Solomon Islands Allied Victory of WWII in the Pacific.

SOLOMON ISLANDS themed Bi-centenary of American Independence highlighted allied victory of WWII in the Pacific. This First Day Cover featured  four stamps with denominations of 6, 20, 35, and 45 cents, each depicting scenes or figures related to American history. A map of Guadalcanal and Savo Island highlighted locations relevant to World War II and the relationship between the Solomon Islands and the United States.

This cover was issued by the Philatelic Bureau in Honiara, the capital of the Solomon Island. The postmarked originated from Honiara and dated 4 July 1977, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, before the nation's independence from Britain.

The stamps featured events in the Battle of Guadalcanal:

- Coast Watchers 

- The Japanese destroyer Amagiri ramming PT-109 commanded by Lt. John F. Kennedy 

- Map of Guadalcanal and Savo Islands

- Henderson Airfield 

AUSTRALIA POST (Cocos/Keeling Island) Jukong

AUSTRALIA POST (COCOS/KEELING ISLAND) issued on 11 February 1999 a First Day Cover depicting the traditional wooden Cocos jukong which is a version of the Malay sailing boat, once commonly used by the Cocos Malays, the permanent residents of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands. Motorised aluminium or fibreglass boats are the now the norm.

As part of Hari Raya festivities, five days of jukong racing takes place on the lagoon side of Home Island. Up to 50 of the larger boats compete for prize money in as many as five categories. Between nine and twelve jukongs race in an event. Each boat is crewed by three to six people, depending on the wind conditions.

Cover photograph: Lyn Devereux, Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Stamp illustrations: Jacqui Young, Victoria

Typography and cover design: Sandra Harman, Australia Post Graphic Design Studio

Australia Post (Cocos/Keeling Island) Hari Raya 1996

AUSTRALIA POST (COCOS/KEELING ISLAND) issued on 19 February 1996 a First Day Cover  (FDC) featuring stamps from the Cocos (Keeling) Islands  Festive Season (Hari Raya). It included three stamps with denominations of 45c, 75c, and 85c. The stamps depicted scenes of local life and traditions during the Hari Raya season.  

Colonial Malaya (Singapore) King George VI Definitives - 1948

COLONIAL MALAYA (SINGAPORE) on 1 September 1948 issued a definitive series of First Day Cover stamps depicting a profile of British King George VI. The initial design with the image of King George VI was replaced in 1954 with the image of Queen Elizabeth II.

Thailand Post Cover

 

Thailand Post Cover 

USPS Centenary Birth of US Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz.

USPS on 22 February 1985 issued a First Day Cover (FDC) commemorating centenary birth of US Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz. FDC postmark cancellation originated from his birthplace of Fredericksburg, Texas. This 50-cent US postage stamp featured a portrait of Nimitz. It was part of the "Great Americans Series" of stamps. The Nimitz stamp had a print run of 100,500,000.

Chris Calle of Stamford, Connecticut designed the stamp. It was printed in the intaglio process and issued in panes of 100. The art director was Derry Noyes; typographer was Bradbury Thompson; modeler was Clarence Holbert; engravers were Robert G. Culin, Sr. (lettering and numerals) and Thomas R. Hipschen (vignette).

The cachet on the cover depicts Nimitz with a World War II-era aircraft and soldiers, highlighting his command of the Pacific Fleet. 

Nimitz's (1885-1966) tactics and leadership were instrumental in key naval victories in the Pacific during World War II. He first made his mark at the Battle of Midway in June of 1942, when his astute positioning of carriers enabled United States bombers to sink four Japanese carriers and allowed the Allies to shift to the offensive. In the battles of the Philippine Sea and Leyte Gulf, Nimitz's ships drastically reduced the size and power of the Japanese navy. His forces aided in the capture of Iwo Jima and Okinawa and began to raid Japan in 1945, hastening the end of the war in the Pacific.

Admiral Nimitz, whose tact and serenity were proverbial, was acknowledged as one of the US Navy's foremost administrators and strategists and as an expert judge of men. After the war, he became chief of naval operations and later served as United Nations Commissioner for India and Pakistan. He died in 1966.

USPS 19th Amendment

USPS  issued  a First Day Cover stamp on 22 August 2020, honouring the 19th Amendment, which granted women the right to vote.  Inspired by historic photographs, the stamp art featured a stylised illustration of suffragists marching in a parade or other public demonstration. The clothes they wore and the banners they carried display the official colours of the National Woman’s Party — purple, white and gold.

Designed by art director Ethel Kessler using art by Nancy Stahl, the stamp included the words “Women Vote” and “19th Amendment” in shades of purple beneath the image.

It was issued in Seneca Falls, NY, the location of the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention, NY considered the start of the women's rights movement. The U.S. women’s suffrage movement coalesced in Seneca Falls,  where 300 women and men gathered for a two-day women’s rights convention. Their call for women’s suffrage spread across the country in the decades that followed.

On 10 January 1918, the House of Representatives finally approved a constitutional amendment granting women the right to vote. The amendment was introduced in the Senate that September, and President Woodrow Wilson gave a rousing speech in support of it. But the Senate failed to pass the amendment. Suffragists continued their public protests until Wilson called for a special session of Congress.

The amendment eventually passed in the House in May 1919 and in the Senate in June 1919. The tremendously difficult process of ratification, which requires three-quarters of all states (36 of 48 states at the time), took another year.

The 19th Amendment was ratified and added to the Constitution on 26 August 1920, after decades of struggle. The stamp serves as a reminder of the fight for women's suffrage and the importance of voting rights.

