ISRAEL

ISRAEL / יִשְׂרָאֵל‎ - إِسْرَائِيل

Israel Landscapes.
Coral Island (Pharaoh's Island).
Stamp issued on 23.04.1975.
Face value: 2.00 Israeli lira.
Printing: Photogravure.
Size: 31 x 26 mm.

Catalogs
- AFA No. 
- Michel No. 526yI.
- Scott No. 473ii.
- StampWorld No. 535.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 509p.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 470a.

Coral Island (sometimes called Pharaoh's Island) is a rocky islet that now belongs to Egypt, about 250 m ( 820 ft) to the east to the coast of the Sinai Peninsula in the Gulf of Eilat (or Aqaba), at the northern end of the Red Sea, and 13 km (8.1 mi) southwest of modern Eilat (Israel). It is made of solid granite. Some scholars identify this island port with the biblical Ezion-Geber. A wall of casemates with towers surrounding the island at the height of the coast, including the port, has not yet been able to be dated, and the ruins of a castle probably correspond to an Ayyubid fortification of the 12th and 13th centuries.

BELGIAN CONGO

BELGIAN CONGO / CONGO BELGE - BELGISCH-CONGO.

Country Symbols (definitive stamps).
Port of Matadi.
First stamp in a set of 8, issued on 01.10.1915.
Face value: 5 Belgian centimes.
Engraved and printed by Waterlow & Sons, London.
Printing: Recess.
Print: 225,000 copies.
Size: 39 x 25 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 25.
- Scott No. 60.
- StampWorld No. 55.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 70.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 64.

The Port of Matadi is situated on the left bank of the Congo River, 148 km (92 mi) from the mouth, very close to the border with Angola. It was founded by Henry Morton Stanley in 1879. The construction of the Matadi–Kinshasa Railway (built between 1890 and 1898) made it possible to transport goods from deeper within Congo's interior to the port of Matadi, stimulating the city to become an important trading center. The word Matadi means ‘stone’ in the local Kikongo language. The town is built on steep hills.

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

MOZAMBIQUE

MOZAMBIQUE / MOÇAMBIQUE.

Local Motives.
View of Lourenço Marques.
Sixth stamp in a set of 20, issued in 1948.
Face value: 50 cents of Mozambican escudo.
Design: Alberto Souza.
Engraving: Arnaldo Fragoso.
Printing: Typography.
Print: 4,000,000 copies.
Size: 30 x 22.5 cm.

Catalogs
- Afinsa-Mundifil No. 329.
- Michel No. 358.
- Scott No. 310.
- StampWorld No. 371.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 413.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 365.

Lourenço Marques (name of the Portuguese explorer who explored the bay in 1544) is the name that the capital of Mozambique had during the Portuguese colonization; On March 13, 1976, after the country's independence, the name was changed to Maputo. The city was founded at the end of the 18th century. In 1907 it became the capital of Portuguese East Africa, which would later become Mozambique. According to the 2017 census, the urban population was 1,080,277 inhabitants, and that of the metropolitan area, 1,766,823. The city is located on the coast of the Indian Ocean. In the image of the stamp you can see the Praça 7 de Março (March 7 Square), current Praça do 25 de Junho (June 25 Square).

MADAGASCAR

MADAGASCAR / REPOBLIKA MALAGASY.

Transportation.
President Tsiranana Bridge.
Second stamp in a set of 2, issued on 04.01.1962.
Face value: 25 French African CFA francs.
Design and engraving: GilbertAufschneider (b. 1927).
Printing: Recess.
Size: 41 x 27 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 474.
- Scott No. 324.
- StampWorld No. 523.
- Stanley Gibbons No. R-36.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 361.

The President Tsiranana Bridge over the Sofia River is located between the towns of Antsohihy and Boriziny, in the Sofia region of northwestern Madagascar. The RN6 national road runs through it. It has now lost its original name, which was that of the first president of the country after its independence from France, Philibert Tsiranana, who remained in power until October 1972. [No further information on this bridge could be obtained.]

FRANCE

FRANCE.

150th anniversary annexation voluntary Mayotte to France.
Landscape and stylized map of Mayotte Island.
Stamp issued on 20.12.1991.
Face value: 2.50 French francs.
Design: Thierry Cheminet (b. 1958).
Engraving: Jacky Larrivière (b. 1946).
Printing: Recess.
Print: 12,176,397 copies.
Size: 40 x 26 mm.

