday with this card of Evel Penguinei at the Chinese Arch, China Town, Liverpool. In 2009 Go Penguin was the finale to Liverpool's Year of the Environment when penguins in various costumes were placed in iconic parts of Liverpool and surrounding areas. A fun idea which also had a serious message, to highlight the impact we all have on climate change and how a few small changes in the way we live can make a difference to the planet.

Liverpool's Imperial Arch is the largest outside of China. Standing 15 meters (50 feet) tall and spanning the street. The arch has 200 Dragons and five roofs and was shipped from Shanghai in China piece by piece, the whole arch was put together in time for the annual Chinese New Year celebrations held in this area every year.

Enter the Dragon

2012-01-29T11:11:00.000Z

The dragon roars on these stamps although the dragon dance pictured looks more benign, as it should, because the element of this years dragon is water, which has a calming effect on the dragon's nature. Sometimes it is called the Rain Dragon in China implying the promise of good crops. The picture is of the corner of a miniature sheet issued this month, consisting of the generic celebration stamp attached to scenes from around the UK of Chinatown celebrations and dragons of the 5 elements. I don't usually get these special issue sheets but couldn't resist purchasing to put on postcards. But lets leave our modern dragon to travel back in time

to 1885 when the dragon was the obvious choice to use on stamps of China because it was the symbol of the Emperor of China

In 1897 the currency changed from candarins to cents and so too did the dragon design. Turbulent times were upon China with rebellions and the Sino-Japanese War (1894-95). The Imperial Chinese Post became

the Chinese Imperial Post in 1898 which was the year of a power struggle between the Guangxu Emperor and his aunt the Empress-Dowager Cixi. These were the last stamps to feature a dragon for some time, China would become a republic in 1912.

As this year's dragon's element is water here is a Lunar New Year postcard with the watery theme of a fish

which is traditionally served on New Year's Eve (the word for fish is Yu and can sounds like the words for wish and abundance). It is customary to serve a fish at the end of the evening meal, symbolizing a wish for abundance in the coming year. For added symbolism, the fish is served whole, with head and tail attached, symbolizing a good beginning and ending for the coming year. The card had a prepaid second class stamp on the back

also featuring fish ,which could be a double carp. The carp is closely associated with the dragon because the story goes it was so strong it could swim against the current of the Yellow River and through the "Dragon Gate" and so be transformed into a dragon.

An entry to Viridian Postcard's Sunday Stamps where we are celebrating Lunar New Year with dragons.

On With the Show

2012-01-27T19:03:00.001Z

I've chosen the 'performance' part of Theatre for this week's Sepia Saturday theme. I have two copies of this photographic postcard so imagine Atherton Photographers in Barrow who took the picture found the large cast a profitable venture. My connection to the production is my father who stands on the back row in the clown costume, (he is the one on the left) and seems to have really gone to town on the make-up as Pete the clown. I think this is probably the Emmanuel Church group, they put on many stage performances but this must have been significant because it had a programme which my father has clipped and pasted the cast list onto the back of the card

and I recognise another two names, Cyril Pratt, my fathers lifelong friend playing the Dutch Boy and Tom Butcher who plays the Indian Chief, which fitted his flamboyant character (his nickname was 'The Count').

I wondered what Mrs Jarley's Waxworks was and discovered its name comes from the character in Charles Dickens' Old Curiosity Shop, proprietor of a travelling waxworks who employs Nell and her Grandfather. This name was taken when theatrical groups, mainly amateur, dressed up and performed as waxworks with one of them appearing as Mrs Jarley, and others appearing as her assistants. I notice on this photo that Mrs Jarley was played in the great British dame tradition by a man and imagine the clowns were her assistants. The 'waxworks' appeared on stage in groups. Each one was described in a humorous way by Mrs Jarley and was then wound up and oiled by the assistants to perform words and/or music. Such 'waxwork' shows were popular in late Victorian and the early 20th Century in both Britain and America, where we will journey to a smaller cast appearing on

an artotype made by Albert Bierstadt from one of his many Adirondack photographs which I found on the Adirondack Museum site.

"The image shows men and women posed on a makeshift stage in the parlour of the Prospect House in Blue Mountain Lake, New York. A number of well-dressed men and women sit in chairs facing the stage. The hotel's chandelier hangs in front of the valance curtain. Prospect House was situated at the foot of Blue Mountain, on a point of land jutting out into Blue Mountain Lake". The six-story, 300-room Prospect House opened in 1882. It had many modern conveniences that other hotels in the area did not have, such as a steam-powered elevator".

An entry to Sepia Saturday

Year of the Dragon

2012-01-23T19:19:00.000Z

"Detail from silk Chinese dragon robe, c1900-30"

A fearsome dragon featured on a card from the Harris Museum, an item from the Costume and Textile collection. The blue is an appropriate colour for this year it is the year of the Male Water Dragon in the Chinese Calendar. The element of water has a calming effect on the Dragon's fearless temperament. Here is a description of what to expect in the coming year:

"The Dragon represents powerful leadership, change and creation. It is an icon of individuality and of ambition, of charisma and adventure, of grand generosity and confidence".

Wishing Kung hei fat choi (Congratulations and wishing you prosperity) for the year ahead.

Regionals

2012-01-22T11:55:00.000Z

The theme for this week's Sunday Stamps is the standard issues of your country, the everyday, I know some people avidly collect the everyday Machin designed stamps of the queen,, but we have had the same design since 1967 ( at least the post office in the age of Queen Victoria varied the borders). But there is a (limited) alternatives of of buying a same queen stamp year on year from the post office counter, the regionals,

Regional stamps have been issued for decades but the newer issues reflect the growing self-government of the countries that make up the United Kingdom. I like the three dimensional effect of the design. I'll show the higher values. The first are those of the my home country England featuring the oak tree which in legend King Charles II hid to escape capture, its symbolism in heraldry is strength and endurance. Next we have the Tudor rose which combined the white rose of York and the red rose of Lancaster with the marriage of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York and has become one of the symbols of England.

The theme of all these stamps are national symbols and heraldry but Northern Ireland is politically sensitive so the Post Office has to perform a bit of a juggling act here so they have gone for on the 60p - a linen slip originally used to carry small personal items (The embroidery techniques is drawn threadwork). The 97p may look like a woven basket but it is a Belleek Pottery patterned porcelain. The vase portrayed is in the Belfast Museum.

Nothing could be more Scottish than the thistle which legend has it became the national emblem of Scotland when barefooted invaders stepped on it, screamed with pain, and so alerted the Scots to where they were, who, when they charged down on them, no doubt were wearing tartan but possibly not the one shown on the stamp.

Lastly is the 60p Welsh flower, the daffodil, this one created in Welsh slate by Ieuan Rees, 97p is the Prince of Wales feather in Welsh gold and silver by Rhiannon Evans.

I believe the stamps have a limited colour pallet to save costs. As far as the stamps are concerned they can cross all borders as they can be all used in any part of the UK.

An entry to Viridian Postcard's Sunday Stamps

Sepia Saturday

2012-01-21T16:25:00.000Z

"A French doll in porcelain and kid leather dressed by Simone of Paris in the 1870s".

Ooh La La. This doll looks as though she is about to go travelling, depending on the season she will be able to keep warm with the fur stoles as she takes the train from Paris, the porter loading her trunk, or perhaps she will hoist the parasol as she strolls down a boulevard. What amazes me about this card is the pristine appearance of both clothes and dolls. I suspect my dolls were not as well cared for and there was no trunk for their clothing, although I did have a shoe box which performed the same function.

Here I am on my 5th birthday complete with party dress and a selection of dolls

me on the left with the doll that my mother made copious quantities of clothes for, my friend Roger holding my favourite, Twizzle the Koala Bear brought back from Australia by my aunt and Marion with a doll that appears to be participating in the photo by waving at the camera.

An Entry to Sepia Saturday

Its A Wonderful Whorl

2012-01-20T18:27:00.000Z

Snail shells are so pretty, the front one is from the Helicadae family, I wonder if it is Helicalla itala which comes in a variety of colours, if it is it would be appropriate for it lives in Western Europe and this card is from Germany. The pink one I think may be artistic license, or it is a little girl snail who loves the colour. My sender, Alexandra, says the quote means that it is important to see the beauty in everything. I wondered what the direct translation was because German has those wonderfully long words that encapsulate a whole concept, I was not disappointed. Lebenskunst means the "art of life" and Alltäglichen means the "ordinary experience", so I suppose the quote in direct rough translation is "The true art of life is to see the wonder in the ordinary". The numerous variety of snails would certainly cover that, though ones view may change when they are chomping on a favourite flower.

The card came wiht

last years UNESCO World Heritage German/Japan joint issue. This is the Cathedral of St Peter in the medieval part of Regensburg, Bavaria. I've had one of these before here but the postmark hid a lot of the detail unlike this one.

Irresistible Ice

2012-01-16T21:40:00.000Z

The first frosty weather of the winter has arrived but not yet like this frozen view of the crowds enjoying sliding on Mockerkin Tarn. Legend has it that the palace of the Celtic king Mocken was by the side of this tarn in lush pastures. In the summer instead of this icy view there will be water lilies floating on the water.

Fruit and Blossom

2012-01-15T00:16:00.000Z

I love the time of year when trees are full of blossom and these two stamps show both the blossom and then natures annual magic of the fruit. I only have the cherry and apricot of this 1969 set and like to imagination picking these fruits off the trees in the warmth of the southern Mediterranean. I'd have to be good with my timing for the apricot has a very short season. Albania just creeps into the top thirty cherry producers of the world but the country has great plans to increase all fruit production. The other stamps in the set (which I don't have) are plum, lemon, apple and pomegranate.

An entry to Viridian Postcard's Sunday Stamps. This week's theme, the raw materials of Food

Drinking Tea

2012-01-10T00:57:00.000Z

Drinking Tea by Konstantin Makovsky

Once brewed the tea has to be drunk but, oh no it is too hot. The look on this young girls face is one of concentration and anticipation as she blows across the saucer. I love this painting I can imagine a cold winter's day and sitting down inside to drink tea. My sender, Yulia, says the girl is dressed in Russian national clothes and is painted by the famous Russian painter Konstantin Makovsky (1839-1915).

Makovsky painted this in 1914, a year before he was to die in an accident between his carriage and an electric tram in St Petersburg. He was affiliated with the Wanderers group of painters who portrayed an idealised view of Russian life but in later years he came to concentrate more on artistic ideals of colours and shapes.

The card thoughtfully came with

(on the left) a samovar no doubt full of boiling water for that cup of tea. It looks a good spread, pancakes, honey, red and black caviar and a string of bagels. I'd plump for the pancakes and honey. The stamp is on the 2005 Europa theme of Gastronomy.

Next comes one of August 2011's "History of Russian Cossacks", this is the 'Cossacks Army of Amur'. The Amur River forms the border between the Russian Far East and China.

Down on the Farm

2012-01-08T00:46:00.000Z

Two stamps from the 1981 "International Decade for Women" set which show Mongolian women in everyday life. (The skipping girl bouncing from stamp to stamp) They are details from a larger gauche painting by Ts. Davaakhuu (1944-2000) entitled 'Collective Farms' which today hangs in the Mongolian National Modern Art Gallery in Ulan Bator. Here you can see just a detail of the whole painting which features the scene on the stamps and compare how the stamp designer has incorporated the colour green as a design choice.

An entry to Viridian Postcard's Sunday Stamps

Hermitage

2012-01-05T18:19:00.000Z

Marianna sent greetings from St Petersburgh and says I will like the Hermitage Museum. She is right I adored it but it is a long time ago since I visited and never purchased any cards of the interior, in fact I don't remember seeing any, so what a treat when I received her card. The little marble angel or putto looks as though it could come to life at any moment.

The card came with one of the Kremlin definitives

this one is Ryazan part of the historic centre of the city, sometimes called the pearl of Ryazan and in a link to the postcard the Ryazan Tourist site says. " If you are interested in the glitter and power of Russia, visit Moscow or St. Petersburg, but if you are interested in its soul, visit Ryazan. All guests are greeted here with the special Ryazan hospitality."

Happy New Year

2012-01-01T11:51:00.000Z

A snowy calendar celebrates New Year and wishes the world a Happy New Year. In 1963 the Hungarian post issued a set of New Year stamps for the Postal and Philatelic Museum Fund.

