CUBA

CUBA.

Tourism.
Soroa Waterfall.
Last stamp in a set of 4, issued on 10.02.1966.
Face value: 13 cents of Cuban peso.
Printeing: Offset lithography.
Print: 475,000 copies.
Size: 33 x 44 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 1139.
- Scott No. 1076.
- StampWorld No. 1142.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1329.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 961.

Soroa Waterfall (in Spanish, Salto de Soroa), also known as Salto del Arcoiris (Rainbow Fall), is located in the Sierra del Rosario (established Biosphere Reseve by UNESCO and IUCN Managed Resource Protected Area on February 15, 1984), in the province of Artemisa, about 90 km (56 mi) from Havana. Its height is 22 m (72 ft). At the foot of the waterfall there is a pool suitable for swimming. 

KIRIBATI

KIRIBATI.

Islands of Kiribati.
Map pf Teraina Island.
First stamp in a set of 4, issued on 14.02.1984.
Face value: 12 cents of Kiribati dollar.
Printing: Offset lithography.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 435.
- Scott No. 436.
- StampWorld No. 114.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 215.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 114.

Republic of Kiribati (in Gilbertese, Ribaberiki Kiribati) is an independent island nation in the central Pacific Ocean. It comprises 32 atolls and one raised coral island, Banaba. Its total land area is 811 km² (313 sq mi) and the islands are dispersed over 3.5 million km² (1.4 million sq mi) on both sides of the equator. The permanent population is over 119,000 (2020). Kiribati gained its independence from the United Kingdom on July 12, 1979. The capital, South Tarawa, is the most populated area in the country and consists of several islets, connected by a long road. Kiribati is a member of the Pacific Community, the Commonwealth of Nations, the IMF and the World Bank, the Pacific Islands Forum, the Alliance of Small Island States, and a full member of the United Nations since 1999. Before its independence it was called the Gilbert Islands, in honor of Thomas Gilbert, who sighted some of the islands in 1788.

Teraina (or Teeraina, also known as Washington Island) is a coral atoll, part of the Line Islands, in Kiribati. Obsolete names of Teraina are New Marquesas, Prospect Island, and New York Island. Measuring about 5.4 by 2.1 km (3.4 by 1.3 mi), it has a land area of 9.55 km² (3.69 sq mi) and its circumference is about 15 km (9 mi). Teraina differs from other atolls in that it has a large freshwater lake (Washington Lake). There are about 1,712 inhabitants (2015), and its largest settlement is Tangkore.

SOVIET UNION

SOVIET UNION / СОЮЗ СОВЕТСКИХ СОЦИАЛИСТИЧЕСКИХ РЕСПУБЛИК.

Soviet Expedition to Mount Everest.
Minisheet issued on 20.12.1982.
Face value: 50 Soviet kopek.
Design: Yury Levinovsky (b. 1933).
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 800,000 copies.
Size: 67 x 84 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. BL160.
- Scott No. 5106.
- StampWorld No. 5034.
- Stanley Gibbons No. MS 5291.
- Yvert et Tellier No. BF 159.
- Zagorski No. BL163.

The first unofficially known Soviet expedition to the Himalayas consisted of six mountaineers, who unsuccessfully attempted to climb Mount Everest from Tibet in October 1952: all of them died in the attempt, which was hidden from view public opinion and even assured that such an expedition had not been carried out.

The expedition commemorating the stamp, in 1982, led by Evgeni Tamm (1926-2008), was successful: on May 4, eleven Soviet climbers reached the summit of Everest by a new route on the southwest face that was recognized as the most technically difficult to date.

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Thanks to Kazimierz R. Leszczyński for his contribution (http://leszkarozdub.blogspot.com).

NORWAY

NORWAY / NORGE - NOREG.

International Geophysical Year, 1957-1958.
Jan Mayen Island.
First stamp in a set of 3, issued on 01.07.1957.
Face value: 25 Norwegian øre.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 4,020,0000 copies.
Size: 40 x 24 mm.     

Catalogs
- AFA No. 425.
- Michel No. 411.
- Norgeskatalogen No. 448.
- Scott No. 355.
- StampWorld No. 427.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 467.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 376.

On December 1, 1959, the twelve countries that had carried out scientific activities in and around Antarctica during the 1957-1958 International Geophysical Year signed the Antarctic Treaty in Washington. The Treaty entered into force on June 23, 1961, and has been accepted by many other nations. The Treaty recognizes, among other things, the interest of all humankind that Antarctica continue to be used exclusively for peaceful purposes and shall not become the scene or object of international discord. The signatory countries were: Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Chile, France, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Jan Mayen is a Norwegian volcanic island in the Arctic Ocean, with no permanent population. It is 55 km (34 mi) long (southwest-northeast) and 373 km² (144 sq mi) in area, partly covered by glaciers around the Beerenberg volcano, 2,277 m (7,470 ft ) high. It has two parts: larger northeast Nord-Jan and smaller Sør-Jan, linked by a 2.5 km (1.6 mi) wide isthmus. It lies 600 km (370 mi) northeast of Iceland, 495 km (305 mi) east of central Greenland and 1,000 km (620 mi) west of the North Cape, Norway. The only inhabitants on the island are personnel working for the Norwegian Armed Forces and the Norwegian Meteorological Institute. From 1615 to 1638, Jan Mayen was used as a Dutch whaling base. During the International Polar Year 1882-1883, the Austro-Hungarian North-Pole Expedition stayed for a year at Jan Mayen and carried out an extensive mapping of the area, being their maps of such quality that were used until the 1950s. A regulation dating from 2010 makes the island a nature reserve l under Norwegian jurisdiction.

