ESTONIA

ESTONIA / EESTI.

Estonian Lighthouses.
Ristna Lighthouse and map.
First stamp in a set of 2, issued on 25.02.2000.
Face value: 3.60 Estonian kroon.
Design: Roman Matkiewicz (b. Tallinn, 27.02.1966).
Printing: Offset lithography.
Print: 1,014,720 copies.

Catalogs
- AFA No. 392.
- Michel No. 365.
- Scott No. 388.
- StampWorld No. 398.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 366.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 353.

Ristna Lighthouse (Estonian: Ristna tuletorn) is located in Ristna Point, in the westernmost part of the Kõpu Peninsula, on the island of Hiiumaa. The metal structure of the lighthouse was built in Gustave Eiffel's factory in Paris and assembled in 1874. It is a 20.5 m (97 ft) hexagonal tower. It consists of two concentric iron cylinders with a spiral staircase between them. During World War I in 1915, the lighthouse was damaged, and five years later, in 1920, the tower was covered with concrete.  In 1994, a satellite navigation base station was installed at the lighthouse with the help of the Finnish Maritime Administration. 

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/).

ECUADOR

ECUADOR.

Inauguration of Saracay or Zaracay Railway Bridge.
Airmail stamp issued on 26.08.1960.
Face value: 1.30 Ecuadorian sucre.
Printed by Waterlow & Sons Ltd.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Print: 1,000,000 copies.

Catalogs
- Bertossa No. 1084.
- Michel No. 1047.
- Scott No. C368.
- StampWorld No. 1046.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1174.
- Yvert et Tellier No. PA368.

The Saracay or Zaracay railway bridge (currently probably in disuse and nonexistent), over the Piloto River, is located in Santa Rosa, El Oro Province. It was inaugurated on August 26, 1960.

BAHAWALPUR

BAHAWALPUR / بہاول پور

Silver Jubilee of the Nawab Sadiq Mohammad Khan V.
Panjnad Dam and portrait of the Nawab.
First stamp in a set of 4, issued on 03.03.1949,
Face value: 3 Pakistani pies.
Printed byPrinted by De La Rue & Co. Ltd., Basingstoke (England).
Printing: Recess.
Size: 36 x 31 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 22.
- Scott No. 22.
- StampWorld No. 22.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 39.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 18.

The Bahawalpur state (Urdu: بہاولپُور) was founded in 1609 by Nawab Bahawal Khan Abbasi. On February 22, 1833, Abbasi III entered into a subsidiary alliance with the British, by which Bahawalpur was admitted as a princely state of British India. After various vicissitudes, it remained independent until its voluntary incorporation into Pakistan on October 7, 1947, under Nawab Sadiq Muhammad Khan Abbasi V Bahadur, but remained an autonomous entity till October 14, 1955. Immediately after its accession to the Pakistani state, the Hindu and Sikh minority communities migrated to India, while Muslim refugees from India settled in the city of Bahawalpur and the region. The Royal House of Bahawalpur is said to be of Arabic origin and claims descent from Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib, progenitor of the Abbasid Caliphs of Baghdad and Cairo.

The Panjnad dam (Urdu: پنجند), on the river of the same name, was opened in 1929. It is located west of the city of Bahawalpur. It has three canals: Panjnad canal, Abbassia canal, and Abbassia link canal. These canals irrigate Bahawalpur and Rahim Yar Khan districts and the northern Sindh area.

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.

GREECE

GREECE / ЕΛΛΑΣ.

Plastira Lake and Martagon lily (Lilium martagon).
Sixth stamp in a set of 8, issued on 27.06.2001.
Face value: 200 Greek drachma / 0.59 euro.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Print: 26,000,000 copies.
Size: 38 x 30 mm.

Catalogs
- AFA No. 2091.
- Karamitsos No. 2163.
- Michel No. 2076.
- Scott No. 1998.
- StampWorld No. 2058.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 2163.
- Unificato No. 2054.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 2063.

Lake Plastiras (Greek: Λίμνη Πλαστήρα) also called Tavropos Reservoir (Greek: Τεχνητή Λίμνη Ταυρωπού) is an artificial lake fed by Megdovas river, located in Karditsa regional unit (Thessaly). It is named after the Greek general and politician Nikolaos Plastiras, who was the first to visualize the construction of an artificial lake in the area. The building of the dam started on December 14, 1955, and on October 30, 1960 it was officially inaugurated. The surface área of the lake is 24 km2 (9.3 sq mi). It is used for irrigation and as a power source of a hydroelectric plant, but also as the main water source to the city of Karditsa.