There were six stamps in the set with piglets, pierrot, four leaved clovers, horseshoes and in fact anything that might bring good luck for the coming year. This one features a young chimney sweep wearing the traditional costume, a wire brush over his shoulder and raising a glass to toast good health while carrying his four leaf clover. Touching a chimney sweeps button is believed to guarantee good fortune but the presence alone at New Year brings good luck. They are thin on the ground nowadays so maybe it is a case of first find your chimney sweep. Wishing you all health, wealth and happiness in the New Year.

An entry to Viridian Postcard's Sunday Stamps New Year theme.

By the Seaside

2011-12-31T14:20:00.000Z

Deirdre says this is the average Dutch beach and seaside. I always imagine dunes when thinking of the Dutch coast but this looks the perfect place to build a sandcastle and splash through the water. "From the most northern tip of Noord-Holland to the most southern stretch of beach in Zuid-Holland there are excellent cycling and walking paths" so this card came with the perfect mode of transport to take advantage of these paths:-

Winter Tree

2011-12-26T14:53:00.000Z

My sender, Edit, sent me this beautiful snowy tree in the diffused light of winter. The magic of the season. She tells me it has not been snowing in Hungary. We have only had a smattering here, the weather has been warm so the birds such as the one in the photo will be glad of soft ground and clear water.

The card came with two of the Hungarian Antique Furniture definitives which they started to issue in 2001 and keep adding to

Ornate Chair by Ignác Alpár 1896

Ornate couch by Vogel Sebestyen 1810.

Christmas Carol

2011-12-24T23:36:00.000Z

Good King Wenceslas looked out/ On the feast of Stephen/When the snow lay round about/ Deep and crisp and even/ Brightly shone the moon that night/Though the frost was cruel/ When a poor man came in sight gathering winter fuel

"Hither, page, and stand by me/ If thou know'st it, telling/Yonder peasant, who is he?/Where and what his dwelling?"/ "Sire, he lives a good league hence/ Underneath the mountain/ Right against the forest fence/By Saint Agnes' fountain."

"Bring me flesh and bring me wine
Bring me pine logs hither
Thou and I will see him dine
When we bear him thither."
Page and monarch forth they went
Forth they went together
Through the rude wind's wild lament
And the bitter weather

"Sire, the night is darker now/ And the wind blows stronger/ Fails my heart, I know not how,/I can go no longer."/ "Mark my footsteps, my good page/ Tread thou in them boldly/ Thou shalt find the winter's rage/ Freeze thy blood less coldly."

In his master's steps he trod/ Where the snow lay dinted/ Heat was in the very sod/ Which the Saint had printed/ Therefore, Christian men, be sure/ Wealth or rank possessing/ Ye who now will bless the poor/ Shall yourselves find blessing

Stamps designed by David Gentleman issued in 1973.

Sing along with Nelson Eddy while the scenes of Prague and Wenceslas Square, the mausoleum at St Vitus Cathedral etc drift past. May you all have a blessed Christmas

An entry to Viridian Postcard's Sunday Stamps

Wooden Church, Russia

2011-12-23T18:12:00.000Z

My sender, Yulia, tells me this 17th Century wooden church stands in the Kargopol open-air museum. When I looked this up I discovered that this museum (founded in 1919) was based on the private collection of Kapiton Kolpakov, someone the site described as a "local petty bourgeois", (as an old lefty I smiled at that description). Today the museum consists of 17 historic monuments from the 16th to 19th Century it also has large collections of icons, books, folk dress and art. There are also music festivals and it is a centre for Russian chime art which here happens around a winter festival called "Crystal Ringings" based around the Christian celebration of Epiphany (6 January). I'm not sure if chime art is the decoration or ringing of the bells or perhaps it is a combination of both. I wonder if they ring them in this church's bell tower at any time. The beautiful church is shown reflected in what I presume is the Onega River surrounded by the lush green of summer but must also look stunning in the snow of winter. Yulia gives the name of the church as Pokrovo Vlasyevsky but on English language sites it is usually referred to as the Church of St John Chrysostom, the name means golden mouthed for he was reputed to be an eloquent speaker.

The town of Kargopol near where this church is located is considered one of the treasures of the Russian north and has some remarkable architecture. It stood on a strategic trading route along the Onega River to the White Sea so was prosperous from the 16th to 19th Century, until the coming of the railway bypassed it. Unfortunately in the Soviet era some historic church buildings were destroyed but much remains in what is now a quiet town in the north.

The card came with appropriately

a stamp from this years "Headdresses of the Russian North" and this one is from the Archangelsk province, the very location of the wooden church. This would have been worn at the end of the 19th Century. The other stamp depicts something older a closed sleigh from Moscow in 1732 (from the 2002 Old Carriages issue). How I would love to ride enclosed in this beautiful object through a snowy Russia, it looks so wonderfully romantic.

Ladies who Lunch

2011-12-20T17:18:00.000Z

I don't know what the Aunties are having to eat but they are doing the thing you can only do with friends, taste what is on the other persons plate (which somehow always seems more interesting than your own).

Eeva tells me this is the latest Inge Löök card, oh happy days. Thank you Eeva

A Merry Yule

2011-12-18T10:55:00.000Z

I changed what I was going to post for Sunday Stamps this week when I received a wonderful Christmas parcel of stamps and cards from my postcrossing friend Eeva which included these two contrasting Åland Islands stamps. I'll start with the 2010 Inge Löök one on the right. "Christmas with the Merry Aunties". Our merry old ladies have sawn down a Christmas tree to carry home and are dressed in Lucia gowns. Now when I looked up what Lucia gowns were it brought a whole lot of more humour to the stamp. They are usually worn by young girls (that is not going to stop the aunties) with a row of electric lights in there hair, a procession takes place on the saints day of 13th December. Lucia is the bearer of light in the dark mid winter. The Nordic Lucia tradition started in the 18th Century in Sweden and then spread to the Åland Islands and other Swedish speaking regions in Finland in the 1900s, now I believe most of the Nordic countries celebrate. For the full legend, celebration and pictures see here But lets talk of food "The Lucia celebrations also include ginger snaps and sweet, saffron-flavoured buns (lussekatter) shaped like curled-up cats and with raisin eyes. You eat them with glögg or coffee". Mmm.

This year's Åland stamp on the left is called "A Flower for Christmas" a picture of a hyacinth by the photographer Helene Schmitz who is famous from her close-up pictures of flowers.

Next, as the package came from Finland here are the profusion of Christmas stamps Eeva used:

This years theme - Elves, designed by the postcard artist Kaarina Toivanen, the "cuddly Christmas smiling boy elf" surrounded by balls of wool and soft toys and the "Swinging girl elf", swinging on a straw mobile. Kaarina Toivanen says "Elves are happy, contemplative, mysterious and hard-working. They love hay barns and forest creatures they appreciate tradition and are loyal. Elves are also peace-loving and they perform tasks properly"

Under the boy elf is the 2010 Christmas stamp showing the kind of darkness at this time of the year in Lapland which they call kaamos (Finnish for the polar night). Designed by Tommi Vallisto the three reindeer draw Santa in his sleigh under the red glow of a full moon. Maybe the stamp next to it, the 2001 Santa Claus, is a close up.

Lastly

this year's winter greeting stamp showing a frosty rosehip. This is a stamp which the post office says is "perfect for winter greetings after Christmas". Isn't that a marvellous idea.

An entry to Viridian Postcards Sunday Stamps Christmas theme.

Cool Dude

2011-12-16T18:39:00.000Z

Our pooch looks ready for relaxing on the beach, certainly no balls will be chased wearing that hat. This card has a nice summery feel which is a nice thought because today we had our first significant snow fall. I suspect that as my sender lives in Canada she will have had lots of snow by now as well.

It is a large card so Denise did her utmost to fill it with as many stamps as possible, three featuring the journey of a letter in Canada

from the postmaster and his customer, the mail handler and eventually

the bit we all love, the postman delivering. These stamps are from the 1974 "Centenary of the Canadian Letter Carrier Delivery". Next

the 1980 stamp for the International Flower Show in Montreal. The men in uniform are members of the Royal Military College and the stamps celebrate its centenary (1876-1976). This college was founded by the Canadian Prime Minister, Alexander Mackenzie. The lone soldier is featured on Wing Parade in front of the Mackenzie Building. The Canadian flag is held aloft by the Colour Party with Memorial Arch. The emphasis when the college was started was on engineering, a skill which, at the time the nation had a great need; it is said that in the 1900s that there was hardly a bridge, road or railway line in the country whose construction had not had some assistance from an engineering graduate of Royal Military College.

Greenland

2011-12-10T20:11:00.000Z

What could typify the Greenland coast better than the two 50 ore stamps above? This is a lower denomination stamp from a set commemorating Greenland Mail Transport. The mail kayaks shown were used in the transporting of post to remote locations. For safety reasons they were always sent in pairs, the letters were stowed in waterproof bags behind the paddler. Appropriately the other stamp is of Frederik IX of Denmark, sometimes called the Sailor King. He ruled from 1947 to 14 January 1972, his death the very year this postcard was sent. Not only did he have an active naval service where in the manner of sailors everywhere he gained many tattoos, he also trained as a conductor of classical music. The Danish monarch is Greenland's head of state,

From 1969 Greenland stamps also bear the name Kalatdut Nunat which means "Our Country" (that is the Greenlanders' land or country) although it was not until 1979 that they gained home rule.

The postal mark is Sondre Stromfjord (Inuit name - Kangerlussuaq) on the south west Greenland coast where a 100 mile fjord cuts a straight path into the interior of Greenland. It is an area of diverse wildlife and I think the indistinct creature on the bottom is a musk ox. Stromfjord also has largest airfield in Greenland which is the main staging area for scientific personnel manning the research facilities, seismic stations and base camps. I wonder if the person who sent this card to England was one of the scientific personnel

He sent a cute fabric card, the clothing of the girl with the ball is long stitched. It must be a first call for Father Christmas to the white north, his sledge is still full.

Originally I scanned the full back of the card then discovered that the Cragg family still live at the same address so I have hastily cropped.

Our sender, Willy, sends Christmas greetings to the family (familien) Cragg. "Just a little Christmas greeting and a good new year". As it is in Danish that is all I can make out.

An entry to Sunday Stamps theme 'The Great White North'

Louvre Light

2011-12-07T20:35:00.000Z

The last time I visited Paris and the Louvre it was a rainy day in January so no time was spent strolling outside. It was straight into the pyramid and down into the interior hall. The architect Pei's pyramid solved the problem of the old entrance not being able to handle the number of visitors wishing to visit the Louvre each day. All I can remember of the old entrance is the flight of steps and the statue at the top of the next set of stairs up to the first floor (we are going back a whole lot of years here). Indistinguishable from many other art galleries but the pyramid in its setting is unforgettable. This postcard shows it and the beautiful Louvre buildings to perfection in the sharp light of a sunny day.

Bridges of Ancient China

2011-12-04T11:22:00.000Z

One of the things said about China is that it has four million bridges, whether that is true or not they must have the most elegant. The first stamp shows the most famous stone bridge in China, Anji Bridge sometimes called Zhaozhou or safe crossing bridge. It was constructed in the years 595-605 and is the oldest (standing) bridge in China. It has survived wars, floods and earthquakes yet it is still in use.

Precious Belt Bridge near the city of Suzhou, legend has it that the local prefect Wang Zhongshu sold his "precious belt" to help finance the construction in 816 AD. The three central arches are larger than the rest to allow river vessels through.

This bridge started life in ancient times as the Zhupu Bridge then it was rebuilt as Pingshi but burned down during the wars that ended the Ming dynasty, today it is the Anlan Bridge, a suspension bridge that was rebuilt in 1803 by He Xiande and his wife (I could not find her name, guess we will have to call her Mrs He). The name of Anlam means couple so sometimes it is called the Husband and Wife Bridge. Today it is a popular tourist destination and when this stamp was issued in 1962 it was still constructed of bamboo but in recent times because of the numbers of people crossing, the bamboo ropes are now steel and the wooden pegs supporting cables are ferro-concrete. The span also now crosses a greater distance of the Minjiang River.

So there you have three ways of crossing a river, I am missing the last in this set so include this view of a bridge connecting two countries

a postcard of a "Bridge between Burma and China". I can't make out the name of the bridge because it has been printed over the dark of the trees. The river may be the Mekong, other candidates could be the Nanka or Sheweli. No indication on the back just that it is Postcard No 40 issued by the American Baptist Mission Press, Rangoon, Burma. I just wonder what the person on the bridge is wearing.

An entry to Viridian Postcards' Sunday Stamps

Sesshuji garden

2011-12-02T20:06:00.000Z

Sesshuji at Tofuku-ji temple.

