AUSTRALIA

AUSTRALIA.

Ramsar Wetlands.
Cobourg Peninsula.
First stamp in a set of 4, issued on 22.02.2021.
Face value: 20 cents of Australia dollar.
Design: Sonia Young.
Printed by Ego Print.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Size: 37.5 x 26 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 5271.
- Scott No. 5257.
- StampWorld No. 3979.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 5410.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 5046.

The Cobourg Peninsula is located 350 km (217 mi) east of Darwin in the Northern Territory of Australia. It is deeply indented with coves and bays, covers a land area of about 2,100 km² (811 sq mi), and is virtually uninhabited with a population ranging from about 20 to 30 in five family outstations, but without any notable settlement or village. In the north is the Arafura Sea, and in the south the Van Diemen Gulf. The highest elevation is Mount Roe in the south with an altitude of 160 m (525 ft). All of Cobourg Peninsula is part of Garig Gunak Barlu National Park, which also encompasses a few nearshore islands. Cobourg Peninsula was Australia’s and the world’s first Wetland of International Importance. The Site covers an area of approximately 220,000 hectares and is composed of terrestrial, riverine, permanent freshwater and brackish and intertidal and coastal/marine ecosystems. It supports over 800 plant species, 64 species of coral, 406 species of marine invertebrate from the coral reef or the intertidal zone, 35 mammals, 71 reptiles, 19 frogs and 236 bird species.

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

SWEDEN

SWEDEN / SVERIGE.

Landscapes of the Stockholm archipelago.
Långviksskär Nature Reserve.
Second stamp in a set of 4, issued on 13.05.2004.
No face value (INRIKES BREV)
Design: J. Wikström.
Printed by Kungliga Postens Frimärkstryckeri.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Size: 38 x 27 mm.

- AFA No. 2337.
- Facit No. 2426.
- Michel No. 2407.
- Scott No. 2484b.
- StampWorld No. 2409.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 2332.
- Unificato No. 2389.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 2389.

The Stockholm Archipelago, in the Baltic Sea, east of the Swedish capital, is made up of some 300 islands and islets that are part of the Värmdö Minicipality. It is a large nature reserve protected since 1983, with an area of 28 hectares. The reserve includes the island of Långviksskär and the surrounding archipelago, with the natural harbors of Hallskär and Söderö.

CUBA

CUBA.

Lighthouses of Cuba.
Cayo Paredón Grande lighthouse and simplified map of Cuba.
Second stamp in a set of 3, issued on 25.10.1982.
Face value: 20 centavos of Cuban peso.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Print: 288,000 copies.
Size: 33.5 x 45 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 2703.
- Scott No. 2554.
- StampWorld No. 2707.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 2860.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 2404.

Cayo Paredón Grande is an island of the Jardines del Rey archipelago, north of Camagüey Province. Its extension is 8.7 km² (3.36 sq mi). It is located off the north coast of Cayo Romano, to which it is linked by a viaduct. The island's economy is mainly based on tourism, thanks to its white sand beaches. The lighthouse, also known as Faro Diego Velázquez, built in 1859, has a height of 48 m (157.5 ft) and a range of 27 nautical miles (50 km, or 31 mi).

IRAN

IRAN / ایران

Definitive stamps.
Farahnaz Dam and Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi.
Third stamp in a set of 11, issued on 01.09.1974.
Face value: 50 Iranian dinar.
Printing: Photogravure.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 1740.
- Scott No. 1822.
- StampWorld No. 1741.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1898.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1611.

Farahnaz Dam, now know as Latiyan Dam (Persian: سد لتيان), built for the Tehran Regional Water Board between 1963 and 1967, is a concrete max gravity structure located in a maximum height of 107 m (351 ft) and a crest length of nearly 360 m (1,181 ft). It is located 25 km (15.5 mi) north-est of Tehran, in the south of city of Lavasan, in the course of the Jajrud River, southern part of central Alborz mountain range. Associated with the dam are a hydro-electric peak power station.

GERMAN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC

GERMAN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC / DEUTSCHE DEMOKRATISCHE REPUBLIK.

500th anniversary of the birth of Thomas Müntzer.
Map with the most representative locations in the life of Müntzer.
Minisheet issued on 21.03.1989.
Face value: 110 East German pfennig.
Design: Gerhard Schmidt.
Printed by Deutsche Wertpapierdruckerei (VEB), Leipzig.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Print: 2,100,000 copies.
Size: 86 x 66 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. BL97.
- Scott No. 2736.
- StampWorld No. 2979.
- Stanley Gibbons No. MSE2938.
- Unificato No. BF97.
- Yvert et Tellier No. BF96.