Catalogs
- AFA No. 2970.
- Michel No. 2870.
- Scott No. 2271.
- StampWorld No. 2862.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 3051.
- Unificato No. 2725.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 2271.

Mayotte (Shimaore: Maore; Kibushi: Maori) is an overseas department of France (French: Département de Mayotte). It is located in the northern part of the Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Southeastern Africa. Mayotte consists of a main island, Grande-Terre (or Maore), a smaller island, Petite-Terre (or Pamanzi), as well as several islets around these two. Mayotte's land area is 374 km² (144 sq mi) and its population is 299,348 people according to January 2022 official estimates. Mayotte was purchased by France in 1841, in 1885 it was integrated into the colony of the Comoros, and it remained voluntarily with France after the Comoros declared its independence in 1974. After a referendum, it became an overseas department of France on 31 March 2011.

Thanks to Daniel Mathieu for his contribution (http://lettresdumonde.blogspot.com/)

CHAD

CHAD / TCHAD.

Ouaddaï Region and greater kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros).
Fifth stamp in a set of 13, issued on 1961/1962.
Face value: 4 Central African CFA francs.
Printed: Typography.
Size: 25 x 41 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 73.
- Scott No. 74.
- StampWorld No. 74.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 73.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 70.

Ouaddaï (Arabic: وداي) is a region located in the south-east of Chad, and it borders with Sudan. Its capital at Abéché. Prior to 2002 it was known as Ouaddaï Prefecture; in 2008 the southern portions of Ouaddaï (the Sila Department and Djourf Al Ahmar Department) were split off to become the new Sila Region. The region was the heartland of the former Ouaddaï Empire, or Wadai Sultanate, which existed from the early 16th century until 1911 when it was conquered by France in the Wadai War. As per the 2009 census, the region has a population of 721,166. The main ethnolinguistic groups are the Assangori, Baggara (generally speakers of Chadian Arabic).

The greater kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros) is a woodland antelope found throughout eastern and southern Africa. Despite occupying such widespread territory, they are sparsely populated in most areas due to declining habitat, deforestation, and poaching. Greater kudus have a narrow body with long legs, and their coats can range from brown/bluish grey to reddish brown. They possess between 4 and 12 vertical white stripes along their torso.

CAMEROON

CAMEROON / CAMEROUN.

Tourism.
Bafoussam-Bamenda Road, and schematic map of Cameroon.
Stamp issued on 10.09.1981.
Face value: 50 Central African CFA francs.
Design: Louis Marie Lemana.
Printed by Cartor.
Printing: Offset lithography.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 956.
- Scott No. 696.
- StampWorld No. 956.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 910.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 678.

The road between the cities of Bafoussam and Bamenda, in western Cameroon, is 72 km (45 mi) long. It is a fundamental route for the supply of the region. It was built in the 1970s, and is in frequent need of rehabilitation and maintenance work.

FRENCH SUDAN

FRENCH SUDAN / SOUDAN FRANÇAIS.

Centenary of René Caillié.
Map of Northwestern Africa and portrait of Caillié.
Second stamp in a set of 3, issued on 05.04.1939.
Face value: 2 French francs.
Design and engraving: René Cottet (1902-1992).
Printed by Institut de Gravure et d'Impression de Papiers-Valeurs, Paris.
Printing: Recess and typography.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 114.
- Scott No. 114.
- StampWorld No. 114.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 199.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 101.

Auguste René Caillié (1799 –1838) was a French explorer and the first European to return alive from the town of Timbuktu. Caillié had been preceded at Timbuktu by a British officer, who was murdered in September 1826 on leaving the city. The map indicates the route that Caillié followed through French West Africa (Afrique Occidentale Française, AOF) from Kakony near Boké, in present-day Gunea, on April 19, 1827, through Tiémé, in present-day Ivory Coast, and Djenné, in present-day Mali. After various adventures, he finally reached Timboktu on April 20, 1828. After spending a fortnight in Timbuktu, Caillié left the city on 4 May 1828 accompanying a caravan of 600 camels heading north across the Sahara Desert until reaching Fez, in August, Rabat and Tangier (Morocco), from where he returned to France by sea. In 1830 he published a description of the city of Timboktu in the Revue des deux mondes, and a Journal d'un voyage à Temboctou et à Jenné dans l'Afrique centrale (‘Diary of a trip to Timbuktu and Djenné in Central Africa’), in three volumes.