A glimpse of early summer through one of the elegant door of Susshuji, a sub-temple of the massive Tofuku-ji temple complex in Kyoto. People who visit say it is one of the most peaceful of the temples. Sesshuji is famous for its rock garden designed by the painter Sesshu and called the crane and tortoise garden. We can just catch sight of the Zen garden rocks below the trees .

When Noriko sent this card the city was having a very hot autumn which is also the time of year when the beautiful autumn colours of the maples would be seen in the many garden of Tofuku-ji.

The card came with

the Great Rocks at Keya (1963 Genka Quasi-National Park issue) and a detail from a 1800 painting the "Three Beauties" by Toyokuni Utagawa. The beauty must be busy calculating because she holds an abacus, the Japanese soroban. The perfect image for the 1987 stamp issued for the International Certified Public Accountants Congress, Tokyo.

Glasgow

2011-11-30T16:37:00.000Z

Charing Cross, Glasgow

It is St Andrew's Day today, the patron saint of Scotland, so here is a suitably Scottish card from the early 20th century. The post office still stands here but unfortunately the tram system that was once one of the largest urban systems in Europe is no more. The machine in the road to the left intrigues me, I have no idea what it is. I like to think it is roasting chestnuts although the two women passing the post office seem dressed for summer so possibly not.

The tartan is Dress Stewart, whose clan claim their descent from Banquo, familiar as the character that appears in Shakespeare's Macbeth. I think Dress Stewart implies this is the one to wear at celebrations, looking good swirling around in a country dance.

Anyone for Hockey?

2011-11-29T00:19:00.000Z

The Sports Complex, Platinum Arena. My sender tells me is the biggest sports complex in the city of Khabarovsk. It is also the home of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) team Amur Khabarovsk. Yes that is continental spelt with a K so that the initials are not the same as the CHL (Canadian Hockey League). There is also a hockey school here and ordinary skating rink so all things icy are catered for. There are fountains outside the stadium, I'm guessing they may freeze in winter.

The card shows an aerial view of the ciry of Khabarovsk and my sender Ksenia says it is situated very close to the Chinese border. The Trans-Siberian railway runs here, (5,296 miles from Moscow and 500 miles north of Vladivostock). What an amazing journey that would be. The city was once the capital of the Soviet Far East (1926-1938). Not only is this a border town but it also sits on the confluence of the Amur and Ussuri River and looking at the tourist pages for the city it seems there are cruises on the Amur River (and city beaches). All appears here on these video stills, and very brief view of the stadium.

Group of Seven

2011-11-27T11:07:00.000Z

Mist Fantasy

The Group of Seven, also known as the Algonquin School were a collection of painters from 1920-1933 inspired by the Canadian landscape and are considered the first truly Canadian art movement. I start with JEH MacDonald who in 1918 travelled to Algoma, Ontario in a specially outfitted rail-road car that functioned as a mobile studio, he was to return many times in Autumn in this carriage.

Isles of Spruce

Arthur Lismer (1885-1969) was born in England but studied art in Antwerp, Belgium emigrating to Canada in 1911 where the wilderness of the country took hold of him and he painted it for the rest of his life.

Big Raven

The Group of Seven were definitely a male club so Emily Carr was never a member but as Groucho Marx said "I don't care to belong to any club that would have me as a member" she is always closely associated with them. Like all great artists her work continually changed and developed into this post impressionist style.

These are all stamps issued in the 1970s but this was not the first time the Group of Seven appeared on Canadian stamps for the 1967 definitive series encompassed scenes from paintings issued in a mono colour rather than the vibrant originals

Left to right, Alaska Highway by AY Jackson, The Jack Pine by Tom Thompson (which has left Canada briefly to be displayed in the Dulwich Picture Gallery in London until January). He died in 1917 but the Group considered him a founder. Lastly Bylot Island by Lawren Harris who favourite subject was the Canadian north and Arctic. He painted this scene many times continually simplifying, he stopped signing and dating his works wanting to be judged only on merit. He probably epitomises the Group of Seven and their meaning to Canadian. As Christianne Wilhelmson says

“If you grow up in Ontario, as I did, the Group of Seven are simply a part of your being – I think they put something in the water! In fact, I don’t remember a time when I didn’t know who they were, their importance to the development of Canadian identity and been able to list many of the members. It wasn’t just that names and dates were pounded into our heads in history or art classes, but rather that what they managed to capture could be seen out the window of our car as my family made its way north to visit relatives. More than once I heard someone say, ‘it feels like we’re in a Group of Seven painting.’

Bylot Island in colour and the rest of this short meditation here . Lastly I finish as I started with McDonald painting away in his railroad car the mountain landscapes of Canada.

including his acclaimed "The Solemn Land"

An entry to Sunday Stamps whose theme this week is Art

Edge of the Forest

2011-11-26T00:36:00.000Z

Edge of the Wood (The Flight into Egypt) by Jan Breughel the Elder known as 'Velvet Breughel' (1568-1625)

I think Breughel must have been fascinated by the Christian story of the flight into Egypt portraying the holy family fleeing after the massacre of the innocents (baby boys) quite often. One interpretation is in the Coutauld Gallery in London which is very different from the one above from The Hermitage, St Petersburg.

Although the card says 'edge of the wood' I think it should translate as 'edge of the forest', trees dominate the landscape, the three refugees are heading towards us while everyone else is heading in a different direction, apart from the birds in flight.

Ksenia who sent this card lives in St Petersburg, how wonderful, a ready supply of cards and thousands of wonderful paintings. Breughel always puts lots of little details in his paintings so the original will hold many surprises.

The card came appropriately with the 5th definitive series of stamps which show

creatures that might be found in this landscape, Lynx, two Bears and a Hare. She also managed to fit the Astrakhan Kremlin on the card within the dividing line without obscuring the description. Neat job Ksenia.

Åland Granite

2011-11-24T17:08:00.000Z

The wonderful pink granite of the Åland Islands worn smooth by glaciers millions of years ago but still vibrant today with that wonderful line of green algae. The card is one by the Posten Åland and at first I didn't notice that down the divide it said it was of "natural environment of Åland, Föglö" Of course once I saw that I knew we were talking stamps here and off I went to The Top of The World site and found the answer. This is one of the series of scenery stamps issued over a number of years by the Åland post.

"With its 600 inhabitants Föglö is the largest archipelago municipality in Åland. In summer the population increases almost threefold when some 600 summer cottages come alive....Kjell Söderlund took the photo from Algersö, Föglö, showing a rock by the sea, smooth as a mirror"

It sounds a wonderful place to spend a summer for there are hiking and cycling trails and of course sea paddling where one could glide round these rocks.

Fuji & Cherry Blossom

2011-11-14T19:22:00.000Z

Mt Fuji and Cherry Flower, Yamanashi

The iconic Mount Fuji, highest mountain in Japan (12,389 ft) its volcanic cone covered with snow as the cherry blossom flowers. The delicate surrounding the monumental. What a wonderful sight. The mountain has been an inspiration to poets and painters through the ages, the most famous of which is Hokusai and his '36 views of Mount Fuji'. Noriko who sent this card says the name of Cherry Blossom in Japanese is Sakura.

The card came with

on the right one of the June 2011 set of Hello Kitty stamps and look Kitty has some cherry blossom in her hair, this stamp is called Hello Kitty in Yoshinoyama. A mountain in Japan famous for viewing cherry blossom, people have been coming here for centuries to see the 30,000 cherry trees bloom. The stamp with the honey bee, who I would imagine also like cherry blossom, is a 1997 definitive.

Sporting Life

2011-11-13T11:40:00.000Z

The Royal Mail is gearing up for the 2012 Olympics in London, I've lost count of how many sets of stamps have been issued so far but think this latest issue is the most successful, the others were rather uninspiring. These seem to capture movement, wind in the sails, leaping over bars, blocking balls, crashing into each other and wrestling to the ground. One of the fastest selling tickets for the paralympic games was wheelchair rugby, when it was first invented in Canada it used to be called murderball, a game not for the faint-hearted.

The rest of the set. The gymnast designer was Kathy Wyatt whose speciality is anatomical drawings and Adam Smith who designed the triathlon stamp also has a 60 ft mural of the stamp in his home town of Leicester. Each stamp is illustrated by a different person and I think this has been rather successful. The Olympics is for athletes at the peak of their game but sport is for all and what better country to celebrate this than Australia

who issued an extensive set of sporting stamps in 1989. As we imagine the sun shines all day long in Australia those of us in the northern hemisphere thoughts turn to winter and maybe winter sports, which

in Albania it appears to be ice hockey. The event was the Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, And finally, as requested by our hostess Viridian Postcard

the stained glass artist and illustrator Richard King's design showing the sport of hurling. The video of this fast and furious game is on my original post to Sunday Stamps here

An entry to Sunday Stamps whose theme this week is Sport, Sporting Events and Venues

Paddling in Lapland

2011-11-11T23:01:00.000Z

Somewhere in Lapland this canoeing duo is enjoying the white water. No indication on the card of where in Lapland this is but I read that this part of Finland is a most famous canoeing destination. The area of Muonio contains Europe's coolest (the area has longest snow season in Finland) and most free running rivers. One of the main stages of the Arctic Canoe Race which is considered the toughest canoeing competition of the world is held here.

My sender, Auli, says white water rafting is fun, or at least she has heard so. Like me she has never ventured into the frothing foam.

The card came with

appropriately one of three stamps issued in 2008 depicting rings on water. Designed by Timo Berry they show that there is lots of watery activity to be had in Finland, not only in rivers but on its 187,888 lakes. The other stamp is one of this year's Mailboxes set, showing wonderfully individual mailboxes. Like water they too are part of the landscape. Love the little bird on the top.

Panda Gathering

2011-11-08T00:34:00.000Z

I wondered what the collective noun for Pandas was, wikipedia says it is a spoonful or for even numbers cupboard. Neither seemed to ring true. Looking elsewhere I discovered another two, a sleuth or a sloth which are commonly used for bears (and pandas are true bears). I like the sound of those especially looking this adorable group of five. They look as though they are having a powwow maybe these are panda detectives sleuthing to where the bamboo has been taken or maybe they are just relaxing sloth like.

This card of Giant Pandas, came from Claudia in China. I wonder if this group is in the Sichuan Sanctuary, an area of China where they also live wild in the mountains. As is well known they are an endangered species, just one step behind the mountain gorilla which is critically endangered. Both species have problems because of habitat loss and things do not seem to be getting better in this world of ours.

The card came with

not only the pretty 2002 Asian redstarts stamp but one of the "Protecting the Common Homeland" set of stamps from the same year. At first I thought it was a man's face in the word

and puzzled about its significance. Flipping it the right way round it all became clear when I looked up its theme - 'Mining resource utilization and management', yes its a lump of rock/ore.

Thank you Claudia, yes I think the pandas are pretty cute too

Struve's Arc

2011-11-06T11:21:00.001Z

I think this must be my favourite miniature sheet; it portrays scientific endeavour but in the stunning setting of the forests and lakes of Finland. I love all the activity going on, including sitting down. The sheet contains 2 se-tenant stamps with the marvellous Finnish philatelic imagination of one consisting of the large circle surrounding the map and the other the map itself. (the circle does not show up too well on this scan but you can see the two denominations) But back to the scene and the horizon curving in the distance which is appropriate for this is a commemoration of the measuring of the Struve Geodic Arc. An internationally organised meridian arc survey which influenced the future development of science and helped establish the precise shape and size of the Earth. The 2,822 kilometre arc stretches from the Arctic coast in Norway to the mouth of the River Danube at the Black Sea. The measurements were carried out from 1816-1855 under the leadership of the astronomer Friedrich Georg Wilhelm Struve from the Dorpat (Tartu) University in present day Estonia. Today the line passes through 10 countries (Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine). Just imagine all that triangulation measurement, there were 258 main triangles with 265 main station points.

Latvia's miniature sheet features the measuring instrument as well as a portrait of Struve, part of the large endeavour can be imagined by the tower on the left of the sheet. The other stamp is a concrete marker post which I think must be a nod to 2005 when the measurement chain was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site with 34 commemorative plaques or built obelisks out of the original 265 main station points which are marked by drilled holes in rocks, iron crosses, cairns etc.

When Eeva sent me the Finnish miniature sheet she also enclosed a postcard of one of the

Struve points with the Finland map stamp. Start walking now?

