Riding

See It On A Postcard's  Thursday Postcard Hunt is looking at Colourful Vehicles

Everybody Razzle Dazzle 2015 -  Design - Peter Blake

The 2015 Liverpool Biennial used the centenary of WW1 and its theme. One of the pieces of art was the transformation of the Mersey ferry Snowdrop.  It was pop artist Peter Blake's riff on the black and white dazzle painting of boats in WW1 intended to confuse the enemy. Although the Razzle Dazzle was only originally to last for two years it has become an attraction in itself. When I was last in Liverpool a couple of years ago she was still carrying its colours as passengers travelled across the Mersey from Pier Head to Seacombe and back. (Short video of the painting)

The more muted tones of of a London tram built in 1911 and modernised in 1938 in the Depot Yard of the National Tram Museum part of Critch Tramway village. As they say 'a grand day out' with tram rides, woodland walks and a historic pub. The Palm Toffee on the advert board was a break your teeth slab or bar of hard toffee with various flavours running through the middle, one of these being banana, the colour as vivid as the banner. They stopped making it in the 1970s.

Southern Railway 4-6-2 'City of Wells'

Still on the rails of a different kind the City of Wells built in 1945 and withdrawn from service in 1964 and rescued from the scrap yard by the  Keighley and Worth Valley Railway in 1971. Following restoration work it return to the rails in 1979 as seen here in West Yorkshire, or as they like to advertise it 'A Journey Through Bronte Country'.  Not all hyperbole as a package was dispatched from Keithley Station in 1847 to a publisher in London resulting in the publication that year of Jane Eyre.

Flags Ahoy

2021: Tall Ships Race

A sailing ship at the port of Mariehamn ready for the 2021 Tall Ships Race and a stamp issued for the event.  That was the plan. Covid had other ideas and restrictions at the time meant it had to be cancelled. Undaunted the Åland islanders pivoted to a substitute and created a Maritime Folk Festival with food, drinks and entertainment.  They would have to wait until 2024 to welcome the fleet of sail ships to Mariehamn, and gain another stamp.

1989: 10th Anniversary of Home Rule in Greenland

The Greenland flag flying over land and sea

1981: 125th Anniversary of  Danube Commission

For fans of stamp on stamps these feature the Danube commission stamps from 1967 with the paddle steamers Franz I (1830) and the Arpad (1834) sailing underneath.  The latter named after a Hungarian hero, head of the confederation of Magyar tribes

1981: Historic Hungarian Flags

The 40f stamp shows the House of Arpad flag(11th Century). 60f Hunyadi Family flag (15th Century) at the time they were the most powerful nobles in the Kingdom of Hungary.

1979: OCAM Summit Meeting, Cotonou

Changing continents and a group of nations - OCAM (Organization Commune Africaine et Malgache), Founded in 1961 it was disbanded in 1985. The stamp shows the members flags at the time

Docks

 See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt for - harbour and port views...

Sailing ship being towed by Edwin Beattie (1845-1917)

Preston Docks, painted in 1894 with a tug boat towing a three masted sailing ship into port. Preston Docks were located on the banks of the River Ribble 15 miles from the Irish Sea. It closed in 1981 and the whole area was redeveloped so little remains. Today there is a marina here and the heritage Ribble Steam Railway still uses the dockside tracks.

The port of Brest is very much still in business however in 1941 the Germans based their formidable fleet of ships and submarines here so it was almost entirely destroyed when liberated in  1944. Only photos remain of the past.  The Richelieu battleship shown was commissioned just days before the Germans won the Battle of France, it fled to French West Africa and would eventually be part of the force that liberated Singapore. You might think the yacht or schooner Notre-Dame d'Etel was from simpler times but despite being built in 1913 she ended up being a patrol boat for the Free French Naval Forces.