CONGO (Democratic Republic)

CONGO Democratic Republic / République démocratique du CONGO.

25th anniversary of the United Nations. International Cooperation.
Mines in Katanga.
Second stamp in a set of 6, issued on 25.10.1965.
Face value: 8 Congolese francs.
Design: Jean Van Noten (1903-1982).
Printing: Potogravure.
Size: 61 x 26 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 241.
- Scott No. 548.
- StampWorld No. 238.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 587.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 600.

Katanga was one of the four large provinces created in the Belgian Congo in 1914. Katanga was one of the eleven provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo between 1966 and 2015, when it was split into four provinces. Between 1971 and 1997 (during the rule of Mobutu Sese Seko when Congo was known as Zaire), its official name was Shaba Province. The eastern part of the province is considered to be a rich mining region, which supplies cobalt, copper, tin, radium, uranium, and diamonds. Copper mining in Katanga dates back over 1,000 years, and mines in the region were producing standard-sized ingots of copper for international transport by the end of the 10th century CE. After 1900, the Société Génerale de Belgique practically controlled all of the mining in the province through Union Minière du Haut-Katanga (UMHK). In 1960, after the Democratic Republic of the Congo (then called Republic of the Congo) gained independence from Belgium, the UMHK, Moise Tshombe and Godefroid Munongo supported the secession of Katanga province from the Congo. This was supported by Belgium but opposed by the Congolese Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba. This led to the assassination of Lumumba and the Congo Crisis, which lasted from 1960 to 1965. The breakaway State of Katanga existed from 1960 to 1963. In 1966, the Congolese central government nationalized the UMHK, under the name of Gécamines.

GHANA

GHANA.

Kpong Hydro-Electric Project.
Kpong Dam in construction.
First stamp in a set of 4, issued on 28.06.1982.
Face value: 20 Ghanaian pesewa.
Design: C. Tetteh.
Printed by Questa Colour Security Printers Ltd.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Size: 43 x 29 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 938.
- Scott No. 801.
- StampWorld No. 934.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 998.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 750.

The Kpong Dam, also known as the Akuse Dam, is a hydroelectric power generating dam on the lower Volta River near Akuse. It was constructed between 1977 and 1982. Its power station has a capacity of 148 megawatts (198,000 hp) with all four units running, though the total nameplate capacity is 160 megawatts (210,000 hp). The dam is 240 m (790 ft) long and 18 m (59 ft) high. In addition to electricity generation, the project provides irrigation water for agriculture and water supply to Accra and its metropolitan area.

LESOTHO

LESOTHO.

Roof of Africa Rally.
Sani Pass.
Third stamp in a set of 4, issued on 26.09.1969.
Face value: 15 cents of South African rand.
Design: P. Wheeler.
Printed by Harrison & Sons Ltd.
Printing: Photogravure.
Size: 45 x 28 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 73.
- Scott No. 73.
- StampWorld No. 73.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 173 (?).

Sani Pass is a mountain pass about 9 km (5.6 mi) in length, located in the Drakensberg mountains, on the border between Mokhotlong, Lesotho and Underberg, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The route up Sani Pass starts at 1,544 m (5,066 ft), and climbs to an altitude of 2,876 m (9,436 ft). Construction work for the first phase commenced in December 2006 and was completed in September 2012.

MADAGASCAR

MADAGASCAR / REPOBLIKA MALAGASY.

Tourism.
Nossi-bé. Andoany (Hell-Ville) port.
Airmail stamp issued on 07.05.1962.
Face value: 100 French African CFA francs.
Design and engraving: René Cottet (1902-1992).
Printing: Recess.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 482.
- Scott No. C70.
- StampWorld No. 531.
- Stanley Gibbons No. R 44.
- Yvert et Tellier No. PA87.

Nossi-bé (now Nosy Be) is an island in the Indian Ocean, in the Antsiranana Province, about 8 km (5 mi) off the coast of Madagascar. Its estimated population is about 109,000 people, according to the census of 2018. Its capital is Andoany, called Hell-Ville (after Admiral Anne Chrétien Louis de Hell) during the French colonization: it was founded by the French in 1841 to establish there a military port, which is currently a civil and commercial port (it is the one seen on the stamp).

CHAD

CHAD / TCHAD.