An entry to Viridian Postcard's Sunday Stamps

Prize Day

2011-11-04T17:01:00.000Z

I laughed when I read the list on the blackboard of this card. Three things definitely to be avoided by any young rabbit, this one has learnt well and deserves a prize. I don't know how the fox has sneaked in, he is looking rather shifty. This drawing has so much detail, I could, and have, look at it for a long time. How wonderful it must have been for Racey Helps daughter when she was evacuated during the war and he sent her hand made books of drawings with their story. He went on to write many illustrated children's books but unfortunately died in his 50s but these wonderful drawings live on.

Denise, as she usually does, attached a nice variety of stamps

A 2010 permanent stamp of the queen waving on a recent visit to Canada. What I missed at first was the nice design touch in the background, a close up of a blue sedum flower. Next in contrast the August 2011 commemorative stamp of the 50 year anniversary of the hydroplane Miss Supertest III as it won the Harmsworth Cup. The races were started in 1902 to develop motor launch racing and from that time until 1956 the US always won the cup. Enter Bob Hayward, a chicken farmer from Embro, Ontario whose winning of the cup broke that run and brought the cup to Canada. The boat became the only one to win the cup three times in a row.

Lastly a journey off the planet

One of the 2011 definitives called 'Canadian Pride' featuring all the place you might see the iconic maple leaf of Canada. The stylised O surrounding the symbol stands for O in "O Canada!' first line of the national anthem. The designers who came up with this neat idea are Lionel Gadoury and Terry Popik of Context Creative. I wondered where in space we were with this photo and the Collect Space forum gave me the answer. It was the space shuttle's remote manipulator, the Canadarm.

Australia Hot & Cold

2011-10-30T18:37:00.000Z

Reaching the last destinations of Sunday Stamps' journey around the world I'm stopping off at the largest island and the smallest and flattest of the continents. Here is its 1913 stamp which does not need to say Australia, the map and kangaroo says it all. I wonder how many times the kangaroo has featured on an Australian stamps since then?

Lots I would imagine. Australia has been an island for millions of years so its wildlife has evolved in a unique way and the country's post has always featured its fascinating flora and fauna on definitive stamps. The largest group of indigenous mammals are the marsupials which include the kangaroo

and the koala in its eucalyptus tree. Next the laughing kookaburra beloved of film makers to create atmosphere (the New South Wales site has a link to listen to their sound here,). The next group of unique creatures is the monotremes, the only egg-laying mammals in the world. So here comes the platypus

just about to go for a dive, they are expert swimmers. Now I will jump in time from these stamps of 1937 to 2009 and the the "Australian Bush Babies" series of which I only have two examples but they feature

yes the long time favourite and national animal of Australia and their cutest

the Koala which came on a card with one of those evocative Australian name cancels of Toowoomba. Now from the heat of Australia

wrap up warm its the Antarctic. The local inhabitants shown on this stamp have evolved to thrive in cold conditions but

humans have to wrap up warm. Here celebrating the first attainment of the Southern Magnetic Pole the trio under the union jack are Mackay, David and Mawson, the latter of who

would return to the Antarctic to explore the geology further . Of the expedition celebrated in this stamp Douglas Mawson wrote in the introduction to his book "The Home of the Blizzard" "One of the oft-repeated questions for which I usually had a ready answer, at the conclusion of Sir Ernest Shackleton's Expedition (1907-09) was, ``Would you like to go to the Antarctic again?'' In the first flush of the welcome home and for many months, during which the keen edge of pleasure under civilized conditions had not entirely worn away, I was inclined to reply with a somewhat emphatic negative. But, once more a man in the world of men, lulled in the easy repose of routine, and performing the ordinary duties of a workaday world, old emotions awakened. the grand sweet days returned in irresistible glamour, faraway ``voices'' called:......from the wilderness, the vast and Godlike spaces, The stark and sullen solitudes that sentinel the Pole.

Lastly I finish this journey with a visit to the Crozet Islands, a sub-antarctic archipelago of small islands in the Indian Ocean home to four species of penguin, the Macaroni (love that name), the King, Gentoo and

the one featured on this 1956 French Southern and Antarctic Territories stamp, the Rockhopper.

An entry to Viridian Postcard's Sunday Stamps

Romantic Belarus

2011-10-24T19:21:00.000+01:00

Tanya from Belarus sent me this photo of one her grandmothers old postcards. She says these cards were sold in Russia and Belarus from 1920-25 and translates the message on the bottom which says "You are my happiness and joy" What a wonderfully romantic card , I love the colouring of her red dress, his handkerchief and the roses accentuating the black and white.

The card came with

a stamp issued in December 2007 as part of the Agricultural Animals series. An attractively designed set, I like the thee elements and it is very different from the other stamps of Belarus designed by its artist Maria Plakhotnjuk. Look at that neat cancel in the corner as well, part of a nice frank from the Belarus Post, well done Belpochta

Designer: Marija Plohotnjuk
Paper: chalky
Printing process: offset
Perforation: comb 13 1/2
Size of a stamp: 52 x 29,60 mm.
Size of a Miniature Sheet: 114 x 104 mm.
Miniature Sheet composition: 6 (2 x 3) stamps
Printing run: 42.000 stamps or 7.000 Miniature Sheets.
Michel catalogue numbers: 694-698.

Thank you Tanya for sharing your Grandmother's beautiful card.

Papua New Guinea

2011-10-23T12:42:00.000+01:00

For this week's Sunday Stamps theme of "Ocean and Island nations of the Pacific" I had lots of choice from my 'Eye of the Wind' covers, the ship visited Fiji, Sulawesi (Indonesia), Cocos Islands and Papua New Guinea. I chose these headdress stamps from Papua New Guinea which I thought would brighten up any weekend. The two on the right portray a man from Kundiawa (a town on the Highlands Highway), the other stamp is a masked dancer of the Abelam area of Maprik. The bird of paradise whose feathers are sometimes used for these headdresses is the national emblem of the country, and appears on the cover above the map of Papua New Guinea. The map shows the Strickland and Fly Rivers where the young explorers were navigating using inflatable boats. Because the country has no railways and few roads the possibility of the rivers being opened for transport was the idea behind the project of mapping the rivers. Permanent low cloud and spray from the falls means detailed maps from aerial photography at this time were impossible. Reconnaissance on the expedition had to be on foot to identify the main hazards around which the inflatables would have to be portaged. During the navigation of these rivers a second party concentrated on a crocodile survey. Which of those projects would you choose, crocodiles or rapids? I'd have liked to be on the coast watching birds

This Little Egret stands in front of the stilt houses which stand about 4 metres high allowing for water levels at high tide.

The White Faced Heron possibly competing with the man fishing in the background; as night falls the Nankeen Night Heron appears; the Crested Tern on the beach and the Bar-tailed Godwin. Lastly

in the golden light sits a Little Pied Heron as a canoe paddles past.

An entry to Viridian Postcard's Sunday Stamps

Seeing Double

2011-10-22T19:11:00.000+01:00

Post Box Numbers LA4 247 and 248

Two pillar boxes outside the main post office in the coastal resort of Morecambe. Take your choice of which one to post your cards. I wonder if one fills more than the other.

Enter the Dragon (and flying horses)

2011-10-16T11:42:00.000+01:00

If you were a stamp designer and the remit came in to produce three stamps for the National Exhibition of Industry and Communication, what would you put on the stamp? Perhaps the above stamp, with its instruments of industry, no internet or ipads yet as this is 1958. An attractive and clean design. But wait a minute, what if there are two of you brainstorming to make this an exciting event. What about dragons?

Yes the Chinese people are riding the five-toed red dragon (once the symbol of emperors) over stormy seas

And my favourite, flying horses (possibly a symbol of speed and perseverance) with their riders carrying what I can only describe as widgets over the calm sea of industry. The two Chinese stamp designers are Liu Shuoren and Wu Jiankun. Wu was greatly influenced by traditional Chinese painting and created other spectacular stamps.

I could not find what appeared in the exhibition and whether it lived up to the stamp images, apart from coming across a car message board photo requesting information on this:

The reply was "Wonderful picture of the Haiyan (Sea swallow or petrel, a little bird), developed in Shanghai in 1958. Yes, as an alternative for the pedicabs. The car was exhibited at the National Exhibition of Industry and Communications in Beijing 1959. There are different sources describing the technical info: 248cc, or 400cc, or 579cc; 1-cylinder or 2-cylinder engine; 12hp; 75km/h or 80 km/h. One source gives the Shanghai Bus Repair Corporation as manufacturer". Not quite a dragon or flying horse but rather cute.

The mainland of Asia is the destination of Sunday Stamps this week.

Lisbon

2011-10-14T21:26:00.000+01:00

When I did a swap with Clau in Portugal of course the thing I asked for was a tram and she sent me the sight of this wonderful traditional tram, which I learnt from Wikipedia is a Remodelada type. Above the Lisbon/Lisboa name I nearly missed the name "amarelo" which is Portuguese for yellow. Is it the tram's name or just the colour? No matter I would love to ride on it and Clau says it is very nice to travel on one of these trams and see the beautiful "old Lisbon" from the windows. Yes this Number 18 is just the ticket, imagine it whirring through the city. The trees are rather wonderful too, doesn't that just say warm weather.

The card came with

one of this year's Forest Europa stamps for the Azores. The Azores Bullfinch sings on a tree as cattle graze beneath. I think the words beneath the bird mean "Forests and Soil Protection". This stamp is part of a pretty miniature sheet

I'm glad I got the one with both bird and cows. There have been three sheets produced, one for Portugal, this one from the Azores and one for Madeira, all with their different ecology and can be used in any of the three places. They are all from paintings by the wildlife artist José Projecto who shows all three on his website along with his stunning wildlife paintings, bird song thrown in too.

Thank you Clau for both for showing me Lisbon and the Azores, two places I would love to visit.

A Picnic Toast

2011-10-10T19:00:00.001+01:00

It is not quite the weather for picnics at the moment but we have had a brief Indian Summer when all these picnickers could have sat down, there have been plenty of mushrooms. So pass the cowslip wine, I might help myself to one of those sandwiches too and, as it seems to be all friends together, I might fulfil a lifetime ambition and stroke a bee.

Denise attached lots and lots of wonderful stamps onto this card, including three different New Year stamps which Canada does so well but I am going to save those for a Lunar New Year post as they deserve to be the highlight of a day to themselves. That was not all for there were three of the delightful Beneficial Insects series, of course we are talking beneficial to humans not to their fellow insects.

This the accurately named Assassin Bug who could be a feature of a horror film as it uses its beak to suck the body fluids out of its victims but a gardener would be happy to see it land. Keith Martin who designed this series used a strong light source to cast an assassin shadow and stand out from the foliage.

This next set (top) is the pretty Golden-eyed Lacewing according to Canada Post "Often found fluttering slowly around a front porch light, this insect, with its thin, bright-green body and sweeping, translucent wings, is a gentle friend to humans". Its larvae are voracious predators who are used as an alternative to pesticides, hence their appearance on the first of this series of stamps in 2007.

Next we are back to the 2010 insects of the garden here the sociable Paper Wasp who get their name from the nests which are made by chewing wood fibre and formed into a paper-like comb of hexagonal cells.

Russia

2011-10-09T11:06:00.000+01:00

I am travelling to eastern Europe this week to the vastness of Russia. When these stamps were issued in 1961 they were part of a series called "Provincial Costumes", the provinces in question were part of the Soviet Union. Now both the place of this first stamp, Georgia, and this one

of Byelorussia are countries in their own right. What a century of change Russia and eastern Europe has experienced, shifting borders, wars, social change and revolution.

The imperial Russian eagle of 1889

1943 Teheran Three Powers Conference and 26th Anniversary of the Russian Revolution.

Throughout the post has got through although I am not sure what these Young Pioneers are doing with this postbox in 1936.

An entry to Sunday Stamps sojourn in Europe

Giggle Alley

2011-10-08T17:48:00.000+01:00

Post Box Number CA19 56

I could not resist taking a photo of this postbox with the Giggle Alley sign, unfortunately the mailbox is not called the giggle box but by the more prosaic name of Eskdale Post Office box.

Aerial Post

2011-10-02T11:08:00.000+01:00

Sunday Stamps trip round the world is spending two weeks in Europe so this week I am at home with this miniature sheet issued in September to commemorate the first UK Aerial Post. So easy today to stick an air mail sticker on an envelope, pop it in the box and away it flies to another country. These stamps take us back to another age and the day of 9th September 1911 when Gustav Hamel flew from London Hendon Aerodrome to Windsor Castle as part of the celebrations for the coronation of King George V (an enthusiastic stamp collector). The idea of Walter Windham who thought this would be the ideal occasion for the promotion of aerial post. He had experimented with a flight in India earlier in the year.

