Blue Yonder

 See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt is enjoying spring and the colour Blue

Apollo 11 Launch - 16 July 1969

A perfect launch from Cape Kennedy to set foot on the moon

Decent of Soyuz TMA19M Decent Module, June 2016

A safe deployment of parachute and a decent to Earth after six months orbiting our planet on the International Space Station

Zennor Village with Church of St Sennara and the Tinners Arms

Back on terra firma on the tip of England in Cornwall. It is said if one wants to find a pub then look for a church tower. St Sennara is a Breton saint and shows the Celtic connection between Cornwall and Brittany.

.At the Postal Museum you can travel underground on Mail Rail, a postal railway which once traversed London through narrow tunnels (1927-2003),  today the experience is just for pleasure. The Postal Museum started life in the basement of  GPO Headquarters in 1969. It moved in 1998 to Mount Pleasant archives but this card brings us to the present day. A publicity/donation appeal card issued in 2016. The Museum and Mail Rail opened in its present building in 2017.

Majestic

 

1965: Birds

Its that time of year when ones mind turns to holidays. Perhaps a trip to Malaysia where the locals might point out a Murai Gajah (Asian Fairy Bluebird) on a tree.

 

1994: Malaysian Airlines inaugural flight cover

 Fly out of Malaysia to Buenos Aires to dance the tango under a moonlit Brazilian sky.  Where next? 

 

Travel back in time to the 1950s and the Hotel Majestic in Acapulco, Mexico

 

 

A sea view from their rooms

 

Definitive 1950s: Architecture and Archaeology 

 

Buy a Michoacan Mask as a memento although a lot of these dance masks look very scary.

 

 

Catch some sport at the Mexico City University Stadium. Built in 1952, at the time the largest stadium in Mexico. It is now called the Olympic Stadium after hosting the 1968 Summer Olympics

1969: Tourism

Enjoy visiting the Pyramids in the ancient city of Teotihuacan (place of the gods).  Not built by the Aztecs or Mayans but an ancient race, origins unknown.

  

Sunday Stamps A-Z for Mexico, Malaysia and Majestic - See It On A Postcard 

Purple

 See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt is looking for purple

1935: Silver Jubilee

One of the extensive George V Omnibus editions of a common design celebrating his Silver Jubilee.  Issued May 1935 in Great Britain and spanning across her 54 colonies and four dominions coming to a total of 249 stamps. Collectors of these sets enjoy finding printing errors and  varieties such as extra flag poles.

On the card the fish basket is deep purple as is the clothing on the arm upper left. The card is of Scots College in Rome a seminary for the priesthood for the dioceses of the Catholic Church in Scotland. There are 20 stained glass windows created by Giovanni D'Aloisio. The one shown is behind the altar although the postcard cuts off the whole scene which includes the fishing boat. The full version can be seen on the header of Scots college's Facebook page. On the right is the miraculous catch of fish, the disciples are called to become fishers of men. On the left it says Ecce Agnus Dei - Behold the Son of God. The photo on upper left is of the Theological Library

How Green

 See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt in Spring colours - Green

Le Chambre D'Écoute - The Listening Room - René Magritte (1958)

There are two versions of The Listening Room by René Magritte, the green apple remains the same but in different rooms. In the 1952 version the room has a wooden floor and a glass window with a white surround. As can be seen in 1958 the room is now grey brick with an arched open-air window.

 The Slow Martch Tree (Careya arborea), native to the Indian subcontinent and Indochina, also known as wild guava. The fruit is edible but the seeds are poisonous. Many parts of the tree are used in  herbal remedies.

Settle-Carlisle Line Card No 57

A veteran class 40 locomotive crossing Arten Gill viaduct in Dentdale. It will be green all the way on this line. 

Kosmos

 

1993: Birds

Karemkerem is the Swahili name for Bee-eater and this one lives in the upland regions of East Africa.  

1976: Space Flight

Christina Koch, Artemis II crew member said "The thing that changed for me looking back at Earth, was that I found myself not only noticing the beauty of Earth, but how much blackness there was around it and how it just made it even more special"

A Korean artist brought a little bit of colour into Outer Space.

