Norwegian

 

1989: Norden - National Costumes (Design - Knut Løkke-Sørensen)

National Costumes of Norway - a woman's costume from Setesdal, in South Norway (known for its folk traditions) and a man's costume from Kautokeino (Sami/Laplander)

The Northern Lights. We are in a period of increased solar activity which is forecast to last until 2026 (I have managed to miss them all so far!) The Vikings believed the aurora was the light shining off the armour of the Valkyries who were  guiding fallen warriors to Valhalla, Odin's Hall. To the Sami they were a bad omen and thought to be the souls of the dead.

2014: Tourism - Oslo Viking Ship Museum (Design - Kristin Granli)

The Vikings, navigators nonpareil

Sunday Stamps A-Z for Norway, Northern Lights and National Costume - See It On A Postcard 

Indian Summer

 

1993: 300th Birth Anniversary John Harrison (chronometer; movement seen from the back)

It is the time of the year when autumn arrives but nature is giving us an Indian Summer here in the UK as compensation for the one that didn't live up to expectations

2001: The Weather

and the barometer is set to fair.

1994: Centenary of Picture Postcards

There are still queues at the ice cream van by the bay although a Punch and Judy show is a rare appearance anywhere today

1998: Europa - Notting Hill Carnival

The carnivals may be over for the year

2012: Great British Fashion

but we are still dancing

2000: Millennium - Tree and Leaf (Eden Project sunflower)

under the sun (while it is here).

Sunday Stamps theme - The Colour Yellow - brighten up your day at See It On A Postcard

Needlework

See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt is looking for creativity  in crafts, fabric art and textiles

Man's informal cap (Satin with embroidered pattern and silk tassels)

There was once an advertising slogan from the days when people always wore hats that said "If you want to get ahead get a hat" and this one worn today would certainly get you noticed. A postcard from an exhibition of 'Imperial Chinese Robes from the Imperial City' with objects loaned from the Palace Museum in Beijing.

Detail of costume for the Prince in L'Oiseau d'or worn by Nijinsky

Of course ballet is all about the bling and here the tunic worn by Nijinsky in 1910 when The Firebird was first performed in Paris (June 1910). Designed by Leon Bakst it is a short sleeved tunic of old gold silk, embroidered with ovals and silk circles, with jersey inner sleeves set with metal studs and a cream panel embroidered with flowers and rose ending in a drop pearl. Created in St Petersberg. When Baskst settled in Paris in 1910 he found his preferred costume maker Mme Muelle with whom he worked with on his productions for Diaghilev and Ida Rubinstein until his death in 1924. Bakst created vibrant stage sets so he would appreciate

Detail 'Trojan War' tapestry, Turnai, 1475-90 Wool and silk woven tapestry

one of the most spectacular examples of those Medieval tapestries which survive, The War of Troy was created in Tornai, a place that has experienced many wars and has been part of  France, Southern Netherlands and recently Belgium.  A huge tapestry, the postcard shows a detail of Queen Penthesilea and King Priam.

Shepherd and Shepherdess (1741) Lady Lever Art Gallery - Embroidered in silks and seed pearls

On a more domestic scale, and unlike the unknown makers of the Trojan war tapestry the card says this was "worked by Eliz. Tole" I'm guessing she wisely embroidered her name somewhere.

Traditonal Dress

 See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt this week is - Folk Costumes

and here are the many Ukrainian styles of traditional costumes across this vast country

Costumes; - Italy - Spain - Turkey - Germany

As can be gleaned from bottom right script this is a  plate from an old book but the postcard provides no further information on the back.  All these dresses are far too pretty to be wearing while working so

Plimoth Plantation "Breads, Pies and Tarts were all cooked in the communal oven"

 
something more practical for the 17th Century settler in America.  This postcard is from the living history museum in Massachusetts today called Plimoth Patuxet as it recreates both an indigenous Patuxet homestead and a 17th Century English village.  The Plimoth is of course an alternative spelling of  Plymouth from a time when spelling was a fluid and not a settled thing. The museum opens for this year's season on March 23rd until November. Judging from the snow on the postcard this could have been one of the last bakes of the year although maybe not for I read that it is not uncommon for it to snow as late as April in Massachusetts.

Practical Hats

 

1947-48: Allied Occupation Zones Definitive Issue

Always good to have a hat to have shade in the sun whether sowing,

planting a tree

or labouring. Today in construction and definitely underground one might be required

1968: Swiss Accident Insurance

to wear a hardhat for protection.