South Bay, Scarborough, North Yorkshire

Time to head to the peaceful harbour of the seaside town of Scarborough for a summer walk along the harbour walls or a laze on the beach.  It is a beautifully sunny day today but one would need to wrap up warm for these two activities especially on the North Sea coast.

Riverside

 The Thursday Postcard Hunt destination this week is the river and I travel to the banks

An Out of Doors Study by John Singer Sargent (1889)

and what pleasanter place could there be to take ones paints and canvas.  This is John Singer Sargent's lifelong friend Paul Helleu and his young wife Alice who Helleu had met when employed to paint her portrait and instantly fell in love. He painted her for the rest of his life.  The trio were staying in Fladbury Worcestershire in the summer of 1889 so this will be the River Avon.  I picked up this card at a fascinating 2015 National Portrait Gallery exhibition "Sargent: portraits of artists and friends" which spanned his time in London, Paris, Boston and New York as well as his travels in the Italian and English countryside.  I wonder if he ever took a trip on a riverboat

1989 PHQ Card "Traditional Mail Delivery" by Mark Hess

A card of one of the stamps that were issued when the 20th UPU Congress was held in Washington.  This is the US Mail Packet Chesapeak loaded with mail. Keep an eye on that cart for something larger would send the Chesapeak to her doom in 1887 when she sunk after a runaway wagon holed her hull.

The banks of The Rance

I have always thought it would be a fine thing to walk a river from source to sea, not a thought I have put into action!  The Rance would provide lots of interest, the Barage de la Rance has the oldest tidal power station in the world and this card shows all the beautiful places to visit on the journey.
 

Sail

 See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt for boats or ferries takes me to the days of sail...

The Norwegian Training Ship 'Christian Radich

It says on the back "one of the last square three-masted sailing ships still crossing the oceans".  That statement is still true since this card was sent from Philex France in 1982.  The stamp shows sailors setting the sail on the Christian Radich.

In more testing conditions here we have "Making the sail fast near Cape Horn swaying on the footrope". Photographed by Alan Villiers in 1929 who first went to sea aged 15, described as writer, adventurer photographer and mariner he said  "There is little man has made that approaches anything in nature, but a sailing ship does."

The 'Iquique' by Herbert Barnard John Everett

Another lover of the sea, John Everett,  his first sea journey was working his passage on the Inquique bound for Australia in 1898, a prolific artist of seascapes.

1983: Old Ships on the Faroe Run

 From sail to steam here is the steamship Laura used as a post boat between Denmark, the Faroes and Iceland

London, Midland and Scottish (LMS) Railway Poster

To the calmer waters of Morecambe Bay a steamer heads to the port of Heysham from Northern Island painted by Norman Wilkinson in 1932.  This is the 'other side' of the bay to me.

Ships

 

1927-1940: Ship (Design T Jensen Engraver F Britze)

With a fair wind we set sail

1947: Centenary of State Railways (Design F Holm Engraver H Cheffer)

Integrated transport with a rail ferry, I wonder how many of these are left certainly not this one.

1951: The Hospital Ship Jutlandia (Design V Bang Engraver B Jacobsen)

All at sea with the Hospital Ship 'Jutlandia' which was converted for service in the Korean war and served in the area for 3 years.

1941: Vitus Bering (Design V Bang Engraver J Britze)

A taste for adventure? Travel with Vitus Bering although choose your ship wisely if wanting to survive the experience

2016: Shackleton and the Endurance Expedition

 Shackleton and Endurance - one of the great survival stories and regarded as the last of the heroic expeditions of  the polar regions. Stranded in sea ice for 4 months until the ship was crushed they certainly needed endurance to survive the next 6 months but all 28 did

2013: Merchant Navy

And for Remembrance Sunday those who served on the Arctic Convoys in WW2 which sailed between the Arctic ice pack and German bases in Norway bringing supplies to Russia. Attacked by U Boats, aircraft and warships and especially dangerous in winter when the ice came further south. The stamps show - clearing the deck of ice on HMS George V and a Merchant Navy Convoy

Sunday Stamps theme this week is - Ships - sail with See It On A Postcard

Viking Voyage

 

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

 A Viking ship setting sail

1990: Viking Life (Design - Svenolov Ehren)

Out to Sea

2002: Viking Voyages of the Atlantic (Design - Martin Morck)

 

and navigating.  Our Viking is using a sunboard. In the middle of the day the ship's course was corrected by measuring the height of the sun. If the angle of the sun had got bigger the ship had traveled too far south, less and it was sailing too far north. Thank goodness for GPS.