CANAL ZONE

CANAL ZONE.

Definitive stamps.
View of Panama Canal and railway.
Stamp issued on 25.06.1929.
Face value: 5 cents of US dollar.
Pinting: Recess.
Size: 40 x 25 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 72A.
- Scott No. 107.
- StampWorld No. 72.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 109.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 79.

The first proposal for a canal across the Isthmus of Panama to join the Atlantic and Pacific oceans was made in 1529, shortly after the Spanish conquest, by Álvaro de Saavedra Cerón, a lieutenant of Vasco Núñez de Balboa, but it took more than three centuries to come true. The concession to build the canal was granted by the then government of Colombia to a French company in 1878 for a period of 99 years. In November 1903, after the independence of the Republic of Panama, the United States negotiated with the provisional Panamanian government the cession of an area of 20 mi wide (32 km) on the isthmus where the canal was built, called Canal Zone (Zona del Canal), which was formally ceded on May 4, 1904 in exchange for an annual financial compensation; however, over time the area became a political and strategic enclave of the United States, until it was reintegrated to Panama through the Torrijos-Carter Treaties on October 1, 1979. The United States issued stamps for the Canal Zone from June 1904 to October 1978.

Construction of the 82 km (51 mi) long canal was completed in 1913, and the seaway was officially inaugurated on August 15, 1914. The works had begun, with great difficulty, in 1881 under the direction of Ferdinand de Lesseps, but were interrupted by economic problems in 1888, and were not resumed until 1904. 

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Thanks to Dragan Buškulić for his contribution (https://worldofstamp2.wordpress.com/).

REPUBLIC OF CONGO

(POPULAR) REPUBLIC OF CONGO / RÉPUBLIQUE (POPULAIRE) DU CONGO.

Five-year plan, 1982-1986.
Simplified map of Congo and telecommunication drawings.
Second stamp in a set of 4, issued on 19.06.1982.
Face value: 100 CFA francs.
Design: B. Longlet.
Printed by Cartor Security Printing, Meauncé (France).
Printing: Offset lithography.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 871.
- Scott No. 643.
- StampWorld No. 872.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 862.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 674.

In 1982, the government of the People's Republic of the Congo established a Five-year economic and social development plan (Plan quinquennal de développement économique et social de la République populaire du Congo, 1982-1986) in order to bring more prosperity to the country through modernization measures.

ESTONIA

ESTONIA / EESTI.

Estonian lighthouses.
Upper lighthouse of Sõru, in Hiiumaa Island.
Stamp issued on 17.10.2014.
Face value: 0.55 euro.
Design: Roman Matkiewicz (b. Tallinn, 27.02.1966).
Printing: Offset lithography.
Print: 100,000 copies.
Size: 27.5 x 33 mm.

Catalogs
- AFA No. 838.
- Michel No. 808.
- Scott No. 771.
- StampWorld No. 845.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 753.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 745.

On the outskirts of the town of Sõru, located on the southwestern coast of the island of Hiiumaa, there are two lighthouses: the upper and the lower, separated by a distance of 500 m (1,640 ft). The upper one (in Estonian, Sõru ülemine tuletorn) is the one represented on the stamp: it is made of white and red reinforced concrete and has a height from the sea of 19.2 m (630 ft). It was built in 1934, was shot and damaged in 1941, during the Second World War, and was repaired in 1942. Both lighthouses are in a strategic location, at the western entrance to the Soela Strait (in Estonian, Soela väin), about 6 km (3.73 mi) wide, which separates the islands of Hiiumaa and Saaremaa. 

FAROE ISLANDS

FAROE ISLANDS / FØROYAR.

Fagradalsvatn and Halsvatn Lakes, in the Hestur Island.
Fouth stamp in a set of 5, issued on 07.09.1987.
Face value: 470 Faroese oyra.
Design: Ole Wich (b. 1953).
Engraving by Czesław Słania (1921-2005).
Printing: Offset lithography and recess.
Print: 437,000 copies.

Catalogs
- AFA No. 151.
- Michel No. 157.
- Scott No. 164.
- StampWorld No. 151.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 152.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 151.

Hestur (in Danish, Hestø) is one of the 18 islands that make up the Faroe archipelago, in the North Atlantic. Its area is 6.1 km² (2.4 sq mi) and its maximum elevation is in the Eggjarrók and Múlin mountains, both of 421 m (1,381 ft). The oldest Viking settlement, from the High Middle Ages, was Hælur, at the southern tip of the island. The school in the town of Hestur, on the east coast, was built in 1890 and the church in 1910; in 1913, the Bygdin pier was also established in its vicinity. Since January 1, 2005, the entire island is part of the municipality of Tórshavn, the largest in the archipelago. The total stable population of the island is about 40 inhabitants. On the west coast is a guillemot colony. In the north there is moorland with four small lakes, of which Fagradalsvatn is the largest.