Thomas Müntzer (1489 or 1490 – May 27, 1525) was a German preacher and theologian of the early Reformation whose opposition to both Martin Luther and the Roman Catholic Church led to his open defiance of late-feudal authority in central Germany. He became a leader of the German peasant and plebeian uprising of 1525 commonly known as the German Peasants' War. He was captured after the Battle of Frankenhausen, tortured and executed.

AUSTRIA

AUSTRIA / ÖSTERREICH.

Scenic Beauties in Austria.
Weißsee (Salzburg).
Stamp issued on 09.05.2000.
Face value: 7 Austrian schilling.
Design: Peter Sinawehl (b. 1948).
Engraving: Gerhart Schmirl (b. 1942).
Printing: Photogravure and recess.
Print: 2,800,000 copies.
Size: 43 x 36 mm.

Catalogs
- AFA No. 2203.
- ANK No. 2345.
- Michel No. 2310.
- Scott No. 1813.
- StampWorld No. 2359.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 2557.
- Unificato No. 2143.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 2136.

The Weißsee (also spelled Weisssee) is a reservoir in the state of Salzburg. It is located in the Stubache catchment area, on the border of the Granatspitz and Glockner groups, in the Alps, in the municipality of Uttendorf, at 2,250 m (7,382 ft) above sea level. Its function is to store water and its storage volume is 15.7 million m³ (554 ft³). In 1929 the Enzingerboden and Tauernmoossee power stations were established on the site, and in 1941 the Schneiderau power station. Between 1950 and 1952, the Weißsee was enlarged by the construction of a 39 m (128 ft) high gravity dam with a 235 m (771 ft) long straight crown. In 1951 the area was opened to tourism thanks to the installation of a cable car and ski slopes began to be built. The Rudolfshütte mountain hotel on the northeast side of the lake, opened in 1958 on the site of the Austrian Alpine Club until 1952, is also visible on the stamp.

BULGARIA

BULGARIA / БЪЛГАРИЯ.

Landscapes.
Vrattsata (Вратцата) or Vratsa Pass.
First stamp in a set of 6, issued on 26.10.1964.
Face value: 1 Bulgarian stotinka.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 10,000,000 copies.
Size: 22 x 33 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 1470.
- Scott No. 1372.
- StampWorld No. 1482.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1481.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1285.

The Vrattsata Pass is a narrow passage amidst the tall cliffs formed by the Leva River, in the Vrachanski Balkan, which is part of the Balkan Mountains. It is located between the towns of Vratsa (393 m, or 1,289 ft, above sea level) and Zgorigrad (465 m, or 1,525 ft), in northwestern Bulgaria. In the Middle Ages, it was called Vratitsa and remains of the fortress of the same name (10th - 12th centuries) are preserved in it. The sheer cliffs of Vrattsata are the highest on the Balkan Peninsula (over 400 m, or 1,312 ft) and are the most popular climbing spot in Bulgaria. The third category road III-1002 runs through the pass. It was declared a natural monument in 1964, with an area of 2 hectares, and is part of the Vrachanski Balkan Nature Park.

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.

COSTA RICA

COSTA RICA.

Visit of the President of the Republic to Cocos Island on June 24, 1978.
View of the island from the sea.
Airmail. First stamp in a set of 5, issued in minisheet on 30.04.1979.
Face value: 90 cents of Costa Rican colón.
Printed by Casa Gráfica, San José.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Size: 38 x 28 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 1019.
- Scott No. C737.
- StampWorld No. 1024.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1121.
- Yvert et Tellier No. PA727.

Cocos Island (Spanish: Isla del Coco) is an island in the Pacific Ocean administered by Costa Rica, approximately 550 km (342 mi; 297 nmi) southwest of the Costa Rican mainland. It constitutes a district of Puntarenas Canton of Puntarenas Province. With an area of approximately 23.85 km² (9.21 sq mi), the island is more or less rectangular in shape, measuring about 8 km × 3 km (5 mi × 2 mi) with a perimeter of around 23.3 km (14.5 mi). The landscape is mountainous and irregular; the highest point is Cerro Iglesias, at 575.5 m (1,888 ft). The entirety of Cocos Island has been designated a Costa Rican National Park since 1978, and became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997. In addition, it is included in the list of Wetlands of International Importance. It has no permanent inhabitants other than Costa Rican park rangers. Access by civilians is very limited; tourists are allowed ashore only with permission of island rangers, and are not permitted to camp, stay overnight or collect any flora, fauna or minerals from the island. Cocos Island was annexed by Costa Rica in 1832 by decree of the Constitutional Assembly of the newly independent country.