Sunday Stamps A-Z for Kenya, Korea and keremkerem - See It On A Postcard 

Yellow

 See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt for a spring and one of the colours that mark its arrival, Yellow

Bamforth's 'Tempest Kiddy' Series No 472 (Illustrator Douglas Tempest)

"Here's a spot of Good Luck ... A Double Dose for You" 

 A card sent in 1934 from 'Grandma', who was visiting the seaside resort of Blackpool, to Alison in Cheshire.

"In the Car" - Roy Lichtenstein

Fast forward to 1963 and fast cars, a Hitchcock blond  in the driving seat and her squared jawed companion. This large Lichtenstein painting is based on the comic book series 'Girls Romances'. (The original story graphic revealed -  Tony Abruzzo panel with speech bubble.)

SVR Poster Series No 6 - Kidderminster (Artist - Alan Reade)

A world away is The Falling Sands Viaduct carrying the Severn Valley Railway over the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal whose bridge has the more parochial name of Bridge Number 16.

J for Jays

 

1961: Birds of Woods and Fields

A Jay for J. Walking in the woods its screeching sound may be heard before being lucky enough to see it.

1963: Audubon's Birds Of America (Plate 96)

The Columbia Jay with more exuberant tail feathers

1988: Wildlife Preservation Trust

Alas I have no more Jays and change colour to the bright yellow of Rodriguez Fody, a sparrow like weaver bird, endemic to the small island of Rodriguez, an island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean

1993: Summer Birds

 Another small bird, the Dartford Warbler, it struggles in harsh winters when numbers have crashed in England but in recent times global warming and mild winters have resulted in increasing numbers and range. Seen on the stamp in its preferred habitat of heaths and gorse bushes.

Sunday Stamps A-Z for Jay and Jersey - See It On A Postcard 

Petite Pink

 See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt is celebrating the colours of Spring starting with Pink

A Flower Fairy Alphabet by Cicely Mary Barker

The Mallow Fairy will have to wait a couple of months for Mallows to flower but once they do they will be everywhere and the fairy will have long months to fly amongst them. 

The story is that wherever and whenever a seed sprouts a Flower Fairy is born, as the plant grows, the fairy grows. 

Peruvian Lilly - New York Botanical Gardens

The Peruvian Lilly has been grown in many gardens away from its South American homeland

A pink eared bunny for Easter Week

Island Life

 

2014: 50 Years of Manx Radio

Weather forecasts on Manx radio and a rather topical stamp this weekend. Strong winds in the Irish Sea have  resulted in ferry crossings being cancelled. The fronts and troughs of low pressure near Iceland and high pressure in the Atlantic have produced weather very different to last year when we enjoyed unusually warm weather.  Ah how fickle is Spring.

1991: Manx Photography (Design - Colleen Corlett)

  The first recorded photograph in the Isle of Man (to be found in the Manx Museum) dates back to the 1850s

These are later. 17p photo by Marshall Wane (operating between 1865 and 1882) of local businessman and philanthropist  Henry Bloom Noble with his group of orphan boys. 21p taken at the beginning of the 20th Century of Douglas on a more benign day than my first stamp. It is by a well know name for postcard collectors, Fredrick Frith, who travelled the British Isles and took approximately a quarter of a million photographs.

26p is from the photographer Hilda Newby (1897-1969) know on the island as a Studio Photographer. 31p is of Cashtal yn Ard one of many landscapes taken by Christopher Killip in the 1970s. The English translation is Castle of the Heights, a megalithic chamber tomb.

The stamp designer of this set, Colleen Corlett, a keen photographer, provides the last photo of a not unfamiliar coastal sight, seagulls at a picnic table. I wonder what tasty morsels they have found?  A 1990 view of Peel where the descendants of those seagulls will probably be scavenging  in the same place in 2026 and looking forward to the coming tourist season.

Sunday Stamps A-Z for Isle of Man and Inclement weather - See It On A Postcard 

Small Animals

 See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt for Young Animals 

Something is mesmerising these three fluffy balls of mischief or maybe they just like having their photograph taken.