SOUTH MOLUCCAS

SOUTH MOLUCCAS / MALUKU SELATAN - ZUID-MOLUKKEN.

Stamps issued abroad by the self-proclaimed South Molican government.
Fifth Anniversary of Pacific Liberation.
Map of Indonesian islands and General Douglas MacArthur.
Seventh stamp in a set of 9, issued in 1955.
Face value: 1 rupee.
Printed by the Österreichische Staatsdruckerei, Wien (1955).

Catalogs
- Dai Nippon No. 106-07.
- StampWorld No. 24.

The Republic of the South Moluccas (Republik Maluku Selatan) is an unrecognized secessionist republic in the archipelago of the South Moluccas, in present-day Indonesia, which claims the islands of Ambon, Buru, and Seram. When Indonesia gained independence in December 1949 through a treaty with the Netherlands, the rebels in the Southern Moluccas remained loyal to the Dutch Crown and, after a failed attempt to stay out of the new republic, unilaterally declared the Republic of South Moluccas in April 25, 1950. The self-proclaimed government settled in Seram, where the armed struggle continued until December 1963. In 1966 a government in exile was established in the Netherlands. Meanwhile, however, the Republic of the Southern Moluccas issued stamps (which were never circulated) financed from New York by the merchant Henry Stolow, who was behind the issuance of numerous stamps of doubtful validity. These emissions, considered cindarellas, are not usually included in catalogs.

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Thanks to Dragan Buškulić for his contribution (https://worldofstamp2.wordpress.com/).

CANADA

CANADA.

Banff National Park.
Stamp issued on 21.06.1985.
Face value: 2 Canadian dollars.
Design: George Weber (1907-2002, from a painting) and William Tibbles.
Printing: Offset lithography and recess.
Engraved and printed by Canadian Bank Note Company, Ottawa.
Print: 26,650,000 copies.
Size: 48 x 30 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 949.
- Scott No. 936.
- StampWorld No. 949.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 885.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 918.

Banff National Park, established in 1885, is the oldest in Canada. It is located in the Rocky Mountains, on the border of Alberta and British Columbia, 180 km (80 miles) west of Calgary, and is part of the natural complex called Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks, which was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1984. It covers 6641 km² (2564 sq mi) of mountainous terrain, with numerous glaciers and ice fields, dense coniferous forests and alpine landscapes. Following the admission of British Columbia to Canada, on July 20, 1871, in 1881 the construction of a transcontinental railroad began as the route through the Canadian Rockies. After the establishment of the natural park, between 1890 and 1920 the Assiniboine Indians were expelled from the area, accused of depletion of wildlife by hunting for their livelihood. Among the attractions of the park are Lake Louise, Moraine Lake (seen in the foreground, on the stamp) and Peyto Lake, and mountains such as Castle Mountain, Mount Louis and Mount Rundle, as well as several glaciers, which lost much of their mass during the 20th century. It is one of the most visited national parks in North America (almost 4 million people in 2004-2005, many of them for winter sports).

ISRAEL

ISRAEL / יִשְׂרָאֵל‎ - إِسْرَائِيل

Nature reserve.
Nahal Baraq Canyon, Negev.
Third stamp in a set of 5, issued on 21.01.1970.
Face value: 0.05 Israeli lira.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 1,957,000 copies.
Size: 26 x 40.5 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 458.
- Scott No. 404.
- StampWorld No. 457.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 434.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 396.

Nahal Baraq Canyon (in Hebrew, נחל ברק), also known as Baraq river, is formed by a dry stream bed in the Arava desert, in Israel's South District. During the rainy season, the waterway fills with water and uneven terrain creates rapids and waterfalls, the highest of which reaches 20 meters (it is called the White Canyon, in Hebrew, הקניון הלבן). It empties into the Nahal HaArava (נחל הערבה), which in turn flows northward into the southernmost end of the Dead Sea. The stream itself is 18 km (11.2 mi) long.

CASTELLORIZO

CASTELLORIZO / CASTELROSSO / ΜΕΓΊΣΤΗ (Italian occupation).

2nd anniversary of the Italian occupation.
Map os the island and Italian flag.
Second stamp in a set of 5, issued in 03.1923.
Facial value: 10 cents of Italian lira.
Printing: Typography.
Print: 100,000 copies.
Size: 40 x 24 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 11.
- Sassone No. 11.
- Scott No. 61.
- StampWorld No. 11.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 11.
- Unificato No. 11.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 11.

Castellorizo or Kastellorizo (in Greek, Καστελλόριζο, officially Μεγίστη; in Italian, Castelrosso; in Turkish, Meis or Kızılhisar), with the smaller islands of Ro (Ρω) and Strongyli (Στρογγυλή), is a Greek island and municipality of Dodecanese, in the Eastern Mediterranean, 2 km (1 mi) off the south coast of Turkey, about 125 km (72 nautical miles) east of Rhodes Island. Disputed and occupied throughout history by Greeks, Byzantines, Turks, Egyptians, Aragonese, Venetians, French, Italians and British, in 1920 the Treaty of Sèvres assigned the island to Italy, which occupied it from 1921 until September 10, 1943, when the Italian troops capitulated and the island was in the hands of British, who evacuated the entire population (about 1,000 people) to Gaza. On March 7, 1948, by the Paris Peace Treaties signed in February 1947, the island was definitively under the administration of Greece, together with all the Dodecanese islands, and was assigned to the peripheral unit of Rhodes. According to the 2011 census, the island's population was 492 inhabitants.