Sunday Stamps theme this week is - At Sea - set sail at See It On A Postcard

Sailing Away

 

2020: Sailing Ships (Artist: Allan Palmer)

The 4 masted barque Viking was one of the last tall ships that participated in the Grain Race between Europe and Australia. How the wind is ripping into those sails. In 1909 with a full load of wheat she registered a record speed of 15.5 Knots (28.7km or 17.8mph). Today 10 four masted barques survive but only 5 still sail which is a miracle in itself. Viking was originally built for the Danish fleet but today is moored permanently in Gothenburg.

Here is Viking with all its impressive sails unfurled.

1983: Boats

Or you might prefer something more colourful from Vietnam

2015: Exhibition Card for the Swedish Svedala Stamp and Postcard Fair

A windy day. I wonder if those sails can cope?

 Sunday Stamps theme this week is - Sails - tack over to See It On A Postcard

 

Transportation

1994: 25th Aniversaary of Post Office Independence (Design - Alan Copp)

Today I am travelling but staying in one place - easy to do with mail, stamps and maps

 

1988: Europa: Transport and Communication (Design Chris Abbott)

The bicycle is a must on the island of Sark or even a horse and carriage for motor cars are not allowed on the island although two feet would be good too as the island is only 3 miles long..

1989: Great Western Railway and the Channel Islands (Design Charles Jaques)

These stamps were issued for the centenary of GWR's maritime service, initially between South Wales and Ireland and latterly a major operator to the Channel Islands from Weymouth.

Some lovely watercolours from Charles Jaques (1921-2008), a keen sailor.  Glad I'm not sailing on the passenger steamer St Julien (29p) in that sea swell. She had an interesting career crossing the channel for the first time in 1925 and in 1939 carried troops to St Nazaire, converted to a hospital ship and crossed the channel twice as part of the Dunkirk evacuation. Returned to hospital duties in northern waters until 1943, thereafter in the Mediterranean and finally was part of the fleet involved with the invasion of France.  

The 37p stamp shows the Weymouth Harbour tramway and a little tank engine. The Harbour Line ran through the streets of Weymouth but was last used for a British Railways timetabled train in 1987 and the last special train ran in 1999. The line was eventually dismantled in 2020-21 despite local opposition.

Sunday Stamps theme this week is - Transportation - travel to  See It On A Postcard

Sea Rescue

The 150th Anniversary of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) was celebrated on this FDC, although Guernsey had actually maintained an earlier lifeboat and station since 1803 at St Sampson which is a few miles from the hazardous Casquet Rocks, a major shipping hazard.  This lifeboat position was eventually taken over by the RNLI in 1861 and a new lifeboat, the John Locket arrived in 1875.

1978: 150th Anniversary of the RNLI

The stamps show how things have advanced over the years. The rowers on the 2½p stamp are in the 1874 'John Lockett', a gift of Mrs Lockett and her daughters of Liverpool.  Rowing in a storm must have been horrendous.  The next stamp is the last pulling/sailing lifeboat 'Arthur Lionel' which served the islands for 17 years from 1912.  This one was a gift of Sir Thomas Robbin of County Cork.  The first motorised vessel arrived in 1929 but the one shown on the 8p stamp is the1954 Barnett-type boat 'Euphrosyne Kendal', named after the women whose generous legacy enabled the craft to be purchased.  As a charity the RNLI are dependent on donations and as vessels increase in sophistication their cost goes up, the lifeboat shown on the 10p stamp cost £78,000 (today an all-weather lifeboat costs over £2 Million).  The 'RNLB Arun' was financed by gifts from Birds Eye Foods, Miss A M Johnson and four legacies. Launched in 1971 she arrived in Guernsey in 1972. It was the first prototype of the successful Arun class which the RNLI would use around the coasts of the UK and Ireland for over 30 years.