Things did not go too smoothly on the appointed day, the weather was very windy and of the four pilots only the German Gustav Hamel was able to get his Blériot XI monoplane aloft. He made a pass over the aerodrome which excited the crowd, who had paid between sixpence and five shillings to view the event, and he set off for Windsor Castle, (the journey of 21 miles took just 15 minutes) where another large crowd had gathered to welcome the flight. The next day was Sunday so no flights took place (no Sunday shopping in those days). On Monday four flights were scheduled but this time Hamel was flying a Farman biplane which was too heavily loaded with eight bags of mail, it crashed from a height of 40 ft and Hamel broke both legs on impact. The other three pilots continued the service, after striking to ensure Humel received compensation for his injuries. A total of 16 flights took place during the week carrying 37 bags of mail. With one plane lost and various departures cancelled due to heavy rain the regular airmail services did not happen again until after World War I when aviation technology had advanced to be more reliable and able to operate in adverse weather conditions.

The stamps feature:- 1st Hamel receiving the first mail bag, 68p Hamel in the cockpit; £1 the British pilot Clement Gresswell's Bleriot plane and lastly, £1.10 showing the mail arriving at Windsor. The miniature sheet also shows the actual advertising poster used for this historic event, a short one but the world's first scheduled airmail service.

An entry to Sunday Stamps journey round the contintents

Little Man

2011-09-26T16:13:00.000+01:00

As I have been pounding the art galleries in Liverpool this weekend how appropriate it was to have just received this card. I did see one lone Picasso but not this little fellow because although the card came from Germany this postcard is from the Picasso Museum in Málaga. The painting is his 1969 "Retrato de hombre con espada y flor(portrait of a man with sword and flower) where he reinterprets one of Velazquez's dwarfs .
I love all the little details in Picasso's portrait especially the hob nailed boots one sole of which seems to have come loose.

My sender Edcgz hopes I like this "funny Spanish hero". Yes I do and thank you.

East Africa

2011-09-25T10:55:00.000+01:00

How useful my set of Operation Drake covers are being for Sunday Stamps tour of the continents. We are in Africa this week, which was the last stop for the 'Eye of the Wind' before returning home. Although the ship left Mombasa on 8th August 1980 the Operation Drake contingent remained in Kenya from mid July for three months. The expedition was asked to do various tasks and one of these was to complete an ecological survey of Lake Turkana (formerly Lake Rudolph) in the north of Kenya. The lake is 160 miles long and 35 across at the widest point and although it is fed by three rivers there is no outlet, the level being maintained by evaporation. The resident birds include flamingo, pelican, ibis and spoonbill and during the migration season thousand of waders an waterfowl flock to the shallows making it an ornithologist's paradise. What a wonderful three months that must have been.

The stamp used is a celebration of the Flying Doctor Service (their badge appears in the artwork portraying Lake Turkana). This service operates over an area of a million square miles. I don't think I can imagine an area so vast, it makes our own air ambulance distances seem like a hop and a jump. I wondered if I had any other medical stamps for Africa and found one

issued in 1969 by the Republic of Burundi for the 50th anniversary of the League of Red Cross Societies.

As this started off with a lake maybe I should continue the theme with

a dhow on Lake Victoria. Then perhaps a bird that might be seen there

not King George VI but the Kavirondo or Crowned Crane, and animals that might come to drink at the edge of the water -

A journey round the world with Viridian Postcard's Sunday Stamps

Venice

2011-09-22T12:50:00.001+01:00

A stunning view of the Rialto Bridge as it shines into the dusk sky. Jump on board the gondola to be taken on a timeless journey. Clare and Al were having a lovely day exploring the many canals before going to the the Ufffizi Gallery and later having dinner next to the Rialto Bridge. What better way to spend a day in Venice.

The present stone bridge, a single span designed by Antonio da Ponte was finally completed in 1591. It is remarkably similar to the wooden bridge it succeeded. Two inclined ramps lead up to a central portico. On either side of the portico the covered ramps carry rows of shops. The engineering of the bridge was considered so audacious that architect Vincenzo Scamozzi predicted future ruin. The bridge has defied its critics to become one of the architectural icons of Venice. (Wikipedia)

Whatever the Weather

2011-09-19T17:00:00.000+01:00

We've had weeks of rain, everywhere is sodden and when Eeva sent this card from Finland it was raining there too. But nothing phases Inge Löök's grannies they enjoy life whatever the weather.

"Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather". ~John Ruskin

Whose A Pretty Boy Then

2011-09-18T12:08:00.000+01:00

The teeming life of the Amazon forest was the subject of a miniature sheet this year in the UK so I thought I would link it to this weeks Sunday Stamps location of South America and my choice is the country of Brazil. The hyacinth macaw sits on one of the top stamps and

in real life they like to nest high up in dead trees into which they gnaw a nesting hole. These two look wonderful on the branch against the Amazon sky,

This 2001 joint WWF and Brazilian Postal Service stamp issue shows various species of Psittacidae (the parrot family) in their favourite habitat painted by the wildlife artist Etienne Edmonle and in this instance made into maximum cards.

This one of the Yellow-faced Amazon parrot shows the stamp cancellation more clearly. Brazil is home to a fifth of the worlds parrots, they must be one of the most fascinating species and in some instances most spectacular.

The Jendaya golden-capped conure

Blue-chested Parakeet

All the birds chosen for the stamps are threatened by destruction of their habitat and also targets of illegal wildlife trade. The illegal parrot trade increases the risk of extinction of some species, hence post office plea, "collect stamps not parrots".

An entry to Sunday Stamps

Crooklands Wall Box

2011-09-17T16:31:00.000+01:00

Postbox LA7 235 Crooklands

While posting cards by the side of the A65 in the village of Crooklands one can check what happening on the notice board. Take a choice of pilates or zumba classes, singing at the Endmoor Club or go and see the Girls Alouder tribute band. I think there is room for at least another poster.

Cavaliers

2011-09-16T20:29:00.000+01:00

Have you ever though when looking at a group of male grey suited world leaders or businessmen; how dull and frankly, boring? The group might be enlivened with a colourfully dressed woman or if lucky Nelson Mandela in one of his wonderful shirts. How different it might have been if fashion had taken a different direction.

The postcard is one of the Photochrom Company's Gallery series and is from the Wallace Collection - "A Cavalier by Jean-Louis Ernest Meissonier" The picture represents a Cavalier of the time of Louis XIII - early in the 17th Century. The card says "nearly all of this artist's pictures are very small originals, and this one is of no exception". So perfect for postcards. Love those long boots but if perhaps going for a more casual look

maybe this lute player is the answer especially as he seems to have a barrel of wine to hand. No indication on the back to its origin but it

was sent from my Great Aunt Lucy in (May?) 1911 who mentions, in an afterthought, it was a lovely warm day.

An entry to Postcard Friendship Friday

Panama

2011-09-11T11:29:00.001+01:00

Sunday Stamps is travelling the continents starting this week. How could I resist using another cover from the Operation Drake circumnavigation of the world. Last weeks the sailing boat had visited many destinations and travelled thousands of miles, this one is from the first leg of the journey over the Atlantic from Portsmouth, England to Panama. They stopped in Caledonia Bay for four months in 1979 when amongst other things they did archaeological research on land and under the ocean. The most exciting discovery was finding a sunken wreck of the 17th Century 'Maid of Perth' which appears in ghostly form at the back of the cover painting. Can you spot the face in the stamp from the 1976 Marine Fauna issue? I didn't realise it was a fish at first but it is the Spot Fin Porcupine fish (Diddon hystrix). For a photo of this fascinating fish curled and flat see here

To me two things I association with Panama are hats and the canal. As I have no stamps of hats I'll go straight to the canal

and the Canal Zone which had its own stamps for most of the 20th Century. These are the air mail stamps issued in 1931.

and this one which luckily has most of a rather nice 'short route' map cancellation,.

The building of the Panama must be one of the greatest civil engineering feats of the 20th Century. The French first attempted it but had not surveyed it properly and despite 21,900 workers dying from disease, landslides and accidents they were unsuccessful. The US also ran into trouble when they started it in 1904 but in 1907 the US President Theodore Roosevelt made an inspired appointment of the army officer and civil engineer George Washington Goethals as chief engineer. This was to change everything and the building of the canal was completed in 1914 (two years ahead of target). Goethals paid particular attention to sanitation and control of disease from mosquitoes and reduced the incidence of disease and death amongst canal workers. Despite this 5,600 still died but the toll would have been much greater without his efforts.

In 1939 the USA issued a stamp celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the opening of the Canal linking the Pacific and Atlantic. Under treaty the US controlled the canal and the Canal Zone surrounding it until 1977 when it transitioned to Panama under joint control, the Panama Canal Authority taking complete control in December 1999.

I now return to a little more of Mesoamerica

in this Panama stamp of 1968 issued to commemorate of the Mexico Olympics in art which I think is a piece of Mayan art and this one

is definitely Mayan because it says 'Maya Figures'. A 1938 definitive of the British Honduras colony which is now the country of Belize.

An entry to Sunday Stamps

Jack Hill

2011-09-10T11:56:00.001+01:00

Postbox LA11 140, Jack Hill, Allithwaite

No need to guess where this postbox is, the street sign says it. Its a rather grubby modern box, time for painting I think. You could post your letters in the box, sit on the seat and wait for the bus

to come down the road to take you either east or west from here.

Skylark

2011-09-09T17:40:00.000+01:00

"Skylark, said a dear little boy.

Pray, where do you go when you fly so high?

Skylark, say, it is true

That you sing to the angels in the sky?

If so, my Mother's an angel up there.

And we do miss her so, you see

So would you please, the next time you go up,

Take this message from Dad and me".

To follow our hostesses Beth's theme of the anniversary of the Twin Towers perhaps this card symbolises all the people who went to work that day and never returned home.

The verse is a music hall song of 1901 written by EW Rogers.

The card is unused but I would guess from the message at the top telling the purchaser that it "may now be used for communication" must put it in the years after 1902. James Bamford began his career as a manufacturer of lantern slides and the Bamford company became one of the largest producers of model slides. This "life-model lantern slide" is one of the many reproduced by the company on postcards.

An entry to Postcard Friendship Friday

Tropical Waters

2011-09-04T11:57:00.000+01:00

"This cover was taken on 'Eye of the Wind' from Jakarta to Cocos (Keeling) Islands for franking. It continued on the ship to Kenya for backstamping in Nairobi. It returned on a VC10 direct flight to Royal Air Force Brize Norton on 22nd October 1980"

I think the Cocos (Keeling) Islands is just the sort of place one thinks of when the word tropical island is mentioned. Their tourist website calls it "Australia's last unspoilt paradise in the azure waters of the Indian Ocean". When HMS Beagle with Charles Darwin on board sailed here in 1836 his mind was on scientific exploration, and resulted in his paper on the geology of these types of islands called the "Theory of subsidence of atolls and coral reefs"

The large sailing ship on the cover is the 'Eye of the Wind', the smaller boats typical fishing boats used by the islanders. This group of 27 small coral islands in two separate atolls was one of the calling places of Operation Drake's round the world expedition; a youth project which included scientific exploration and land based community service. Over 2 years the 'Eye of the Wind' travelled 37,000 miles and 414 young people from 28 countries sailed the oceans . The marine biologist Dr Trish Holdway whose signature is on the cover signed up for a few months and ending up spending much longer with the boat and directing research. Maybe she saw some of the fish featured on the stamps

The 20c stamp is Amphiprion clarkii or Clark's Anemone-fish, the two 1c Forcipiger flavissimus, the Yellow Longnose Butterfly fish. Fascinating fish so here is another

butterfly fish, featuring on one of the island of Mauritius's definitive stamps issued in 2000, the Pavillon (Forcipiger wheeleri). They live on reefs and corals using their long jaws for probing in reefs and nipping off tube-worm tentacles as well as catching small crustaceans. And lastly

the Freckled Rock Cod (Cephalopholis Coatesi) part of the 1976 Tropical Fish issue of Papua New Guinea. This fish is another one fond tropical reefs but is also found on sub-tropical waters along the coast. It has rows of teeth so don't get too close.

An entry to Sunday Stamps whose theme this week is the Oceans

Hi Canada

2011-09-03T11:38:00.000+01:00

The Disney characters have gone on holiday to Canada but I don't think they had good weather for when my sender, Denise sent this card her side of the country was having high winds and rain.