1965: 25th Anniversary of Women's Army Corps

This does not look like a very practical hat

1986: Paintings

and neither does this but it is beautifully whimsical. 'The Violet Hat' by Cuno Amiet

Sunday Stamps theme this week is hats, headgear or helmets - See It On A Postcard

Women of the World

 

2014: 15th Anniversary of the Birth of Alice Tegnér (Design Eva Wilsson; Engraver Lars Sjööblom)

Alice Tegnér was considered musical at an early age and took piano and organ lessons but her family could not afford to let her train as a musician so she trained as a teacher. When she married her lawyer husband, who she met while working as a governess, they moved to Djurshom where she became involved with the musical community. At home the songs she composed were sung by her children and then her children's playmates sang the same songs. This eventually led to them being published as  'Sing with us Mamma' and between 1892 and 1934 nine booklets were issued. Not only did she compose many children's songs still sung today in Sweden but classical and sacred music as well. In her busy life she also taught, played the organ and was a choir leader.

2005: Greta Garbo - Sweden/USA Joint Issue

Someone who needs no introduction - Greta Garbo, or her given name Greta Lovisa Gustafson.  The stamps are from a photograph taken by Clarence Sinclair Bull during filming of 'As You Desire Me' (1932).  The drawing is by Einar Nerman. Two famous names did the engraving Piotr Naszarkowski for the film photo and Lars Sjööblom, the drawing. I think it would what she would have demanded! The FDC shows a scene from 'The Temptress' (1926) with Antonio Moreno

1986: Costumes

The women of Mongolia.  Would you like to wear the pink or

black and gold?  No need to choose now, there seems to be an endless variety of traditional costumes in Mongolia.

Sunday Stamps theme this week - Women - See It On A Postcard

Flags

 

2001: Centenary of Royal Navy Submarine Service. Flags and Ensigns

 

The Jolly Roger flag first flown by British  submarines in WW1 with a FDC photo of ship's figureheads from an earlier age on the high seas when no doubt a pirate flag was raised for a different endeavor.

1977-1984: Definitive - Folk Customs

Better sticking to dry land at Zurich's April Spring Festival - Sechselauten, The rider's flag flying at a gallop, in the background is the Böögg, a snowman on top of a bonfire whose head is filled with fireworks. It is said that the faster his head explodes the finer the summer will be.

1990: Latin-American History (5th Series)

From folk festivals to folk costumes of Latin America and one to test my patchy flag knowledge, but happily the stamps tell all - Nicaragua, Ecuador, Costa Rica and Paraguay.

Sunday Stamps theme this week is - Flags - flying at See It On A Postcard.

Hirsute

 

1930: Emir Abdullah bin A-Hussain

I suppose the Middle East is beard central so here is is King Abdullah, founder of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and mentor to his grandson, the late King Hussein.

1982: Maritime Heritage

Kings are a rich resource for all kinds of beards so here is someone you wouldn't want to marry if wanting a long life, Henry VIII.

1967: French Art

Not a dissimilar beard vibe going on here with Francis I, a great patron of the arts. Not only can one see this portrait by Jean Clouet in the Louvre but also one of the King's purchases which was brought to France by Leonardo da Vinci always attracts the crowds.

2011: History of the Russian Cossacks

The cossack army of Amur has arrived, I always think of them with mustaches but this one has a full beard.

1992: 100th Anniversary of Death of Werner von Siemens

At last I found a mustache, I was hoping for Frederich Nietzsche and his luxuriant mustache in my German stamps but instead of a philosopher I found the electrical engineer, inventor and industrialist,Werner Siemens 

Sunday Stamps theme this week is - Mustaches and Beards - its hairy at See It On A Postcard

German Life

 

1995: Stamp Day

Riding in with lots of lovely post this speeding postwoman is stood up and, in cycling parlance, 'dancing on the pedals'.  I love these German issues of a stamp block and a fancy cancel

1993: Humanitarian Relief Fund - National Costumes

so here is another one.  The couple are from Ruegen, Germany's largest island on the Baltic Sea. I happened upon a Folk Costume and Embroidery blog which means I can narrow this down to where on on the island it is worn which is a peninsula called Moenchgut on the south east of the island, an area of fisherfolk and marine activity although today there is also a lot of tourism. 

Sunday Stamps theme this week is - 'Your Choice' - choose See It On A Postcard 

Fashion

2012: Great British Fashion

Tommy Nutter was at the heart of the swinging sixties, here is the suit he made for Ringo Star. Fun fact one of the backers for his shop in Saville Row was the singer Cilla Black. The other stamp shows an outfit created by Norman Hartnell in the 1950s. He was the Queens favourite designer and made both her ornate wedding and coronation dresses.