Chagoua Bridge over the Chari River, and hippopotamus.
Sixth stamp in a set of 13, issued in 1961.
Face value: 5 Central African CFA francs.
Printing: Typography.
Size: 41 x 25 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 74.
- Scott No. 75.
- StampWorld No. 75.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 74.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 71.

The Chagoua Bridge crosses the Chari River south of the city of N'Djamena, the capital of Chad. Construction of the bridge began in the late 1950s when Chad was still a French colony and was completed and opened in 1959. It is approximately 550 m (1,800 ft), of which 300 m (984 ft) is over the river. It is a single-lane girder bridge, and the road that leads to the border with Cameroon passes through it. It is currently very deteriorated, and is used mostly by pedestrians.

ZAIRE (Democratic Republic of Congo)

ZAIRE / ZAÏRE (Democratic Republic of Congo).

7th Anniversary of the New Regime.
Inga Dam, 1st Phase.
Last stamp in a set of 3, issued on 25.01.1973.
Face value: 0,18 Zairean zaire.
Printing: Photogravure.
Size: 43 x 33 mm.

Catalogs (Numbering of the Democratic Republic of the Congo)
- Belgium No. 825.
- Michel No. 472.
- Scott No. 792.
- StampWorld No. 469.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 813.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 831.

Republic of Zaire (French: République du Zaïre) is the name adopted by the Democratic Republic of the Congo from October 27, 1971 to August 15, 1974, following Mobutu's seizure of power in a military coup in 1965, following five years of political upheaval following independence from Belgium known as the Congo Crisis.

Inga Dam is located across the Congo River, approximately 150 km (93 mi), upstream of where the river empties into the Atlantic Ocean, at an altitude of 47 m (140 ft) above sea level. The stamp reproduces the first of the three planned dams, built between 1965 and 1971. It is 587 m (614 ft) long and its function is to produce hydroelectric power. The dam was built on the right bank of the river, taking advantage of the Nkokolo, a dry valley that used to be the riverbed, whose banks reached 150 m (492 ft) high at the level of the Inga Falls, parallel to the site. The water is withdrawn 10 km (6.21 mi) upstream of the dam, at an altitude of 125 m (410 ft).

SOUTH AFRICA

SOUTH AFRICA / SUID-AFRIKA.

Beauty in Nature.
Gordon's Rock, Pearl Mountain / Paarlberg.
First stamp in a set of 4, issued on 20.11.1986.
Face value: 14 cents of South African rand.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Size: 31 x 48 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 697.
- Scott No. 678.
- South African Stamp Catalog No. 616.
- StampWorld No. 735.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 608.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 614.

Pearl Mountain (Afrikaans: Paarlberg) is a domed granite mountain located near the town of Paarl, in the Boland region, Western Cape province. The summit is 654 m (2,146 ft) high and is part of three mountain peaks that include Britannia Rock and Gordon's Rock (represented in the stamp). It is the second largest granite formation in the world, after Uluṟu in Australia. The Khoikhoi people call them the Turtle Mountains. It was discovered in 1657 by Abraham Gabemm; because it shone like a pearl in the sun, he called it Peerleberg, a name that later became Paarlberg.

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

ALGERIA

ALGERIA / الجزائر - ⴷⵣⴰⵢⴻⵔ

Landscapes.
Rhumel Gorges and Sidi M'Cid Bridge, in Constantine.
Airmail stamp issued on 26.02.1972.
Face value: 4 Algerian dinar.
Design: Ismaïl Samsom (1934-1988).
Printed by Imprimerie Delrieu, Paris (1959-1985).
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 5,000,000 copies.
Size: 45.5 x 30 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 582.
- Scott No. C18.
- StampWorld No. 583.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 583.
- Yvert et Tellier No. PA20. 

The Rhumel Gorges are formed by the Rhumel River (Arabian: وادي الرمال), in the Constantine Province. The Sidi M'Cid (جسر سيدي مسيد) suspension bridge, in the city of Constantine, crosses the gorge at a height of 175 m (575 ft) above the river: construction began in 1909, and was opened to traffic on April 19, 1912; it is 164 m (538 ft) long and 5.70 m (18.70 ft) wide. The bridge was designed by the French engineer Ferdinand Arnodin.

MALI

MALI.