The Village Blacksmith

2011-09-02T17:26:00.000+01:00

Under a spreading chestnut tree
The village smithy stands;
The smith, a might man is he,
With large and sinewy hands;
And the muscles of his brawney arms
Are strong as iron bands

One of the many poems of which I only know the first two lines. In times past children would learn lots of poems by heart at school, my father had a stack of them. This Longfellow was one. Some were his favourites he used to regularly quote, but he could always come up with some we had never heard before.

Although this card quotes the familiar first verse it portrays one of the later ones:

And children coming home from school
Look in the open door;
They love to see the flaming forge,
And hear the bellows roar.
And catch the flaming sparks that fly
Like chaff from a threshing floor

The card was sent on the 15th September 1905 "Just a line to say we are both well, Mother and I, the weather is fine for a wonder and we hope you both getting on all right and keep well. Uncle Aunt and ? love to Jane and Hilda"

An entry to Postcard Friendship Friday

Reunion

2011-08-28T12:22:00.000+01:00

We travel the world on the web, discovering places we may never have the opportunity to visit, although one always lives in hope. I noticed yesterday that I had a new location on my visitor flags, the island of Reunion. The present population of the island is 800,000, how intriguing that one of them ended up on my blog. I wondered if I had any Reunion stamps and I did, but not may, here are three of them. The first two are definitives from 1907 showing a map of the island (which lies in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar).

And this one is from the 1933 definitive series showing the Cascade Salazie, known as the bridal veil because of the effect as it flows down the hillside. Thanks to wikipedia I find that the greatest rainfall over 24 hours ever recorded in the world was on this island, 73 inches, which happened in 1952. The Cascade must have been quite a sight on that day.

What a pity I do not have any of the early aerial stamps for Reunion was the birthplace of the pioneer aviator Roland Garros. It looks a beautiful place

An entry to Sunday Stamps

Skelwith Bridge

2011-08-27T13:07:00.000+01:00

Royal Mail postboxes are painted every three years and the turn of this one outside the Skelwith Bridge Hotel in the Lake District has come. They always looked intensely red and glossy when first painted. But this one is unusual because

Post Box Number LA22 171

it has had its crown and cypher painted gold. Normally this embellishment is just painted the same colour as the post box and only painted gold when the postbox is historically significant. I have no idea what this ones claim to fame is, maybe it was one of the first George VI boxes to be installed (they used up the George the V boxes first so it was not until 1937 that the ones with his number on appeared). Whatever the reason it looks very striking.

Josselin, Brittany

2011-08-26T19:20:00.000+01:00

A view of Josselin and its castle form the River Oust which at this point forms part of the Nantes to Brest Canal. The working barges lay by the side and the woman in the bottom corner is involved in some sort of occupation; I wonder what. The postcard was sent in 1903 before the divided back so our sender writes kisses on this side

and sends to Madame Finot-Carquet on the other. The definitive stamp, designed by Paul-Joseph Blanc shows a winged women carrying the scales of justice who is looking in the mirror of truth and has two nice cancels, one as it leaves Josselin and other when it arrives at its destination - Verdun.

A card where Josselin's medieval château takes centre stage. This view from the canal gives a fairy tale aspect, although this is a castle that was built to be impregnable. The town of Josselin is designated a "little city of character" and is a popular tourist destination for its pretty half-timbered houses and other attractions which

this card celebrates with its picture cancellation. The card was sent in July 1979 when our sender is enjoying a holiday. The stamp of course is one of the many Marianne depictions, this one designed by Piere Gandon and taken from David painting in the Louvre of the Sabine women.

An entry for Postcard Friendship Friday

The Happiness Tree

2011-08-21T00:39:00.000+01:00

This weeks Sunday Stamps theme included, "unusual shape", there is no doubt the 'go to' country must be Finland, always inventive with shapes and themes. I was spoilt for choice but as I have just received these two this week from Eeva I share them here . They are from a miniature sheet called 'The Happiness Tree', the stamps hang from the tree:

The sheet was issued in May for Spring and Summer celebrations such as invitations, congratulations or summer greetings. A perfect way to celebrate a summer birthday. The graphic artist is Päivi Unenge who has also illustrated children's books and postcards.

I have posted the next two before

but I couldn't resist repeating them for I have never seen the shape of the one on the right, the Friendship Bird, ever before. The cupid is from the Drops of Happiness set. I wonder what new shapes Posti will delight stamp lovers with in the future?

An entry to Viridian Postcard's' Sunday Stamps

Double Mucha

2011-08-18T14:36:00.000+01:00

A postcard from the Czech Republic of Mucha's famous Champagne Ruinart poster. Alfons Maria Mucha (1860-1939) was born in the Moravia region, part of Czechoslovakia, now the Czech Republic. I have always associated him with fin de siècle Paris and his wonderful Art Nouveau posters, but just looking briefly into his life I discover how wrong this impression was. He tried to deny his work was art nouveau and said his style was actually Czech art becoming frustrated that he was always associated with his commercial art. Returning to Prague in the 20th Century he produced many murals around the city. My sender, Dajna, says that the art nouveau style makes some parts of Prague even more charming.

With Czechoslavakia's independence after World War 1 Mucha designed many postage stamps and banknotes for his country so how lovely that Dajna sent this card with

one of the stamps issued in May 2010 to celebrate Mucha's 150th birth anniversary. This one is the actress Sarah Bernhardt 'Gismonda' poster. He had a 6 year contract from Bernhardt where he produced many other theatre posters for her.

Thank you Dajna for the beautiful stamp and card

Florida

2011-08-11T14:33:00.000+01:00

A postcard of the one of the 'Greetings from America' series of stamps started in 2002. All have this retro design that resemble the large letter postcards of the 1930s and 40s. Space exploration and beaches, what more could you want. I wonder if the beach portrayed is one that you could have watched the space shuttle take off? Florida's nickname is The Sunshine State and my sender, Megan, confirms that by saying that it is has been very hot there in the 100s of degrees.

I love state cards and not only does this one portray a stamp but on the back it has the state symbols: a small picture of a mockingbird sat on the orange blossom and then listed - Tree: Sabal Palm, Capital: Tallahassee & Statehood: March 3, 1845.

The card came with

one of this years Herbs stamps. I've had two different herbs, and this is the third. The name of the herbs are written in this lovely calligraphy but no Latin names so I'll add that it is Salvia officinalis.

Thank you Megan for this evocative postcard

Lepidoptera

2011-08-08T16:42:00.002+01:00

Collection of the Royal Museum of Central Africa, Belgium

A display that reminds me of those Victorian naturalist who collected everything. Once fluttering around now these insects remain forever preserved. I have conflicting feelings about this; one is that they should be left where they were, the other fascination with their variety and that I can see them displayed.

The postcard was produced for the first series of exhibitions on the RMCA's unique collection. There are both butterflies and moths on the card. The RMCA was founded in 1898, the collections cover both cultural and natural science from central Africa. The first butterflies and moths were sent to the entomology department in 1900 from the Congo, Rwanda and Burundi. The collection has now expanded to include west and east Africa and there are 240,000 butterflies and 230,000 moths, a marvellous scientific resource. The few lepidoptera on this card pale into comparison with that number, I can imagine pulling out drawer upon drawer to see the infinite variety. The collections are so vast that only 5% are on display at one time.

The card came with

a stamp from the 2007 'Beneficial Insects' series, this one the Convergent Lady Beetle (Hippodamia convergens) and then the 2011 'Baby Animals' stamp of some fluffy Canada Geese. My sender, Denise, also decorated the card with a beautiful chickadee stamp which I posted for Sunday Stamps yesterday.

Thank you Denise for a plethora of beautiful wings.

My Little Chickadees

2011-08-07T10:38:00.000+01:00

This stamp was sent to me from Denise in Canada decorating a postcard, which it did perfectly with stamp and cute border design. One of the 2004 set of John James Audubon wonderful bird paintings. The Canadian postal authority were originally going to photograph from the printed book but the particular black ink used intensified and became muddied so they went back to the original watercolours held by the New York Historical Society (purchased from Audubon's window in 1863) to produce these beautiful stamps.

Audubon painted Canadian birds during two separate journeys north. In 1831 he travelled to the Newfoundland coast before sailing to Europe. In the summer of 1833 he returned to the north shore of the Saint Lawrence and its islands and estuaries, once more to coastal Newfoundland then Labrador, Cape Cod and Nova Scotia.

The Boreal Chickadees live in coniferous woods living mainly in insects and seeds, foraging in flocks as Audubon portrays. As they live in Canada, Alaska and parts of the US so I have never seen them but can through this stamp and I can travel via the Xeno Canto site of bird songs and hear them chirp on this sound file:

An entry for Viridian Postcard's Sunday Stamps.

My True Love Has My Heart

2011-08-02T16:06:00.000+01:00

A card from Lithuania by the illustrator Brigita Budryté. I can discover nothing about her apart from the the fact she illustrates books. I find the painting both amusing and spooky, and open to many interpretations. Are the fairy folk the couple of love, their hearts joined and playful or have they taken someone's heart and are about to play with it?

The card came with

a stamp of 2008, one of two celebrating the Olympic Games in Beijing. This is the Yacht 'Laser Radial' class. Small one person dingies, part of the women's single-handed discipline. The silver medal in the 2008 Olympics was won by the only sailor in the Lithuanian team, Gintaré Volungevičiūté.

Thank you Gabija for this fascinating card

Vannes

2011-08-01T15:17:00.000+01:00

L'ancienne école d'artillerie, la Tour du Connétable et les jardins

Back from holiday, and here is the town I stayed for a week. Not intentionally for I was in the hospital after missing the last four steps of the staircase and breaking my femur. The Bretagne Atlantique hospital put me back together and looked after me wonderfully so I am now back in England and letting time, and exercise do the rest. My partner brought me postcards of the city to show me in hospital and on the 13th July market found a vintage postcard seller and presented me with the cards. Now I'll know what date to revisit the city!

The card is of "The old artillery school, the Connetable's Tower and the gardens". The tower is medieval and part of the old city walls. The medieval centre is full of pretty timber framed houses. The city sits on the Gulf of Morbihan, a place of islands, boats and harbours, sheltered from the Atlantic.

En Vacance

2011-07-06T12:35:00.000+01:00

I am off to the land of yellow postboxes for a few weeks to twirl a few postcard racks. Here is choice of four letterboxes at the main post office in Ploermel, France. Two on the left, the internal post, large and small, to region 56 of Morbihan in Brittany. Exterieur (outside), which we took to mean the rest of France and Etranger (stranger or foreigner), where we put our postcards home. They arrived, so guess we made the right choice, although we did puzzle for a moment as to whether we were outsiders or strangers.

Another Place

2011-07-05T21:22:00.000+01:00

Antony Gormley's 100 cast iron figures spread over 3 kilometres on Crosby beach were supposed to be a temporary installation and moved to New York in 2006 but they took the hearts of the locals. Lobbying means they stayed there being covered and uncovered by the ebb and flow of the tide. As is well known the figures are all casts of Gormley's own body. I picked this card up in Liverpool, I loved the light, the lone sculpture and the tall ships sailing out of Liverpool to an unknown destination in the distance.

Alishan Forest Railway

2011-07-03T23:16:00.000+01:00

My sender, Tanya, tells me that this is Mount Ali and that the old train and old tree are very popular tourist attraction in Taiwan. She also shows me how to write hello in Chinese which is also the language of the postcard description, happily it has a date amongst the Chinese characters of 1968, when I guess this photograph was taken. The photo must be of one of the last steam locomotives to run on this line for in 1969 diesel took over.

Building of the line started in 1895 for logging operations but this narrow gauge mountain railway is now a tourist attraction. The train sets out at the foot of Mount Ali and journeys up 2000 feet through 55 tunnels and 77 bridges and through different vegetation from the tropical to the alpine with spectacular views of deep ravines. This is part of the Alishan National Scenic Area, a mountain resort of hiking trails, mountain villages and tea plantations. Sounds wonderful.

The card came with

one of the 2009 flower definitives. I guess the Chunghwa Post had just put some more ink into their franking machine as it has blobbed onto both the stamp and the postcard corner. Never mind it is a pretty stamp of Tabebuia chrysantha also known as the Golden Goddess or Golden Trumpet Tree. The flowers appear in Spring before the leaves. The warm and humid climate of Taiwan produces some spectacular plants. The flowers of this set of 4 were painted by Hung-tu Ko who has also painted the other, ongoing. issues of flower definitives and this year's Alpine Flowers issue.

