Its cherry blossom time even for postage stamps as this Japanese definitive shows its time to go cherry blossom watching and perhaps you might see
a trio of Manchurian (red crowned) cranes fly leisurely overhead, symbols of luck, longevity and fidelity. They nest in wetlands and rivers and in wintertime on the coastal and freshwater marshes of Japan, China and the Korean peninsula. The Chinese and Japanese have many legends about them including that they live 1,000 years. Its a pity they don't for they are a threatened species due to habitat loss.
 |
| Gabon stamp of 1933 overprinted French Equatorial Africa 1936 |
Moving to a different continent here is the River Ogowe, the principal river of Gabon with a length of 750 miles, only a third of which is navigable and this part is used to ship goods, including lumber as log rafts down to coastal towns. Aren't there a lot of different shades of pink; although the catalogue describes this one as rose. I have no roses to show but do have some
 |
| 1980: Lotus Paintings by Yu Zhizhen |
lotus whose colours have symbolic meanings in Hinduism and Buddhism, the pink lotus is considered the supreme lotus but how could I break up this set which show on the top row - the White lotus and the Rose-tipped snow lotus; bottom row - Buddha's Seat and Variable Charming Face
The miniature sheet of the set is called "New Lotus on Rippling Water". The lotus slowly rises in a pond over three days and then blooms on the surface. All the stamps feature the paintings of Yu Zhizhen (1915-95), she specialised in painting birds, flowers and insects.