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Thanks to Vairo Gregori for his contribution (https://ternifil.org/). 

UNITED KINGDOM

UNITED KINGDOM.

Centenary of the Greenwich Meridian, 1884-1984.
The Greenwich meridian on a Navigational Chart of English Channel.
Second stamp in the set of 4, issued on 26.06.1984.
Face value: 20.5 British pence.
Design: Sedley Place.
Printed by the House of Questa.
Printing; Offset lithography.
Print: 7,065,100 copies.

Catalogues
- AFA No. 1098.
- Michel No. 994.
- Scott No. 1059.
- StampWorld No. 975.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1255.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1132.

The prime meridian (known as Greenwich Meridian) is a geographic reference line that passes through the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, London. It was established by George Airy in 1851, and by 1884, more than two-thirds of all ships used it as a reference meridian on their charts and maps. In October of that year, 41 delegates from 25 nations gathered in Washington for the International Meridian Conference, which selected the meridian passing through Greenwich as the official prime meridian. However, France abstained from voting, and French maps continued to use the Paris meridian until they officially adopted the Greenwich meridian on March 10, 1911.

AUSTRALIA

AUSTRALIA.

Navigators.
Abel Janszoon Tasman (1603-1659) and ship "Heemskerk".
First stamp in a set of 6, issued on 09.10.1963.
Face value: 4 Australian shilling.
Design: Walter Jardine (1884-1970).
Printing: Recess.
Print: 5,199,052 copies.
Size: 38 x 24 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 331.
- Scott No. 374.
- Seven Seas Stamps No. 386.
- StampWorld No. 330.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 355.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 299.

Abel Janszoon Tasman (Lutjegast, province of Groningen, 1603 - Batavia, present-day Djakarta, October 10, 1659) was a Dutch sailor, explorer and merchant, famous for the voyages made between 1642 and 1644 in the service of the Dutch East India Company (Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie, VOC). His was the first known European expedition to reach the present-day island of Tasmania at the end of 1642, to which he gave the name of Van Diemen's Land (honor of Anthony van Diemen, governor general of the Dutch East India Company who promoted the expedition), and to New Zealand, and who sighted the Fiji Islands in 1643. Tasman, his pilot, Visscher, and his purser, Gilsemans, charted important parts of the coasts of Australia, New Zealand, and several of the Pacific islands.

UNITED STATES

UNITED STATES.

National Parks.
Mount Rainier National Park.
Third stamp in a set of 4, issued on 03.08.1934.
Face value: 3 cents of US dollar.
Printing: Recess.
Print: 95,000,000 copies.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 366.
- Scott No. 742.
- StampWorld No. 583.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 741.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 330A.

Mount Rainier National Park is located in southeast Pierce County and northeast Lewis County, in Washington state. The park was established on March 2, 1899 and was designated a National Historic Landmark on February 18, 1997. It has an area of 956.6 km² (369.3 sq mi) including all of Mount Rainier, a 4,392 m (14,411 ft) high stratovolcano: it is the highest point of the Cascade Range and is surrounded by valleys, waterfalls, subalpine meadows and a large expanse of ancient forest. More than 25 glaciers descend on its flanks, the largest of which are the Carbon Glacier and the Emmons Glacier.

FRANCE

FRANCE.

Brenne Regional Natural Park (Parc naturel régional de la Brenne).
Stamp issued on 25.08.1989.
Face value: 4 French francs.
Design and engraving: Jacques Jubert (b. 1940).
Printing: Recess.
Print: 4,666,010 copies.
Size: 80 x 26 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 2734.
- Scott No. 2157.
- StampWorld No. 2726.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 2886.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 2601.

The Brenne Regional Natural Park (Parc naturel régional de la Brenne) has an area of 1,672 km² (646 sq mi) and is located in the French department of Indre. It was established on December 22, 1982. It is cut in two by the Creuse River, and the Anglin River also flows through it. In the park area there are about 3000 ponds, the largest of which is the Étang de la Mer Rouge, on the shore of which is the castle of Bouchet (visible on the stamp, in the background); many of these ponds were built during the Middle Ages by the monks of two abbeys for the raising of fish. The park has 47 municipalities, the main of which is Le Blanc, with about 7,000 inhabitants.

MADACASGAR

MADAGASCAR / REPOBLIKA MALAGASY.

Lily Waterfalls.
Second stamp in a set of 2, issued on 17.09.1975.
Face value: 40 Malagasy francs.
Printing: Offeset lithography.
Printed by Cartor Security Printing, Meaucé (France).

Catalogues
- Michel No. 764.
- Scott No. 537.
- StampWorld No. 813.
- Stanley Gibbons No. R 327.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 572.