Thank you Tanya for introducing me to this mountain area of Taiwan

CCW #2 - Kents Bank

2011-07-02T11:22:00.000+01:00

Continuing my occasion pictures of a postal flavour from the Cumbria Coastal Way, I have arrived at the village of Kents Bank situated near the River Kent estuary. Walk up the hill from the railway station and here is a bowl for a thirsty dog on the steps of the post office. While your dog, real or imaginary, is lapping up cool water perhaps call in

Post Box # LA11 112 - Kents Bank Post Office, Kirkhead Road

for stamps and an ice lolly. The wall post box is a sturdy George V design from 1934-6.

Rockaway Beach

2011-06-30T22:13:00.000+01:00

"Rockaway Beach, Missouri on Lake Taneycomo"

"Generations of vacationers have slipped away to Rockaway Beach on the waterfront of cool Lake Taneycomo, one of the best trout fishing waters in the world. Rockaway has a wide range of resorts, shops, stores; and is only minutes away from Shepherd of the Hills Homestead and Theatre, Silver Dollar City, and music shows galore"

I don't think I can add much to the description above from the back of the card. well apart from the fact that this little town only consists of 577 people but swells to 3000 in the seasonal months. Founded in 1917 it is in the northern part of the Ozark Mountains, one of its slogans is "The Ozarks Best Kept Secret". legend has it that Al Capone once stayed here.

The dense green forest surrounds the lake and disappears into the distance on this card, when it first arrived I thought was a river. I was not completely wrong for Lake Taneycome is one of six a man made reservoirs on the White River.

My sender, David, says there are many lakes in Missouri. I would imagine these would be great places to go on a summers day in this landlocked state.

The card came with three stamps.

This year's Lunar New Year stamp which I remember got a very mixed response from the blogosphere, summed up as "what the heck is that ". Well it is two kumquats, supposedly lucky fruits. Its only link to the Year of the Rabbit is the paper cut rabbit designed by Clarence Lee and the Chinese calligraphy in grass style by Lau Bun which says Rabbit. I like those two little elements.

Next the useful 10c American Clock stamp which I often receive to make up the postage and the 2010 Mother Teresa stamp issued on her birthday of 26th August when, if she had lived, would have been a 100. This happy portrait is by the artist Thomas Blackshear II.

Thank you David for this lakeside view, I like cards with State names.

Short Track

2011-06-27T20:36:00.000+01:00

I like the lighting on this card; the last race of the day and a cup to be won? Two riders competing in short track racing on mountain bikes. This is a speed event taking place on a ¾ mile track. It is exciting to watch and apparently to compete in, I wouldn't know my cycling is much more sedate

My sender, Sasha, says she loves bicycles I would imagine Russia has a lot of open country to enjoy from a saddle. The card came with two contrasting stamps, the

one on the right with a different type of track on its wheels, looks as though the tank is about to roll out of the stamp. This is one of the "Weapons of Victory - Tanks" set issued in 2010 to commemorate the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. The vehicle is one of the Soviet Cavalry tanks, the BT-7M (BT means bystrokhadny tank or fast tank). Its nickname was Betka after the initials, these were lightly armoured but very mobile tanks.

The Palace on the left is the Aleksandrovsky Palace, one of a set issued in June 2010 to celebrate the 300th Anniversary of the Foundation of Tsarskoye Selo, now know as Pushkin. A town on the outskirts of St Petersburg which has two palaces, this is the lesser known so not as visited. Built by Giacomo Quarenghi on order of Catherine the Great for her favourite godson Alexander (later Tzar Alexander I). Its interesting short history and for what is happening to it now see the St Petersburg site here The stamp is from an attractive miniature sheet

with the writer and poet Alexander Pushkin's statue featured in the middle.

Thank you Sasha for both the interesting stamps and card

Lepidoptera

2011-06-26T11:39:00.000+01:00

Sunday Stamps' theme this week is Summertime. Our hostess suggests her favourite, butterflies, one of my favourite creatures as well. What promises summer more than the first sighting of a butterfly? This stamp from Romania possibly capturers that moment of wonder and joy that they bring into our life. I rather like caterpillars as well but I didn't have any stamps of those so here are some butterflies from Hungary, the

first the Swallowtail (Papilio Machaon), one of the largest butterfly families in the world. I like how this set shows lepidoptera at different angles on their plant of choice

and that it includes a moth, the stubby antennae one of their distinctive features. The one shown is the Tiger Moth (Arctia Hebe). Moths come in colours just as vivid as butterflies but unless you have access to a moth trap, not often seem. The next of course is the easily recognised male Blue Butterfly (Lysandra Hylas). Some females of this species are not blue but brown but with a scattering of blue scales. Lastly

comes the Purple Emperor (Apatura Ilia), the male is sometimes known in my country as "His Majesty" and looks spectacular in sunlight. Lastly the Scarce Copper (Lycaena Virgaureae) found in Central Europe on flower rich meadows.

This set of stamps was designed by Vertel Jozsef (1922-1993) a prolific designer of Hungarian stamps on a variety of subjects from 1949 to 1993. He produced about 200 designs both for his own country and others. This issue of 1959 would not be his last on the subject of butterflies.

An entry for Sunday Stamps hosted by Viridian's Postcard

Cart Lane

2011-06-25T12:51:00.000+01:00

Post Box LA11 102 - "Beech Court, Cart Lane "

I've just started an occasional amble along the Cumbria Coastal Way, a 182 mile route from Silverdale on Morecambe Bay to the Solway Firth which divides Scotland from England. The rail line hugs the coast at this point which makes it a great resource for linear walks. I suspect I am going to pass a lot of postboxes on this route which takes one through many coastal villages. So here I'll start with the the point we were leaving Grange Over Sands. The guide says

Post Box LA11 102 - "Beech Court, Cart Lane "

"Go along the railside path.then the road, which bends into Cart Lane, and continue with the railway, near your left... "

Kiev

2011-06-22T23:02:00.000+01:00

"Mariinskyi Palace (18th c) former Russian's Tzars' residence, today - the palace is for solemn receptions of the Heads of States. "

This winter scene is almost like a stage set. So pretty, is would be wonderful to to arrive on a troika, bells jingling and the horses breath rising in the wintery sunshine. The baroque design is one of the many palaces designed by Bartolomeo Rastrelli.

The site was chosen by the Empress Elizabeth and the palace was built between the years 1747-55. Sadly it never seems to have been actually lived in for any amount of time, it was inhabited sporadically by the royal family, then housed a ministry, the national guard and a museum. Today, as it says on the card, it is used for official reception. It is rumoured that the president of Ukraine is considering using as his official residence.

Originally the palace was set in a large park with orangery and orchards, I don't know if they are still there for the building was damaged and looted in World War II, being rebuilt in 1949. As may be noticed my card was damaged by pesky postal machinery, I seem to be having a spate of these at the moment.

My sender, Antonina, tells me in contrast to the card it is summertime in Kiev, but her city is beautiful in any season, as can be seen on the card.

The card came with

the little inkwell and quill, an nice symbol for letter writers and Postcrossers. This is one of the 7th Definitive Issue of Ukraine whose theme I think are household objects. They seem to withdraw and add to this issue since 2008. The set was designed by Kateryna Shtanko who has done some other pretty stamps for Ukraine post, or to give them their proper name, Ukrpostita.

Thank you Antonina for the beautiful card.

Peanuts

2011-06-20T16:26:00.000+01:00

Snoopy and Woodstock being flying aces. I think Woodstock might have a slight advantage here. Charles Shutltz's Peanut cartoons are one of my favourites, the cartoon strip appeared for 50 years and at its peak ran in 75 countries and 2,600 newspapers. As he is no longer with us no more will appear but the ones we have will never loose their charm. How about a word from Snoopy:

"I spend a lot of my time lying here on the doghouse. That's because the round-headed kid and his friends spend a lot of their days in school. I often wonder what they do there all day "

Peanuts international appeal is confirmed with this postcard for it came from Germany with

one of this year's "World Heritage Sites of UNESCO". I think this set may be a joint issue with Japan because they both have Japanese writing on them and the other one of this set features a Japanese temple in Nara. The one I received features the town of Regensburg in Bavaria which "has unique Romanesque and Gothic buildings representing an authentic image of a single European trading city of the Middle Ages". The building that dominates this stamp is the Cathedral of St Peter surrounded by medieval buildings.

Thank you Klaus for this fun postcard.

Cobb & Co

2011-06-19T11:00:00.000+01:00

A horse and coach galloping across the outback issued in 1955 is a celebration of the company Cobb and Co, carrier of mail and gold in Australia for 75 years. Established in 1853 by four Americans who imported Concord coaches from their home country, the name comes from one of those founders, Freeman Cobb. Eventually the coaches were built in Australia, the company grew by travelling faster than their competitors. The horses were changed at every station, 30 kilometres apart, and could travel at 12 kilometres an hour. At its peak there were 30,000 horses travelling 45,000 kilometres a week.

One of the distinctive features of the Cobb coaches was when they operated after nightfall their lights formed a triangular shape of lamps at either side of the coach and a large central light, visible for many miles across the country. This must have looked an amazing sight as the lights travelled at speed in the dark. So much so that it inspired the poet Henry Lawson to write his evocative poem "The Lights of Cobb and Co" ('Through stringy bark and blue gum and box and pine we go -,// A hundred miles shall see tonight the lights of Cobb and Co")

Carrying of gold from the gold fields could mean that the drivers faced bushrangers wishing to relieve them of their cargo. This is how I know of Cobb and Co because as a child I watched the series of 'Whiplash' set in the Australian outback, and loosely based on the life of Freeman Cob who was played by Peter Graves (later to star in Mission Impossible), fighting the baddies with his whip. In real life Cobb returned to America to become a Massachusetts senator, later moving to South Africa to initiate a coaching system to serve the Kimberley diamond mines. In my mind of course he is still riding the outback, whip in hand, the mail must get through....

An entry for Sunday Stamps hosted by Viridian's Postcards

Marshside

2011-06-18T18:05:00.000+01:00

Postbox LA27 75 at Marshside, Kirkby in Furness

Take a walk down to Marshside post a card or two, then

sit and enjoy the sunshine.

The village of Kirkby in Furness is more like a collection of hamlets and Marshside is one of them. The name reflecting its location by the Duddon Estuary.

By the Seaside

2011-06-17T20:01:00.000+01:00

Central Pier Head, Morecambe

Opened on March 25th, 1869 the pavilion on this pier's nickname was the 'Taj Mahal of the North'. The Lancaster Guardian, in 1908, documents that

the "variety and excellence of the bill of fare' " to entertain the pier's patrons. From Rousby's electrical review entitled Paris and London – Le Entente Cordiale incorporating a version of the Eiffel Tower adorned with hundreds of coloured lights; to a 'charming and agreeable musical turn' by Coverdale and Huxley's Bijou Juveniles singing popular melodies. Then there was the high wire tumbling act The Three Lloyds. The Guardian reports that their tumbling 'is done with neatness and precision.' Burke, Andrus and Frisco brought 'spectacular absurdity' while comedian and clog dancer T.W. Royal and comedian Sam Shipley had the audience roaring with laughter. Last but not least, the newspaper reports that the 'pretty ballroom is filled nightly by the votaries of dancing.'

And as can be seen by the sign at the end of the pier of "dancing free", this was the place to be. Perhaps our sender saw the show for the card was sent on the 27 July 1908.

"Dear Sister, The weather is lovely send Annie and Fred by the next train. Your F.....? "

Perhaps our sender was watching this boat about to set sail while waiting for Annie and Fred

Going for a Sail. Morecambe

Take your choice whether to send this as a post card or printed matter, but take care, with one of those option only five words can be used. I have never sent a post card with so few words, but if that was all available what would the words be? If it was 1933 you could have written "come quickly, pavilion on fire" because that is when it was destroyed, people came from miles around to watch. The pier was later rebuilt and dancing was once again taking place at the end of the pier but at the end of the century it fell into disrepair and was demolished in 1992.

Beth at The Best Hearts Are Crunchy is the hostess of Postcard Friendship Friday.

Samos

2011-06-13T18:57:00.000+01:00

What says the Greek islands more than this card. The island of Samos lies just off the coast of Turkey. It is a mountainous but fertile island, the poet Byron immortalised it in 'The Isles of Greece' with "Fill high the cup of Samarian wine " Its other claim of fame is as the birthplace of Pythagoras, and the small town on the south coast of the island was renamed Pithagorio in 1955 to celebrate his birthplace. I don't know where this photo is but think it is the capital, and main port, of Vathi because it is also sometimes referred to as Samos.