A Blustery Day in the Hundred Acre Wood . I think Piglet may not be able to keep his little feet on the ground but it will be a day of great adventure and mild peril for Pooh Bear and friends.

Hungarian Horses

 

1959: 24th World Fencing Championships, Budapest

The World Fencing championships does not feature horses but Hungarian hussars with their flamboyant uniforms had the reputation of being the most daring light cavalry in Europe so the romance of history rather than the actuality means that they make more than one appearance in this Fencing set. The stamp features a 19th Century cavalryman.

1960: Summer Olympic Games, Rome

A Greek horseman. Like the Romans the Greeks had chariot races but unlike the Romans they rode bareback and were very keen on horse racing. The race events always began with a formal procession into the hippodrome.

1973: Hungarian Medal Winners, Olympic Games, Munich

András Balczó won the Modern Pentathlon Gold Medal, the event includes show jumping on an unfamiliar horse. This accomplished  athlete was voted Hungarian Sportsman of the year three times.

1979: Animal Paintings

 "Child with Horse and Greyhounds" by Janos Vaszary (1867-1939). Although his artistic style altered over the years intimate portrayals of animals continued to appear in his paintings.

Sunday Stamps A-Z - H for Hungary, Horses and Hussars - hop over to See It On A Postcard

Dogs

 See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt is looking for Pets

Its springtime, blossom and flowers are blooming, and there is no need to wrap up in layers to

Cifford's Tower, York 1952-1953 by LS Lowry (1887-1976)

take a dog for a walk. Lowry usually has a dog somewhere in his urban paintings. This one is unusual in that he is away from his home base and they are not random dogs (and the occasional cat) walking through a crowd but feature dogs and their owners. Lowry's three paintings of York which were commissioned for £50 in 1952 are here.

Fidelity by Briton Riviere 1840-1920)

Originally titled Prisoners when shown at the Royal Academy in 1869 the painting depicts a young poacher and his loyal dog locked  in a prison cell and no doubt about to face some harsh punishment (the Victorian game laws were enforced with great severity). The painting was purchased by the industrialist and philanthropist Lord Leverhulme in 1903 who changed the name to 'Fidelity', shifting the focus from the crime to the comfort and love of a dog.

G is for Green

 

1994: Definitive

A Great Green Bush Cricket perched on a Gorse plant

1966: The Brothers Grimm Stories

A very green frog in  'The Princess and the Frog'. In the Grimm story she throws him against a wall rather than kiss him but the spell is still broken.

1994: Greetings Stamps

 Noggin and the Ice Dragon from the Sagas of Noggin the Nog series created by Oliver Postgate and Peter Fermin.  Our friendly green dragon is called <drum roll> Groliffe. 

Sunday Stamps A-Z for GB, Germany, Gorse, Grimm and Green - go to  See It On A Postcard 

Farm Life

 See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt is down on the farm with animals

Yew Tree Farm, Coniston, Lake District

A much photographed farm. On postcards but they usually feature cars by the house, however this is an older card so there are just some peaceful cows and quad-bikes. Yew Tree Farm, a 17th Century farm house and barn with spinning gallery.

Mossy Bottom Farm with Shaun the Sheep and Bitzer the sheepdog. In the 'Shaun the Sheep Movie' Shaun's flock and Bitzer are in the "Big City" trying to rescue the farmer who has amnesia. What could possibly go wrong!

 Not as much chaos will be caused with this flock of sheep in Allhallows Lane, Kendal in the early 1950s.

F is for Flowers

 

1999: Folk Art

Traditional Aland folk art on furniture usually features vibrant flowers. A wardrobe from 1785

and a chest from 1788

1990: Thinking of You

Land of the vibrant flower, Australia

1992: Guernsey Flowers

Guernsey with its mild maritime climate is perfect for growing flowers and famous for the Guernsey lily (Nerine sarniensis) featured on he cancel, sometimes referred to as a jewel lily

Sunday Stamps A-Z - Flowers and Folk Art - See It On A Postcard