There are two waterfalls of Lily and they are located very close to the town of Ampefy, in the Itasy region, in a volcanic area in the highlands of the center of the island of Madagascar. The one represented on the stamp has a height of 16 m (53 ft) and a width of 35 m (115 ft). According to tradition, the waterfall owes its name to the daughter of a settler who lost her life when she fell from the top of the fall while playing, and her body was never found: the original name is Antofoto.

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Thanks to Dragan Buškulić for his contribution (https://worldofstamp2.wordpress.com/). 

SRI LANKA

SRI LANKA / ශ්‍රී ලංකා - இலங்கை.

150th Anniversary of Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka, 1845-1995.
1378 map based on Ptolemy's map of the island of Toprobana, 150 AD, and Society Arms.
Stamp issued on 17.05.1995.
Face value: 1 Sri Lankan rupee.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Size: 30 x 41 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 1084.
- Scott No. 1128.
- StampWorld No. 661.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1300.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1068.

The Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka (RASSL), based in Colombo, is one of the oldest learned societies in the country. It was established on February 7, 1845, paralleling the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, to further oriental research as the Ceylon Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. In 1977 establishes his current name. The Society played a major role in the establishment of national institutions including the Colombo National Museum, Department of Archaeology, Department of National Archives, Department of Meteorology, Department of Statistics, the University of Ceylon, Historical Manuscripts Commission and the Sinhalese Dictionary. It pioneered the studies on the Veddas (the aborigines of Sri Lanka), an English translation of the Mahavamsa (the Great Chronicle of Sri Lanka), study of the etymology of the Sinhala language, research and translation of the Dutch Archives, Maldivian studies, toponymy of Sri Lanka and translations of Pali Buddhist commentaries into Sinhala.

The map depicted on the stamp is a version dated 1378 of a 2nd century Ptolemy’s map of Taprobana, an island in the Indian Ocean that supposedly corresponds to present-day Sri Lanka. 

NEW ZEALAND

NEW ZEALAND / AOTEAROA.

Thermal Wonders, Rotorua.
Hakereteke Falls.
Fourth stamp in a set of 6, issued on 05.05.1993.
Face value: 1 New Zealand dollar.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Size: 35 x 35 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 1287.
- Scott No. 1158.
- StampWorld No. 1318.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1733.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1231.

Hakereteke Falls, located within the Rainbow Mountain Scenic Reserve, near Rotorua and the Thermal Area of Waiotapu, into the Taupo Volcanic Zone (North Island of New Zealand), are watefalls of thermal water produced by the Hakareteke Creek (better known as Kerosene Creek).

ITALY

ITALY / ITALIA.

Turism issues.
Palmi (Tonnara di Palmi Bay, Costa Viola, Mount Sant'Elia).
Second stamp in a set of 4, issued on 09.05.1987.
Facial value: 400 Italian lire.
Design: from a paintimg of Emidio Vangelli (1871-1949).
Printed by I.P.Z.S. (Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato), Roma.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 5,000,000 copies.
Size: 48 x 40 mm. 

Catalogues
- Michel No. 2013.
- Sassone No. 1802.
- Scott No. 1709.
- StampWorld No. 1990.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1964.
- Unificato No. 1816.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1745.

Palmi is a municipality belonging to the province of Reggio di Calabria, in the Italian region of Calabria, on the shores of the Tyrrhenian Sea. It has an area of 32.12 km² (12.40 sq mi) and its population, in 2020, was just over 18,000 inhabitants. The stamp shows part of the beach (lido, with the rocks known as scogli Agliastro), the bay of Tonnara, Mount Sant’Elmo, and a stretch of the Costa Viola. Mount Sant’Elmo, 582 m (1,909 ft), is a part of the Aspromonte massif, in the southernmost part of the Apennine range. The mount is known as "the balcony on the Tyrrhenian". It is included in the Protection Zones and in the Sites of Community Interest of the Calabria Region.

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Thanks to Fadda Giuseppe for his contribution.

COLOMBIA

COLOMBIA.

2nd National Philatelic Exhibition, Bogotá, December 1953.
Real Estate Tax Stamp surcharged.
Map with the location of Colombia in South America and portrait of Manuel Murillo Toro.
Stamp issued on 12.12.1953.
Face value: 5 cents over 5 Colombian pesos.
Printing: Offset lithography and recess.
Printed by the American Bank Note Company, New York.
Print: 200,000 copies.
Size: 31 x 52 mm.

Catalogues
- Leo Temprano No. 765.
- Michel No. 666.
- Scott No. 618.
- StampWorld No. 649.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 784.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 483.

An interesting detail on the stamp: the Masonic symbol that appears in the upper right. Freemasonry played a very important role in the independence processes of Colombia.

Manuel Murillo Toro (Chaparral, United Provinces of New Granada, January 1, 1816 - Bogotá, December 26, 1880) was a Colombian politician and writer, twice president of the United States of Colombia by the Colombian Liberal Party (April 8 1864 - April 1, 1866; and April 1, 1872 - April 1, 1874). He participated in the Rionegro Convention, which gave the country a new Constitution and a new name, Estados Unidos de Colombia (United States of Colombia), in 1863. He sponsored, supported, and enacted legislation in favor of the rights of freedom of religion, freedom of assembly, and freedom of the press. He also established the National Press and Telegraph Institute and the National Institute of Cartography. His death marked the end of the influence of radical liberal ideas in the Colombian government, giving way to conservative governments for almost 50 years.