AUSTRALIAN ANTARCTIC TERRITORY

AUSTRALIAN ANTARCTIC TERRITORY.

Shackleton Expedition at South Magnetic Pole, 1908-1909.
Members of the British Anctartic Expedition.
Stamp issued on 05.07.1961.
Face value: 5 Australian penny.
Design and engraving: Frank Davies Manley (1894-1976) and George Lissenden.
Printing: Recess.
Print: 46,455,000 copies.
Size: 24 x 29 mm.

Catalogs
- Brusden-White No. 3.
- Michel No. 6.
- Scott No. L6.
- Seven Seas Stamps No. 3.
- StampWorld No. 6.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 6.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 6.

In 1907 Irish explorer Ernest Shackleton led an expedition to Antarctica aboard the Nimrod. On October 5, 1908, his three companions depicted on the stamp, Edgeworth David, Alistair Mackay, and Douglas Mawson, set out a march that took them to the southernmost point ever trodden by human beings, the South Magnetic Pole, northwest of the Ross Island, which they reached on January 16, 1909. The trio had covered a distance of 2,030 km (1,260 mi) feeding on seals and penguins.

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).

ESTONIA

ESTONIA / EESTI.

Estonian Lighthouses.
Laidunina Lighthouse.
Stamp issued on 20.02.2002.
Face value: 4.40 Estonian kroon.
Design: Roman Matkiewicz (b. Tallinn, 27.02.1966).
Printed by AS Vaba Maa, Tallinn.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Print: 311,080 copies.
Size: 33 x 27.5 mm.

Catalogs
- AFA No. 458.
- Michel No. 429.
- Scott No. 434.
- StampWorld No. 465.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 418.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 414.

Laidunina Lighthouse (Estonian: Laidunina tuletorn) is located in Kahtlalaid Peninsula, Laimjala Parish, on the island of Saaremaa. It was built in 1907 of red brick with a gallery and a one-story hexagonal stone base. The height of the tower is 24 m (78.7 ft) from the foot and 27 m (88.6 ft) from sea level. The lantern was removed, with the lighthouse being deactivated in 1924. The lighting equipment was transferred to Kübassaare Lighthouse. Later the tower was used as a day signal. Since 2004 it is no longer used as a navigation signal. The lighthouse was recognized as an architectonic monument of Estonia in 2005.

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.]

GERMANY

GERMANY / DEUTSCHLAND.

Hörnum Lighthouse.
Second stamp in a set of 2, issued on 12.07.2007.
Face value: 55 Euro cents.
Design: Johannes Graf (b. 1960).
Printed by Bagel Security-Print GmbH & Co. KG, Düsseldorf.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Print: 8,320,000 copies.
Size: 35 x 35 mm.

Catalogs
- AFA No. 3514.
- Michel No. 2613.
- Scott No. 2448.
- StampWorld No. 2453.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 3487.
- Unificato No. 2445.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 2438.

Hörnum (Söl’ring Frisian: Hörnem; Danish: Hørnum) is a municipality in the district of Nordfriesland, in Schleswig-Holstein State. It is located on the southern headland of the island of Sylt. According to the census of December 31, 2020, its population was 917 people. The 33.5 meter high lighthouse, built in 1907, was also used as a school between 1918 and 1930. In both the first and second world wars Hörnum was considered a strategic location: in 1914 the first military barracks were built , and in the mid-1930s the Luftwaffe established a naval air station in the town, causing the population to increase markedly. In the 1970s, the development of tourism began and the military use of the island was terminated.

CHINA PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC

CHINA PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC / 中华人民共和国

Huanglong Scenic Area (Sichuan Province).
Marvelous Flying Waterfall.
Second stamp in a set of 3, issued on 27.08.2009.
Face value: 1.20 Chinese renminbi yuan.
Printing: Photogravure.
Size: 50 x 30 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 4075.
- StampWorld No. 4150.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 5379.