The martagon Lily or Turk's cap Lily (Lilium martagon), is a Eurasian species of lily. It has a widespread native region extending from Portugal east through Europe and Asia as far east as Mongolia. It is stem-rooting, growing between 1 metre (3 ft 3 in) and 2 metres (6 ft 7 in) tall. The flower colour is typically a pink-purple, with dark spots, but is quite variable, extending from near white to near black. The flowers are scented.

ARMENIA

ARMENIA / ՀԱՅԱՍՏԱՆ.

Landscapes.
Garni Canyon.
First stamp in a set of 5, issued on 24.05.1993.
Face value: 0.40 Armenian rubles.
Design: Haroutiun Samuelian (b. 1947).
Printed by House of Questa.
Printing: Offset lithograpy.
Print: 100,000 copies.
Size: 32 x 63.5 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 215.
- Scott No. 452.
- StampWorld No. 241.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 268.
- Unificato No. 192.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 189.

The Garni Canyon (Armenian: Քարերի սիմֆոնիա) is situated in the Kotayk Province, on the Caucasus Mountains, 23 km (14.3 mi) east of Yerevan. Along the sides of the gorge are cliff walls of well-preserved basalt columns, carved out by the Azat River. This portion of the canyon is typically referred to as the "Symphony of the Stones". Near the gorge is the Geghard monastery.

NEPAL

NEPAL / नेपाल

Mount Kanjiroba.
Stamp issued on 30.12.1987.
Face value: 10 Nepalese rupee.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Print: 1,000,000 copies.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 486.
- Scott No. 462.
- StampWorld No. 482.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 495.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 456.

Kanjiroba (Nepali: कान्जिरोबा) is a mountain in the Himalayas of Dolpa District, Karnali Province, western Nepal. With a summit elevation of 6,883 m (22,582 ft) above sea level, it is the highest peak of the Kanjiroba Himal, a subrange of the Himalayas. A Japanese expedition from Osaka University was the first to climb Kanjiroba in 1971 via the Southeast Ridge.

FALKLAND ISLANDS

FALKLAND ISLANDS.

Nature Reserves.
Bird Island stylized map and coastal cliffs. Black-browed Albatross (Thalassarche melanophris)
and Southern Rockhopper Penguins (Eudyptes chrysocome).
Third stamp in a set of 4, issued on 09.04.1990.
Face value: 31 Falkland Islands penny.
Printing: Offset lithography.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 520.
- Scott No. 522.
- StampWorld No. 535.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 599.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 532.

Bird Island (Spanish: Isla Pájaro) is located 4.5 km (2.80 mi) south of West Falkland. Its area is 1.2 km2 (0.5 sq mi), and highest elevation 107 m (351 ft).  It has been identified as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International. Amongst the birds which breed here are rockhopper penguins, king shags, petrels and black-browed albatrosses. The island is roughly triangular in shape. The western half of the southern coast has sheer cliffs reaching at least 70 m (230 ft) and the plateau above slopes gently to the north and west. In the centre of the island there is a large seasonal pool to the west of a small inlet. The eastern promontory has two domed peaks with sheer southern cliffs of 30 m (98 ft) and very steep slopes in the north.

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.

FRANCE

FRANCE.

Tourism.
Gulf of Morbihan.
Stamp issued on 06.05.2005.
Face value: 0.53 euro.
Design: Michel Bez (1951-2018).
Printed by ITVF (Imprimerie des Timbres-Poste et des Valeurs Fiduciaires), Périgueux.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 3,779,242 copies.
Size: 80 x 26 mm.

Catalogs
- AFA No. 4026.
- Michel No. 3936.
- Scott No. 3108.
- StampWorld No. 3901.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 4085.
- Unificato No. 3761.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 3783.

The Gulf of Morbihan (French, golfe du Morbihan; Breton, Mor Bihan) is an inland gulf or sea located at the bottom of Quiberon Bay, on the Atlantic coast of the Brittany region. It has a length of 20 km (12.4 mi) and a maximum width of 15 km (9.3 mi) and includes numerous islands and islets. Due to the presence of numerous species of migratory birds, its ancient marshes have been classified as a nature reserve. The gulf receives the waters of four main rivers: the Auray, the Vincin, the Marle and the Noyalo. It is an interesting area for the study of prehistory and especially the Neolithic period from 7500 years before our era; Numerous megalithic monuments (menhirs, dolmens and cairns) are found in it.

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

COLOMBIA

COLOMBIA.