1977: Centenary of St John Ambulance (Design - P Slade and M Horder)

Also in the seas surrounding Guernsey is the marine equivalent of an emergency ambulance the 'Flying Christine II' (the present marine ambulance is Flying Christine III).

1987: New Size Definitive - Views

But relax no emergencies at the moment just a beautiful day on the water near Havelet Bay.

Sunday Stamps II theme this week is - Watercraft - sail away for more at See It On A Postcard.
  

Swan of Finland

Suomen Joutsen by Santeri Salokivi (1928)

In bright blue light the sailing boat Swan of Finland looks like a ship from mythology. Its representation is typical of the artist Santeri Salokivi (1886-1940) paintings which are infused with a dazzling light.  He always spent summer with his family in the Finnish archipelago on the islands of Åland and Pellinge (also a favourite place of Tove Jannson), He thought the light and shadows of his home country were at their best at that time of year.  Salokivi was born in Torku which is also the place where the Suomen Joutsen (Swan of Finland)

Aura River, Turku with the sailing ship Suomen Joutsen

spends its sailing retirement as a museum ship. Built in 1902 in Saint Nazaire it sailed with cereals, coal and nitrates, eventually being sold to Finland as a fleet training vessel and in 1991 handed to the city of Turku.

Gota Canal

1979: Göta Canal (Engraver - Czeslaw Slania)

Lets take a trip down Sweden's Göta Canal

in the Juno launched in 1874 and  still going strong - the 'world's oldest registered ship with overnight accommodation'.  Sail serenely through Sweden for 120 miles, take a leisurely view of the world while passing through the 58 locks.  The view on the stamp is of the Borenshult five flight lock and the boat coming down is the Wilhelm Tham another vintage ship built in 1912 and still carrying passengers on the canal.

I love canals with their winning combination of engineering, history and wildlife.  The top left stamp shows the old roller bridge at Hajstorp which was originally hand drawn, top right is the Lock guard and Ricksberg locks. If you enjoy messing around on boats then above is a sailing boat at Godhogen and a canoeist in the oldest lock (1813) on the canal, Forsvik lock.  The stamps are engraved by Czeslaw Slania from photographs and I think this photograph is a set up to show the scale of the lock gates for I have never seen canoeists use locks.  It is quicker to take the canoe out and walk up past the locks, not to mention sitting in a tiny canoe and having tons of water pouring down as the lock fills up but it does make a great picture.

If you have taken the 6 day cruise on the Juno stopping off at various points on the way then at the end it traverses Lake Vanern, the biggest lake in Western Europe.  The journey route can be seen here

The construction of the canal was started in 1810 with the Swedish admiral Count Baltzar von Platen commissioned to build this shortcut between Stockholm and Gothenburg.  (His grave is on the side of the Göta Canal in Motala, the postmark on the FDC).  He had the advice of one of my engineering heroes, Thomas Telford, the son of a Scottish shepherd, apprenticed as a stonemason who became one of the greatest engineers of the 19th Century.  The unsung heroes are of course the workers or navies who actually constructed these marvels but in the case of the Gota Canal this was 60,000 conscripted soldiers (16 regiments), a company of Russian deserters and a number of skilled civilian workers with some British foremen and craftsmen thrown into the mix.  The canal was completed in 1832.

Sunday Stamps II theme this week is - Commemorative - 150 years from the death of Baltzar von Platen who never saw the canal completed - 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