SLOVAKIA

SLOVAKIA / SLOVENSKO.

Splendors of Homeland issues.
Manínska Gorge (Manínska tiesňava).
Second stamp in a set of 2, issued on 18.09.2015.
Face value: 0.90 Euro.
Design: MariánČapka (b. Žilina, 1950). 
Engraving: Rudolf Cigánik (b. Handlová, 1961).
Printing: Photogravure and recess.
Printed by Poštovní tiskárna cenin, as, Praha.
Print: 1,000,000 copies.
Size: 26.5 x 44.1 mm.

Catalogues
- AFA No. 738.
- Michel No. 770.
- POFIS No. 594.
- Scott No. 722.
- StampWorld No. 763.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 719.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 673.

Manínska Gorge (in Slovak, Manínska tiesňava) is a national nature reserve since 1967, and is part of the Strážov Protected Landscape Mountains. It is the narrowest gorge in Slovakia and is located 6 km (3.7 miles) from Považská Bystrica, in the Súľov Mountains (in northwest part of Carpathian range), between the peaks of Veľký (890 m, 2,920 ft) and Malý Manín (812 m, 2,664 ft), which they once formed a continuous ridge of limestone. The gorge was excavated for centuries by the Manín stream; it is 800 m (2,625 ft) long and in some places only a few meters wide. In 1933 a rock was blown up to allow the construction of the paved road that runs through it.

SOVIET UNION

SOVIET UNION / СОЮЗ СОВЕТСКИХ СОЦИАЛИСТИЧЕСКИХ РЕСПУБЛИК.

Landscapes.
Chusovaya River, Urals.
First stamp in a set of 9, issued on 15.12.1959.
Face value: 10 Soviet kopek.
Design: S. Pomansky.
Printing: Recess.
Print: 2.500,000 copies.
Size: 38 x 27 mm.

Catalogues
- AFA No. 2290.
- Michel No. 2300.
- Scott No. 2272.
- StampWorld No. 2089.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 2399.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 2242.
- Zagorski No. 2296.

Chusovaya river (Чусовая река) flows through Perm Krai, Sverdlovsk Oblast and Chelyabinsk Oblast, in the Russian Federation. Its length is 592 km (368 mi) and its basin has an area of 23,000 km² (8,900 sq mi). It is a tributary of the Kama (Кама), which in turn empties into the Volga. It originates from the eastern slopes of the Ural Mountains, in Asia, crosses the mountains and runs down the western slopes of European Russia. The Chusovaya has more than 150 tributaries, among which the Sylva (Сылва) River and the Kumysh (Кумыш) River stand out, which has an underground route of about 6 km (3.73 mi). It is an important river as a source of water; along its course is the 37 km² (14 sq mi) Volchikhinsky Reservoir that supplies the city of Yekaterinburg. The large rocky walls that make up part of its banks (seen in the stamp) are an important tourist attraction. Before the construction of the railway across the Urals, the river served for the transport, especially of metals and furs, from the Ural Mountains to western Russia. 

RYUKYU ISLANDS

RYUKYU ISLANDS / 琉球

Government Parks.
View from Mabuni Hill (Okinawa).
Stamp issued on 30.07.1971.
Face value: 3 cents of United States dollar.
Printing: Photogravure.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 245.
- Scott No. 217.
- StampWorld No. 252.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 255.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 209.

The Ryūkyū Islands (琉球 諸島), officially, in Japanese, Nansei Islands (南西 諸島) is the southernmost archipelago of Japan, in the southwestern part of the country, in the East China Sea. They have a total area of 4,642.11 km² (1,792.33 sq mi) and their maximum height is Mount Miyanoura, of 1,936 m (6352 ft). The archipelago is made up of 83 islands, 48 of them uninhabited: the largest are Okinawa (沖縄), 1,206.98 km² (466.02 sq mi), and Amami (奄美), 712.35 km² (275.04 sq mi). Part of the archipelago was an independent kingdom between the 14th and 19th centuries: in 1879 it was abolished by the Japanese Meiji government and integrated into Japan as Okinawa Prefecture. After the Second World War, in 1945, the archipelago came under the administration of the United States and the islands were totally returned to Japan on May 15, 1972 (between 1948 and 1972 Ryukyu issued its own stamps). One of the bloodiest battles of the war took place in Okinawa, between American and Japanese troops, from April 1 to June 23, 1945, with a death toll of more than a quarter of a million.

Mabuni Hill, 89 m (292 ft) above sea level, south of the island of Okinawa and on the shores of the Pacific Ocean, was one of the worst hit during the battle that took place in 1945 between US and Japanese troops: there, precisely, the battle finally ended on June 23 of that year after the suicide of two senior Japanese military commanders. A part of the hill is occupied by a Peace Park Memorial consecrated to the memory of the victims of that battle, with a cemetery where the ashes of some 110,000 of them lie and a commemorative museum inaugurated in 1975.

CUBA

CUBA.