Docks in Barranquilla Port.
First stamp in a set of 8, issued on 05.03.1956.
Face value: 5 Colombian centavos.
Printed by De La Rue & Co. Ltd., Basingstoke (England).
Printing: Recess.
Print: 3,000,000 copies.
Size: 35 x 30 mm.

Catalogs
- Leo Temprano No. 835.
- Michel No. 764.
- Scott No. 644.
- StampWorld No. 746.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 869.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 509.

Barranquilla is the capital of Atlántico Department. It is located on the western bank of the Magdalena River, 7.5 km (4.7 mi) from its mouth in the Caribbean Sea. In 1993 it was constitutionally organized in a special, industrial and port district. It is the main economic center of the Caribbean region of Colombia. Its population, in 2018, was 1,274,250 people. In 1849, Sabanilla Bay, in the Caribbean Sea, was converted into a commercial port and a customs office was installed in the current Castillo de Salgar. In 1893 the Puerto Colombia pier was built, which was at the time one of the longest in the world. The current port area of Barranquilla, on the banks of the Magdalena River, has a length of about 22 km (14 mi); Construction began in 1925 and it was officially inaugurated in December 1936. The docks that can be seen in the stamp were built in 1939, the year in which the activity of Puerto Colombia was abandoned.

SINGAPORE

SINGAPORE / SINGAPURA - 新加坡共和国

River life.
Singapore River.
First stamp in a set of 3, issued on 02.09.1987.
Face value: 10 Singapore cents.
Design: Ng Keng Sen.
Printed by Secura, Singapore.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Print: 2,760,000 copies.

Catalogs
- ISC Malaysia No. 562. 
- Michel No. 536.
- Scott No. 508.
- StampWorld No. 537.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 558.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 519.

The Singapore River flows in the city of Singapore, parallel to Alexandra Road and feeds into the Marina Reservoir in the southern part of Singapore. It is approximately 3.2 km (1.99 mi) long from its source at the Kim Seng Bridge to where it empties into Marina Bay; the river extends more than two kilometers beyond its original source at the Kim Seng Bridge as the Alexandra Canal. The mouth of the Singapore River was the old Port of Singapore, being naturally sheltered by the southern islands. Historically, the city initially grew around the port so the river mouth became the center of trade, commerce and finance. During British colonization, the river was the commercial artery and the center of economic activity. From the second decade of the 19th century and well into the 20th century, the river's waters were highly polluted due to the disposal of garbage, sewage, and other by-products from the industries located along its banks, but in 1977 the government ordered the cleaning of the rivers of the country, which have recovered their previous state.

FAROE ISLANDS

FAROE ISLANDS / FØROYAR.

Islands.
Nólsoy.
Last stamp in a set of 4, issued on 18.09.2000.
Face value: 1,000 Faroese oyra.
Printing: Offset lithography.

Catalogs
- AFA No. 376.
- Michel No. 384.
- Scott No. 386.
- StampWorld No. 376.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 375.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 380.

Nólsoy is an island in central Faroe Islands. It has an area of 10.3 km² (4.0 sq mi) and its population was 227 people in 2018. The highest point of the island is Eggjarklettur (372 m or 1,220 ft). The southern coast contains two capes, each with a lighthouse (Øknastangi on the south-east, Borðan on the south); The lighthouses were built in the late 18th century. There is only one settlement on the island, also called Nólsoy, on the north-west coast on the Stongin peninsula which is attached to the rest of the island by a meter-wide isthmus. Nólsoy has been identified as an Important Bird Area by BirdLife International because of its significance as a breeding site for seabirds, especially European storm petrels, Atlantic puffins and black guillemots.

SLOVAKIA

SLOVAKIA / SLOVENSKO.

Technological advances.
Orava Dam and Reservoir.
Stamp issued on 21.04.2017.
Face value: 0.95 euro.
Design: Marián Komáček (b. 1959).
Engraving: František Horniak (b. 1956).
Printed by Poštovní tiskárna cenin Praha.
Printing: Photogravure and recess.
Print: 1,000,000 copies.
Size: 44.1 x 26.5 mm.

Catalogs
- AFA No. 780.
- Michel No. 815.
- POFIS No. 634.
- Scott No. 764.
- StampWorld No. 803.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 761.
- Unificato No. 815.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 714.