Huanglong Valley (黄龙沟) is a scenic area located in Songpan County, Sichuan Province. It was listed as a World Heritage Site in 1992. The area, which extends over 700 km² (270 sq mi), contains two parts: the Huanglong and Mounigou. This scenic spot is the result of the formations of tepatate which give a special color to ponds and beaches. Together with high mountains, snow covered peaks, valleys, waterfalls, lakes and forests, these tepatates look especially marvelous. The Marvelous Flying Waterfall (飛瀑流輝) is represented on the stamp.

Thanks to Krystyna Betiuk for his contribution (https://pocztowkowezbiory.blogspot.com/)

NORTH KOREA

NORTH KOREA / 북조선 - 북한 - 北朝

Mountain landscapes.
Waterfall on Mount Myohyang.
Third stamp in a set of 4, issued 09.09.1973.
Face value: 10 North Korean chon.
Printing: Offset lithography.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 1191.
- Scott No. 1138.
- StampWorld No. 1218.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1167.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1110.

The Mount Myohyang (Hangul: 묘향산 ["Mysterious Fragrant Mountain"]), 1,909 m (6,263 ft) high, is named after the mystic shapes and fragrances found in the area. It is a sacred site as, according to legend, it was the home of King Dangun, forefather of the Korean people. Much of the mountain is covered by mixed broadleaf and coniferous forest and protected in a 16,000 hectares (62 sq mi) national park. Some 7,000 hectares (27 sq mi) have been identified by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area (IBA). In 2009 UNESCO designated this mountain a world biosphere reserve, citing its cultural significance as well as the spectacular cliffs providing habitat for 30 endemic plant species, 16 plant species that are globally threatened and 12 endangered animal species.

CAMBODIA

CAMBODIA / ស្រុកខ្មែរ

Dragon Bridge.
First stamp in a set of 3, issued on 13.04.1999.
Face value: 500 Cambodian riel.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Size: 46 x 31 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 1927.
- Scott No. 1853.
- StampWorld No. 1949.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1867.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1638.

The road from Phnom Penh to Angkor crosses the Chi Kraeng River by the Dragon Bridge, officially Spean Pappos (Khmer: ស្ពានប្រាប់ទិស), also known as Kampong Kdei Bridge (ស្ពានកំពង់ក្ដី), in the town of the same name. It is the longest cantilever stone arch bridge in the world, at 87 m (285 ft), with more than twenty arches. It was built in the 12th century during the reign of King Jayavarman VII and is one of the few bridges from the era of the Khmer empire that have survived to this day. It was restored between 1964 and 1966.

SWITZERLAND

SWITZERLAND / SCHWEITZ - SUISSE - SVIZZERA - SVIZRA.

Bridges.
Railroad viaduct Koblenz-Felsenau.
Third stamp in a set of 4, issued on 10.09.1991.
Face value: 80 cents of Swiss franc.
Design: Pierre Baur.
Printed by Courvoisier.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 14,565,000 copies.
Size: 37 x 27 mm.

Catalogs
- AFA No. 1434.
- Michel No. 1452.
- Scott No. 895.
- StampWorld No. 1446.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1233.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1380.
- Zumstein No. 816.

The Railroad viaduct Koblenz-Felsenau or Koblenz-Aare Railway Bridge (German: Aarebrücke Koblenz) over the Aare River, between the stations of Koblenz and Felsenau, in the canton of Aargau, very close to its mouth in the Rhine and the border with Germany, it was built between 1891 and 1892 by the Schweizerische Nordostbahn as part of the Rhine Valley Railway, for the Stein-Koblenz line. It is a 236 m (774 ft) long single track bridge designed by engineer Robert Moser. Since 1994, only freight trains have run through it.

CYPRUS

CYPRUS / ΚΥΠΡΟΣ – KIBRIS

Scenes and landscapes.
Sunrise at Protaras coast.
Eleventh stamp in a set of 15, issued on 18.03.1985.
Face value: 25 Cypriot cents.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Print: 1,000,000 copies.
Size: 27 x 37 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 636.
- Scott No. 650.
- StampWorld No. 648.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 658
- Yvert et Tellier No. 632.

Protaras (Greek: Πρωταράς) is a predominantly tourist resort which comes under the administrative jurisdiction of Paralimni Municipality in Famagusta District, eastern Cyprus. Protaras has clear sky-blue waters and sandy beaches, the most well-known of which is Fig Tree Bay. In 2011 the population of the town was 20,230 people. In ancient times, where Protaras is now located, stood the old city-state of Leukolla.

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