Geodetic map of Cuba by the Instituto Cubano de Geodesia y Cartografía (I.C.G.C.), 1973.
Last stamp in a set of 4, issued on 12.11.1973.
Face value: 40 cents of Cuban peso.
Printing: Offset lithography.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 1928.
- Scott No. 1853.
- StampWorld No. 1932.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 2085.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1728.

The Instituto Cubano de Geodesia y Cartografia (Cuban Institute of Geodesy and Cartography) was created in 1967 with the task of making general and specific maps of the country's territory.

POLAND

POLAND / POLSKA.

25th anniversary of the Antarctic Treaty, 1961-1986.
Antarctica map and potrait of Henryk Arctowski.
First stamp in a set of 2, issued on 23.06.1986.
Face value: 40 złotych.
Design: Stefan Małecki (1924-2012).
Printing: Offset lithography.
Printed by PWPW (Polska Wytwórnia Papierów Wartościowych), Warszawa.
Print: 3,519,000 copies.
Size: 40 x 27 mm.

Catalogues
- AFA No. 2923.
- Fischer No. 2886.
- Michel No. 3034.
- Scott No. 2734.
- StampWorld No. 3037.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 3048.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 2844.

On December 1, 1959, the twelve countries that had carried out scientific activities in and around Antarctica during the 1957-1958 International Geophysical Year signed the Antarctic Treaty in Washington. The Treaty entered into force on June 23, 1961, and has been accepted by many other nations. The Treaty recognizes, among other things, the interest of all humankind that Antarctica continue to be used exclusively for peaceful purposes and shall not become the scene or object of international discord. The signatory countries were: Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Chile, France, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Henryk Arctowski (Warsaw, July 15, 1871 - Bethesda, Maryland, United States, February 21, 1958), born Henryk Artzt, was a Polish scientist and explorer. He participated in the Belgian Antarctic Expedition, led by Adrien de Gerlache between 1897 and 1899, which was the first to winter on that continent. He lived in exile for much of his life, first in Belgium and later in the United States, and became an internationally renowned meteorologist. A Polish Antarctic station on King George Island is named after him, and every two years the Polish Academy of Sciences awards the Arctowski Medal (established by his widow) for studies of solar physics and of the relationships between the Sun and the Earth.

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Thanks to Kazimierz R. Leszczyński for his contribution (http://leszkarozdub.blogspot.com).

FRENCH SOUTHERN AND ANTARCTIC LANDS

FRENCH SOUTHERN AND ANTARCTIC LANDS /
TERRES AUSTRALES ET ANTARCTIQUES FRANÇAISES (TAAF).

Geological map of the Kerguelen Islands.
Second stamp in a set of 2, issued on 01.01.1988.
Face value: 15.10 French francs.
Printing: Recess.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 243.
- Scott No. 141.
- StampWorld No. 243.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 235.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 139.

The Kerguelen Islands, also known as the Desolation Islands (in French, Îles de la Désolation), are a group of islands in the Antarctic constituting a large igneous plateau mostly submerged by the southern Indian Ocean, built by eruptions that made it emerge 35 million years ago. It is one of the most isolated places on Earth, more than 3,300 km (2,100 mi) southeast of Madagascar. The main island, Grande Terre, with 300 other smaller islands and islets, forming an archipelago of 7,215 km² (2,786 sq mi). Grande Terre has an area of 6,675 km² (2,577 sq mi) and  measures 150 km (93 mi) from east to west and 120 km (75 mi) from north to south; its highest point is Mont Ross, a stratovolcano of 1,850 m (6,070 ft). France maintains on the island the scientific base of Port-aux-Français and other smaller bases and observatories, and the permanent presence of between 45 and 100 soldiers, scientists, engineers and researchers.

The islands were officially discovered by Yves-Joseph de Kerguelen-Trémarec on February 12, 1772. Shortly thereafter the archipelago was regularly visited by whalers and hunters of seals and elephant seals, mostly British, American and Norwegian. From 1924 to 1955, France administered these territories as part of the colony of Madagascar, but as with all Antarctic territorial claims, France's possession is kept on hold until a new international treaty defining the rights of each claimant.

CHINA PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC

CHINA PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC / 中华人民共和国.

Peaks of Mount Huashan (華山).
Thousand-Foot Precipice.
Third stamp in a set of 4, isued on 25.08.1989.
Face value: 20 Chinese renminbi fēn.
Printing: Photogravure and recess.
Size: 54 x 40 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 2250.
- Scott No. 2227.
- StampWorld No. 2272.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 3625.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 2952.

Mount Hua or Huashan (華山, “Mount of Splendor”) is a mountain located near the city of Huayin in Shaanxi Province, about 120 km (75 mi) east of Xi’an. It is the "Western Mountain" of the Five Great Mountains of China and has a long history of religious significance. Originally classified as having three peaks, in modern times the mountain is classified as five main peaks, the highest of which is the South Peak at 2,154.9 m (7,070 ft). The Thousand-Foot Precipice is considered one of the most dangerous hiking trails in the world.

LIBYA

LIBYA / ليبيا.