Orava (Slovak: Oravská priehrada) is a reservoir in northernmost Slovakia, forming the largest lake in Slovakia (35.2 km²). It was created by the construction of a dam between 1941 and 1953 on the former two sources of the Orava river. Several former villages had to be inundated for this purpose. The reservoir has two islands: Vtáčí ostrov ("Bird Island"), an ornithological reservation with Protected Bird Area status, and Slanický ostrov ("Slanica Island").

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

CAMBODIA

CAMBODIA / ស្រុកខ្មែរ

Opening of Sihanoukville port.
Map of Souhanoukville and portrait of King Norodom Sihanouk.
Second stamp in a set of 3, issued on 02.04.1960.
Face value: 5 Cambodian riel.
Printing: Recess.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 99.
- Scott No. 77.
- StampWorld No. 99.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 99.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 85.

Sihanoukville (Khmer: ក្រុងព្រះសីហនុ [Krŏng Preăh Seihănŭ], also known as Kampong Som (Khmer: កំពង់សោម [Kâmpóng Saôm]), is a coastal city in Cambodia and the capital of Preah Sihanouk Province, at the tip of an elevated peninsula in the country's south-west on the Gulf of Thailand. The city, which was named in honour of former king Norodom Sihanouk (portrait on the stamp), had a population of around 73,000 people in 2019, and approximately 66,700 in its urban center. A relatively young city, established November 22, 1957, it has evolved in parallel with the construction of the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port, which commenced in June 1955, as the country's gateway to direct international sea trade. Sihanoukville's many beaches and nearby islands make it Cambodia's premier seaside resort with steadily rising numbers of national visitors and international tourists since the late-20th century.

TURKEY

TURKEY / TÜRKİYE.

Tourism.
Alanya City and Bay.
Last stamp in a set of 5, issued on 05.04.1965.
Face value: 130 Turkish kuruş.
Printed by APA Offset Basimevi.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Print: 1,000,000 copies.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 1948.
- Scott No. 1643.
- StampWorld No. 1992.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 2094.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1731.

Alanya, formerly Alaiye, is a beach resort city and a district of Antalya Province on the southern coast of Turkey, in the Mediterranean Region. As of 2010 census, the city had a population of 98,627. Because of its natural strategic position on a small peninsula into the Mediterranean Sea below the Taurus Mountains, Alanya has been a local stronghold for many Mediterranean-based empires, including the Ptolemaic, Seleucid, Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman Empires. Alanya's greatest political importance came in the Middle Ages, with the Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm under the rule of Alaeddin Kayqubad I, from whom the city derives its name.

UNITED KINGDOM, England

UNITED KINGDOM. England.

A British Journey.
Start Point, Start Bay.
Third stamp in a set of 6, issued on 08.02.2005.
Face value: 40 British penny.
Design: Phelan Barker Design Consultants.
Printed by De La Rue & Co. Ltd., Basingstoke (England). 
Printing: Photogravure.
Size: 35 x 35 mm.

Catalogs
- AFA No. 2479.
- Michel No. 2276.
- Scott No. 2263.
- StampWorld No. 2261.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 2514.
- Unificato No. 2657.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 2618.

Start Point is a promontory in the South Hams district in Devon, south-west England. Close to the most southerly point in the county, it marks the southern limit of Start Bay, which extends northwards to the estuary of the River Dart. The rocks of the point are greenschist and mica-schist, formed by metamorphism of Devonian sediments during a period of mountain building towards the end of the Carboniferous period. As a result of the many shipwrecks in the area, Start Point lighthouse was built in 1836 to alert ships to the danger of the point and its surrounding rocks.

CUBA

CUBA.

Lighthouses of Cuba.
Morro de Santiago de Cuba Lighthouse and simplified map of Cuba.
Last stamp in a set of 3, issued on 25.10.1982.
Face value: 30 centavos of Cuban peso.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Print: 288,000 copies.
Size: 33.5 x 45 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 2704.
- Scott No. 2555.
- StampWorld No. 2708.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 2861.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 2405.

The Morro lighthouse is located next to the San Pedro de la Roca Castle, better known as Castillo del Morro, built by the Spanish colonizers in the 17th century south of the city of Santiago de Cuba, on the shores of the Caribbean Sea, on the southernmost coast of the island. Its height is 18 m (59 ft), 83 m (272 ft) from sea level. It is the work of French builders and was put into operation in 1842. It was destroyed during the Spanish-American War in 1898, and was rebuilt in a short time. The lighthouse was modernized in 1914 but, due to disruptions caused by World War I, its optical equipment was not installed until 1923. Its lamp emits beams of light through lenses, which rotate 360 degrees. Its range is 27 nautical miles (approximately 50 km or 31 mi).

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.