2013: Jane Austin

Going back in time and some Regency fashion which I always think is the prettiest of old time dress, this familiar style was popular from 1805 to 1820

1978: Paintings by Spanish Painters

although the charming portrait by Diego Velasquez of his daughter Francisca (b1619) playing the clavichord shows there is nothing new in fashion.

1978: Paintings -  Int Stamp Exhibiting Countries

Observing Thomas Gainsborough's paintings one can't help but notice, he liked a hat. Here is the actress Sarah Siddon painted in the winter of 1784/5 when she was playing what is considered one of her greatest roles - Lady Macbeth.  This painting can be seen in London's National Gallery but she was painted by many of the leading portrait painters of the day so other galleries are available.  Indeed one could have a Mrs Siddon day out in the city for she also has two statues, one at Paddington Green near the church of St Mary, where she is buried, and one in Westminster Abbey.

Sunday Stamps theme this week is - Fashion - find more at  See It On A Postcard

Flag Waving

1983: Nordic House, Tórshavn (Design - B Jákupsson)

Nordic flags flying over national costumes.  Thanks to the Wikipedia page showcasing the artist Bárður Jákupsson's stamps I can identify the costumes from left to right as - Greenland, Sweden, Iceland; Saami, Denmark, Aland; Norway, Faroe Islands and Finland.  In the year the stamps were issued, 1983, the Nordic House initiative (promoting Nordic culture), opened in Tórshavn this fascinating building which used materials from all the Nordic countries in its construction can be seen here.  

A grey day in Greenland but their flag certainly brightens up the roof tops and it is the only national flag of the Nordic countries without a Nordic cross but uses the same colour combination as the Danish flag which is often flown by its side.

1989: 10th Anniversary of Home Rule in Greenland (Design - Claus Achton Friis)

The creator of the Greenland flag said the white stripe represents the Greenland glaciers and ice cap, the red stripe the ocean and the semicircle the sun setting into the sea.  Lets set sail

1979: The Voyage of Odin's Raven

with Manx and Norwegian flag flying on a replica Viking longboat called Odin's Raven which sailed from Norway to the Isle of Man in May 1979. The voyage was not uneventful and included a capsize off the coast of the Isle of Skye. The crew consisted of 11 people from the Isle of Man and 5 from Norway and I imagine they would have gained a great respect for those early Viking voyagers who even made it to Newfoundland but not

1981: Australia Day

as far as Australia.  I'm guessing the stamp's running cancel is connected to the then forthcoming Commonwealth Games in Brisbane in 1982. Time to run up to the top of a hill

1966: Scouting

to semaphore a message.

1959: International Letter Writing Week (Design - Adam Cziglenyi)

but I know that this would be the preferred means of communication for our little community.

Sunday Stamps II prompt this week is the letter F - here for Flags and Faroe Islands - for more fly over to See It On A Postcard


 

Provincial Poland

1960: Provincial Costumes (Design - Cz Kaczmarczyk Engravers - M R Polak and J Miller)

This was Poland's second series on Provincial Costumes, which would continue to be a popular subject over the following years. I think these stamps possibly mark the end of a particular graphic style.  I wonder if the ornate borders are the embroidery of the region or perhaps they are the folk designs that appear painted and engraved on the Polish wooden buildings.  The whole set was drawn by Czeslaw Kaczmarczyk  but I have not been able to find anything about him.

Design: Cz Kaczmarczyk - Engravers - Stef Ľukaszewski and J Miller

The intricate decorative design needed many engravers of which J Miller appeared to be the busiest.  The engraver are also a mystery to me, I wonder where they lived in Poland, perhaps in the provinces the stamps show.

Design - Cz Kaczmarczyk; Engravers - B Brandtse and E Konecki

Design - Cz Kaczmarczyk; Engravers -  Stef Ľukaszewski and B Szymanska

Design - Cz Kaczmarczyk; Engravers - E Tirdiszek and J Miller

From historical costume to that of the moment

1967: Famous Paintings

in this case the 18th Century. The painting by Antoine Watteau is owned by the National Museum in Warsaw and called The Polish Woman.  Perhaps if she walks down the hill into the meadows

1967: Flowers of the Meadow (Design - M Chaluk)

she might gather a posy of wild flowers.

Polish Paper Cut Outs

Sunday Stamps II prompt this week is the Letter P - for Poland, provincial, painting and posy - See It On A Postcard