30th Anniversary of Amelia Earhart's Flight.
Simplified map of Mali and portrait of Amelia Earhart.
Airmail stamp issued on 29.05.1967.
Face value: 500 Malian francs.
Design: Pierrette Lambert (b. 1928).
Printed by Société Générale d'Impression, Toulouse.
Printing: Photogravure.
Size: 52 x 31 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 145.
- Scott No. C45.
- StampWorld No. 145.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 145.
- Yvert et Tellier No. PA45.

Amelia Mary Earhart (Atchison, Kansas, July 24, 1897 – disappeared in the Pacific Ocean on July 2, 1937; declared dead January 5, 1939) was an American aviation pioneer and writer. She was the first female aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, and set many other records. She was one of the first aviators to promote commercial air travel, and wrote her best-selling books about her flying experiences. After many experiences as a pilot and after a first failed attempt, on May 20, 1937 she undertook in Oakland, California, the flight that would take her around the world, and after crossing the Atlantic from Natal (Brazil) to Saint-Louis (Senegal), on June 10, landed in Gao (French Sudan, now Mali), from where he left the next day for Fort-Lamy. He traveled in various stages through East Africa, British India, Burma, Siam (now Thailand), Singapore, the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia), landing in Darwin (Australia) on June 28, and the next day in Lae (New Guinea), from where he left on July 2 for the Howland Island, where he no longer arrived: the last position he reported was the vicinity of the Nukumanu Atoll. She was just two days away from completing the course and landing back in Oakland.

GABON

GABON.

Admission to the United Nations.
Map and flag.
Last stamp in a set of 3, issued on 09.02.1961.
Face value: 85 Central African CFA francs.
Design and engraving: Jacques Combet (1920-1993).
Printing: Recess.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 159.
- Scott No. 153.
- StampWorld No. 172.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 169.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 152.

Gabon, officially the Gabonese Republic (French: République gabonaise), is a country on the Atlantic coast of Central Africa. It is located on the equator. It has an area of 267,667 km2 (103,347 sq mi) and in 2021 its population was 2,284,912 people. Its territory, inhabited for about 650,000 years, was colonized by the Mpongwe people from the 11th century. The first Europeans to arrive on its shores were the Portuguese in the 15th century, who called the country Gabão, a name taken from the indigenous denomination of the area of the Gabon River estuary, where the country's capital, Libreville, is currently located. Both the Portuguese and the Dutch engaged in the slave trade. In 1886, Gabon became a French colony which, from 1888, merged with the Congo under the name of Gabon-Congo and then, in 1898, in the French Congo. In 1904, Gabon became a separate colony again, and in 1910, the colonies of Gabon and Congo became part of French Equatorial Africa. The country gained independence from France on August 17, 1960 and was admitted to the UN in 1961.

SÃO TOMÉ AND PRÍNCIPE

SÃO TOMÉ AND PRÍNCIPE / SÃO TOMÉ E PRÍNCIPE

Navigation history.
Map of São Tomé Island (1602).
Minisheet issued on 21.12.1979.
Face value: 25 São Tomé and Príncipe dobra.
Printed by Format International Security Printers Ltd.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Size: 128 x 98 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. B38.
- StampWorld No. 630.

São Tomé and Príncipe (Potruguese: São Tomé e Príncipe), is an island country in the Gulf of Guinea, off the western coast of Gabon, in Atlantic Ocean. It consists of two archipelagos around the two main islands of São Tomé and Príncipe. A estimate population was 223,100 in 2021. The islands were uninhabited until their discovery by Portuguese explorers in the 15th century. Gradually colonized and settled throughout the 16th century, they collectively served as a vital commercial and trade center for slave trade. The country became independent from Portugal on July 12, 1975.

MADAGASCAR

MADAGASCAR / REPOBLIKAN'I MADAGASIKARA.

Landscapes.
Nosy Antafana Islands.
Stamp issued on 22.05.2015.
Face value: 100 Malagasy ariary.
Size: 36 x 30 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 2686.
- Scott No.
- StampWorld No. 2752.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1434.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1919.

The 1,000-hectare Nosy Antafana Marine Park on the northeast coast of the Indian Ocean is made up of three islets: Nosy Antafana, Nosy Rangontsy and Nosy Hely. It is part of the Mananara-Nord National Park, established in 1989 and declared a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO in 1990. The Nosy Antafana Islands have become a major tourist attraction for their beaches, coral reefs, mangroves and rock formations, but also for its important colony of bats. However, they face a growing deterioration of the corals and their clandestine extraction.