10th anniversary of September Revolution.
Simplified and illustrated map of Libya.
Stamp issued in a block o 4, issued on 01.09.1979.
Face value: 70 Libyan dirham.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Size: 36 x 48 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 747.
- Scott No. 824b.
- StampWorld No. 757.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 919.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 789.

Revolution of September 1 is the official name of the military coup committed on September 1, 1969 in Libya against King Idris I (who was receiving medical treatment in Turkey at that time), led by Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, who later he ruled the country until his assassination on October 20, 2011. The coup responded to popular discontent over the accumulation of wealth, thanks to the sale of oil, in the hands of the monarch. Seventy officers of the Libyan Army, known as the Free Officers Movement, took control of the government by force from the city of Benghazi and abolished the monarchy in a few hours. On the same day, the new Revolutionary Command Council proclaimed the Libyan Arab Republic. Diplomatic recognition of the new government came quickly from countries around the world.

CROATIA

CROATIA / HRVATSKA.

Liberation of Knin, August 5, 1995.
View of Mount Spas and the forteress of Knin (Kninska tvrđava).
Stamp issued on 16.08.1995.
Face value: 1.30 Croatian kuna.
Design: Ivica Šiško (b. 1946).
Printing: Offset lithography.
Printed by Zrinyi d.d., Čarlovec.
Print: 1,000,000 copies.
Size: 35.5 x 29.8 mm.

Catalogues
- AFA No. 375.
- Croatian Post No. 152.
- Michel No. 330.
- Scott No. 250.
- StampWorld No. 328.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 366.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 305.

On December 19, 1991, during the Croatian War (1991-1995), the Yugoslav People's Army and the Croatian Serbs (Srbi or Hrvatskoj, the largest national minority) proclaimed the Serb Republic of Krajina (Republika Srpska Krajina, which was never recognized internationally), occupying 17,028 km² (6,575 sq mi) of Croatian territory, and they established their capital in the city of Knin. The war was bloody, UN peacekeeping forces (UNPROFOR) intervened in it and the new republic suffered serious economic problems, for which it was weakened. Finally, on August 4, 1995, the so-called Operation Storm (Operacija Oluja) was unleashed, which was the largest European land battle since World War II, allowed the rapid occupation of Knin by the Croatian army and involved the displacement of between 150,000 and 200,000 Serbs from the region.

This stamp was issued hastily, and its design omitted the face value, which had to be overloaded.

Mount Spas, southwest of the city of Knin, is 345 m (1,132 ft) high, and contains a fortress (Kninska tvrđava) whose earliest remains date back to the 9th century, although the current construction was carried out between the 17th and 18th centuries.

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Thanks to Dragan Buškulić for his contribution.

ECUADOR

ECUADOR.

Centennial of Charles Darwin's Visit to the Galápagos Islands, 1835-1935.
Map of Galápagos Islands.
First stamp in a set of 6, issued on 01.03.1936.
Face value: 2 cents of Ecuadorian sucre.
Printing: Recess.
Print: 1,000,000 copies.
Size: 25 x 29 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 346.
- Scott No. 340.
- StampWorld No. 348.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 519.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 332.

The Galápagos archipelago is made up of thirteen large islands with a surface area greater than 10 km², nine medium islands with an area of ​​1 km² to 10 km² and another 107 small islets, in addition to rocky promontories of a few square meters, distributed around of the equatorial line. It is the second largest marine reserve on the planet and was declared a World Heritage Site in 1978 by UNESCO. The islands were formed 5 million years ago as a result of tectonic activity on the seabed; the archipelago is one of the most active volcanic groups in the world. The Galápagos Islands are known for their numerous endemic species and for the studies of Charles Darwin, who visited the archipelago in 1835, that led him to establish his theory of evolution through natural selection.

The Galápagos Islands were discovered by chance on March 10, 1535, when the ship in which the Bishop of Panama Fray Tomás de Berlanga was traveling to Peru deviated from its route.

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Thanks to R. Gómez-Val for his contribution.

VATICAN CITY

VATICAN CITY / CIVITATIS VATICANÆ - CITTÀ DEL VATICANO.

450th Anniversary of Thomas More execution.
Map of British Islands and Thomas More portrait.
First stamp in a set of 3, issued on 07.05.1985.
Face value: 250 Italian lire.
Design and engraving: Antonello Ciaburro.
Printed by Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato, Roma.
Printing: Offset lithography and recess.
Print: 850,000 copies.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 870.
- Scott No. 755.
- StampWorld No. 869.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 829.
- Unificato No. 773.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 773.

Thomas More (London, February 7, 1478 - July 6, 1535) was a prominent English Renaissance humanist who opposed the Protestant Reformation, leading polemics against the theology of Martin Luther, Huldrych Zwingli, John Calvin, and William Tyndale. He also opposed the separation of King Henry VIII from the Catholic Church, refusing to recognize his status as supreme head of the Church of England, and the annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. After refusing to take the Oath of Supremacy, he was found guilty of treason and executed by beheading. He left some written works, such as Utopia (1516), Life of Pico della Mirandola and Historia Richardi Tertii, and some epigrams. He was beatified along with 52 other martyrs by Pope Leo XIII in 1886, and proclaimed a saint by the Catholic Church by Pope Pius XI on May 19, 1935.