Österreich Frauenkopf Symbols of Art and Industry" - 1922-25

ÖSTERREICH issued a series of definitive stamps between 1922 and 1925 to represent the "Symbols of Art and Industry". Austrian artist Wilhelm Dachauer designed this allegorical "Frauenkopf" (woman's head) with an owl perched on her hair. This allegorical head may have been based on the Austrian actress and singer Erika von Wagner. Professor Wilhelm Dachauer was noted for his Jugendstil  (Youth Style) designs, which was an artistic movement used particularly in the decorative arts. The stamps were  engraved by F. Schirnböck using a recess print method. Hyperinflation denominations ranged initially from 25 Krone, then up to 1,000 Krone, 3000 Krone, 5000 Krone, and 10000 Krone, and were differentiated by colour as well as value.

DEUTSCHE POST first flight cover commemorating Lufthansa's inaugural flight from Berlin to Moscow via Vilnius - 1956

DEUTSCHE POST first flight cover commemorating Lufthansa's inaugural flight from Berlin to Moscow via Vilnius in 1956. Cancellation Marks: "Berlin NW Lufthansa Lufpoststelle" dated 4.10.56. Special Cachet: Round stamp "Befördert mit dem Erstflug Berlin-Moskau der Deutschen Lufthansa" (Carried on the first flight Berlin-Moscow by German Lufthansa). Destination: Vilnius, with instructions "poste restante" (held at the post office) indicating the recipient would collect the mail. 

Three of the stamps featured a Deutsche Lufthansa Ilyushin Il-14 airplane. The Ilyushin Il-14 was a Soviet twin-engine commercial and military personnel and cargo transport aircraft that first flew in 1950, and entered service in 1954. The Il-14 was also manufactured in East Germany by VEB Flugzeugwerke as the VEB 14.

Israel Post Masada 1965

ISRAEL POST on 3 February 1965 issued a First Day Cover set of three Masada commemorative stamps. The stamps depicted different views of Masada: the Palace-Lower Terrace, the Northern Palace, and a view from the west. The postmark from Jerusalem. The text "Masada shall not fall again" is prominently featured, referencing the historical siege of Masada. These stamps commemorated the swearing-in ceremony of Israeli Armoured Corps soldiers at Masada, a practice initiated by Moshe Dayan.

Masada (fortress) is an ancient fortification in southern Israel, situated on top of an isolated rock plateau, akin to a mesa. It is located on the eastern edge of the Judaean Desert, overlooking the Dead Sea 20 km east of Arad.

Herod the Great built two palaces for himself on the mountain and fortified Masada between 37 and 31 BC.

According to Josephus, a first century Jewish Roman historian, the siege of Masada by Roman troops from 72 to 73 AD, at the end of the First Jewish–Roman War, ended in the mass suicide of the 960 Sicarii rebels -- an extremist Jewish splinter group antagonistic to a larger group of Jews referred to as the Zealots -- who were hiding there.

However, archaeological evidence relevant to a mass suicide event is ambiguous at best and rejected entirely by some scholars. In modern times, the story of the siege was revived as the Masada myth, a selectively constructed narrative based on Josephus's account. The mythical narrative became a national symbol in the early years of Israel's nationhood

United States Post Office Departmentbicentennial birth of George Washington 1932

UNITED STATES POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT on 1 January 1932 issued 12 stamps to commemorate the  bicentennial birth (1732-1932) of George Washington.  Each stamp featured a different portrait of Washington from various periods of his life. The stamps ranged in value from ½ cent to 10 cents. The 2-cent stamp, depicting Washington, was the most commonly used, matching the standard letter rate at the time. The series was designed by Clair Aubrey Huston and Alvin Meissner using paintings based on works by renowned artists like Jean Antoine Houdon, Gilbert Stuart, John Trumbull and Charles Willson Peale.  The Bureau of Engraving and Printing printed the stamps.

Pos Malaysia Native Bird Series 1965

POS MALAYSIA on 9 September issued First Day Cover (FDC)  featuring the "National Series" of definitive postage stamps depicting native birds. The stamps showcased various Malaysian bird species and their respective values: 75c (Hornbill), 50c (Black-naped oriole), 30c (Blue-backed Fairy Bluebird), 25c (Crested Partridge) and $1 (Zebra dove). Not shown on this FDC is $2 (Kuang or Argus pheasant), $5 (Indian paradise flycatcher) and $10 (Eared pitta)  stamps. The postmarks originated from Kuala Lumpur (then part of Selangor). This prized FDC series was designed by Alec Fraser-Brunner. The stamps were printed by Harrison & Sons using photogravure method. 

Poste Italiani XVII Olympiad Roma 1960

POSTE ITALIANI  on June 1960 issued a set of First Day Cover stamps marking the XVII Olympiad in Rome ("GIOCHI XVII OLIMPIADE"). The stamp design drew attention to the ancient Olympic champions of Magna Grecia, in order to stress the historical continuity of the Games. The postmark cancellation originated from Bergamo, Italy.

The stamps shown:

- L.5 - Capitoline Wolf, symbol of Rome. The sculpture shows a she-wolf suckling the mythical twin founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus. 

- L.15 - Roman Consul

- L.35 - Myron's Discobolus is an ancient Greek sculpture completed at the start of the Classical period in around 460–450 BC that depicts an ancient Greek athlete throwing a discus.

- L.110 - Seated Boxer was a sculpture originally made by  Lyssipus of Sikyon, a sculptor who worked for Alexander the Great, (or a work of Apollonius?, c. 225 BC ), Terme Museum Rome, Italy (Roman Copy 50 BC?). The boxer is wearing something like today's boxing gloves, the himantes.

- L.200 - Apoxyomenos statue was originally an ancient Greek sculpture by Lysippus from around 320 B.C. It portrayed an athlete scraping oil and dust from his body with a strigil -- a familiar act of self-care after exercise.

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