Exercise

2011-06-12T00:11:00.003+01:00

Its Sunday Stamps time again. Se-tenant is our quest this week, the French translates as joined together, so perhaps we should all join together in a Sunday Stamps gymnastics. Are you ready?

Time to limber up with some gentle exercise

And swing those arms for a grand crescendo. And now........relax.

This is a set of stamps called "Gymnastics by Radio" issued in 1952. Radio gymnastics had been introduced in China the previous year to develop mass physical fitness so I suppose the stamps were issued to reinforced the message.

Students and faculty at a middle school in Shanghai do radio exercises in this photo of Dec 1, 1951.

The radio program was not kept up in later years due to social change in China, however times changed again as Beijing resumed the daily broadcasts in August 2010 in a fitness campaign for all. Tune in at 10 am or 2pm and throw some shapes. This middle school started to use the exercises in 2002:

I suppose we would call this aerobics today rather than gymnastics

An entry to Sunday Stamps hosted by Viridian Postcards here

Guadalajara

2011-06-08T20:25:00.000+01:00

Hidalgo Government Palace, Guadalajara

Painted by José Clements Orozco between 1936-1939 in the Government Palace, this portrait of Miguel Hidalgo, who initiated the independence of Mexico and in this same building abolished slavery in 1810.

Two influential people in one card, Hidalgo, who fought for Mexican freedom and, Orozo, one of the leaders of the Mexican Muralists. Orozo was a politically committed artist and his bold murals established the Mexican Mural Renaissance. His art can be seen in both Mexico and the USA. My sender, Ramón, says the Orozo is one of the greatest muralists in Mexico's history and he thinks this mural is amazing. I'm trying to imagine what it must look like full size, I've seen a photograph in its location and it looks huge.

The card came with

a postage label. which I am not keen on, prefering stamps, but I think it is interesting for two reasons. One, I like the pigeon logo by Gonzalo Tassier, first used in June 2009, which replaced the head of an eagle symbol of the Correos de Mexico. The computerised system in Mexico is called the "Sistema Integral de Operatión" (SIO), the history and a few pictures of post offices here.

The other reason is that as can be seen the label was affixed on 18 November 2010, then it must have nestled down into a postage bag until the postal weight exchange between Mexico and the UK took place when it was stamped with the date 24 March 2011 as it left Guadalajara. It plopped through my letter box having taken 222 days from when Ramón posted it, but worth the wait.

Thank you Ramón, an amazingly dramatic card.

Golden Mermaid

2011-06-06T16:06:00.000+01:00

A mermaid combing her long golden tresses while the full moon and sea birds and fish surround her. But what is the significance of the watch? In European legends, like fairies, mermaids have an uncertain temperament, and are known for enchanting humans. This card however, despite its appearance, comes from China where the legends are different, mermaids are more a force of nature, their tears can turn in priceless pearls.

My sender, Lìwén, has an unusual surname because it consists of two words whereas most surnames in China are only one word. I had not noticed that about Chinese surnames before. Like me she finds it interesting.

The card came with three stamps:

two of the beautiful Formosan Blue Magpie which is sometimes referred to as the "long tailed mountain lady", in contrast to the long tailed sea lady of the postcard. The Blue Magpies must look stunning perched in the trees. This stamp was issued in 2002 as was the other stamp

from the set of "Protecting the Common Homeland of Mankind", this one called "Air Conservation". Always good to breathe clean air and indeed Earth is our only homeland.

Thank you Lìwén for the pretty card and stamps

Forests

2011-06-05T11:36:00.000+01:00

Every year the member countries of PostEurop vote to choose the subject to appear on the Europa stamps. UNESCO declared 2011 to be the International Year of the Forest and the subject for this year's Europa stamp is themed to tie in. I have been squealing, ooh pretty stamps, as each one has appeared on the Europa Stamps blog here. Now that they have all been issued then there is a vote for the favourite on the Post Europ's site. The results to be announced later in the year.

Thanks to my Postcrossing friend, Eeva, I have the Finnish stamps. They are for second class postage and show Lake Mustalampi in the Nuuksio National Park through the four seasons. Designed by Klaus Welp his idea was that you could use the appropriate stamp for the season. I love how not only is each stamp a reflection they also reflect each other, the reverse number, class of postage and the Europa symbol on the Autumn/Winter one.

An entry to Viridian Postcard's Sunday Stamps, this week it is "anything you like".

Bardsea Box

2011-06-04T17:10:00.003+01:00

Postbox Number LA12 97

Postbox on Park View in the village of Bardsea. A scattering of houses, two pubs, a church and a post office sitting on a hill overlooking Morecambe Bay.

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Moravia

2011-05-30T22:36:00.000+01:00

My sender, Marcela, helpfully translated the name of this cathedral, St Wenceslas Cathedral. She also tells me that it is in the centre of the historic city of Olomouc where she studies.

This has been the site of a cathedral since 1131, the present façade was reconstructed from 1883-1892 in a Neo-Gothic style. The chapel at the side is dedicated to St Anna.

A You Tube video tells me the cathedral has 24 bells (15 for music, 8 for peal and 1 for mass. Here is its peal (or change ringing), reminds me of Sunday mornings.

The card came with

one of the two October 2010 Historic Stoves set. This is an art deco ceramic cover of the heating body in the Château Nove Mesto nal Metuji, Bohemia created by the sculptor and ceramicist Helena Johnova in 1939.

Thank you Marcela

Mahatma

2011-05-29T11:24:00.000+01:00

"I have nothing new to teach the world. Truth and non-violence are as old as the hills. All I have done is to try an experiment in both on as vast a scale as I could " Gandhi

The first British stamp to be designed by someone not from the UK, and the first to feature a foreign leader. Mohandas Karamchad Ghandi was born in 1869 and studied law in England and then South Africa. It was his experiences in South Africa that started his civil rights journey.

His creed of satyagraha, resistance through mass civil non-violence, helped India gain independence and inspired civil rights movements across the globe. To protest against British rule and policies in India ,such as the salt tax, he formed the Non-Cooperation Movement and the Quit India campaign to gain independence. He also campaigning for the rights of the poor and discrimination. "Poverty" he said "is but the worst form of violence". He lived a life of simplicity and high ideals.

The stamp designer, Biman Mullick, has said he wanted to reflect Gandhi's simple life so the stamp features just Gandhi in front of an Indian flag. Mullick explains his design on his website here. The stamp was not issued on Gandhi's birthday of 2nd October, which is a national holiday in India and designated International Day of Non-violence across the world, but on 15th August the day of Indian Independence. A stamp was going to be issued in India to celebrate the 1st Anniversary of independence in 1948 featuring Gandhi but three bullets to his chest ended his life, and so the stamp was turned into a mourning issue.

An entry for Sunday Stamps whose theme this week is people you are happy are honoured by stamps. Gandhi is commonly referred to as Mahatma (Great Soul), which probably says it all.

Visit our hostess Viridian's Postcards for more Sunday Stamps

Korean Carriage

2011-05-27T18:38:00.000+01:00

Sedan Chair, Seoul, Korea

This card captures beautifully a moment in time as the group of men walk towards the camera the breeze or their speed fluttering the overcoats. The overcoats are called durumagi a traditional garment worn not only against the cold but for ceremonial purposes.

The uses of the sedan chair (or gama) in Korea are summed up by Wikipeadia in a paragraph

"In Korea, royalty and aristocrats were carried in elaborately decorated litters called gama. Gamas were primarily used by royalty and government officials. There were six types of gama, each assigned to different government official rankings. In traditional weddings, the bride and groom are carried to the ceremony in separate gamas. Because of the difficulties posed by the mountainous terrain of the Korean peninsula and the lack of paved roads, gamas were preferred over wheeled vehicles".

I wonder who was in the sedan chair? This is not a Korean card because they wrote on the picture side of the card from 1900-07. Japan, France and other European countries produced cards in the 1900s based on existing cards. So our sender had possibly not been to Korea but sends

Christmas greetings and a wish for better weather on 23 December 1907 from the southern English seaside town of Weymouth.

A card for Postcard Friendship Friday hosted by Beth of The Best Hearts Are Crunchy.

Birthday Cheer

2011-05-23T18:21:00.000+01:00

My first Inge Löök card I have actually held in my hand, rather than look longingly on the web. I love these anarchist grannies, as Inge Löök says it is the small things that make a life worth living. She has produced many cards of their adventures as well as illustrations of flowers (her first occupation was a gardener). There is so much going on in this painting, of course our grannies are very old so there are lots of candles on the cake. I think a train line on a table is an idea with possibilities, those nibbles chugging towards you without having to move an inch.

My sender, Jaana, lives in a small village in eastern Finland by the Saimaa, the largest lake in Finland. I hope there are some women like these grannies there, laughing and enjoying life.

The card came with

one of the extra fee stamp for adding to the value of a previously purchased stamp, a great idea to make it a shape of a plus sign, this one featuring a birch bud. The other stamp is one of six of familiar buildings in Finland, celebrating the 200th anniversary in September of the government building operations. This particular building is the Government Palace, designed by Carl Ludwig Engel, which today holds the prime minister's office, the chancellor of justice and departments of the Ministry of Finance.

Thank you Jaana, a great and fun card.

Paper-Cuts

2011-05-22T11:16:00.000+01:00

For this week's Sunday Stamps theme of Folk Handicrafts here are two of a four set China stamps issued in 1959 called "Chinese Folk Paper-cuts". The first a rather cute camel and the other an actress. This art is called Jranzhi (剪纸) and can be achieved by scissors or knives from a single piece of paper. Traditionally these objects were hung in windows (no glass for many centuries) and over doors. They must have looked beautiful with the lamps lit inside shining through. The peak time to decorate with paper-cuts is New Year when various symbols are shown to bring good luck. The paper-cuts are also used for embroidery templates. Today these art works are also framed to decorate a home.

This theme reminded me that I had some Paper-Cuts which were from the city of Nantung, or Nantong as it is now know. (Each region of China has its own cultural style). When I took them out there was, helpfully, on one of the cover folds a description:

"The art of paper-cuts in Nantung goes back into history. Created and perfected by Chinese craftsmen through centuries of painstaking labour, this art has a peculiarly local style marked by a close knit composition, delicate workmanship, vivid images, clear-cut lines and sharp colours that give an effect of solidity and depth.
A wide range of subjects including people, flowers, birds, animals, landscapes and traditional patterns is represented. The works have broad popular appeal,"

The theme of these is musical instruments

To hold these delicate works of art is to marvel at the skill.

More folk handicraft can be seen at Sunday Stamps hosted by Viridian Postcard here

The Letter

2011-05-20T16:52:00.000+01:00

One of Tuck's "Oilette De Luxe" postcards of an illustration by Jennie Harbour. She was an artist working in the art deco period who illustrated childrens books and Tuck produced many cards featuring her work. Sadly little is know about her, but she has left behind her delightful illustrations.

This card is one of six in the 'Early Victorian' series. It is always exciting to receive a letter but I think this particular one is special, the envelope lies on the floor in the hurry to open and read. And the best friend is not going to miss out on the long awaited message. What is in the letter?

Postcard Friendship Friday is hosted by Beth at The Best Hearts Are Crunchy

Nebraska

2011-05-19T21:39:00.000+01:00

"Between 7th and 9th Streets from 'O' to 'R' Streets this old Farmers Market

includes over 30 restaurants, taverns and retail boutiques"

I guess this part of Nebraska had its share of English settlers judging from the name of Lincoln and the fact it is in Lancaster county. My farming ancestors lived near Lancaster (England) but they headed for Canada, I suppose they could have just as easily ended up in Nebraska.

My sender, Maria, says she likes this part of the city. The old factories are now apartments, stores and restaurants, which she says makes it a great place to 'people watch' in the warmer months. Doesn't that sound a great place to relax. New life for old buildings.

The card came with

one of the new Jazz stamps which I wrote about in the previous post, and by serendipity both these postcards were of the mid west. The old tourist slogan for Nebraska used to read "Where the West Begins"

The two flowers are from the new Herbs set, painted in full size by Teresa Fasolino for the stamps designed by Phil Jordan. The set's idea is to show the various uses for herbs, for fragrance, flavouring, medicine and decoration. I like how Fasolino shows the plants like a identity guide, the flower, leaves and seed. These two are the blue flax and the fragrant lavender.

Thank you Maria, hope the weather is warming up for those leisurely days.