Osta Italia Cover of 1970s Stamps

 

Today, I received this POSTA ITALIA cover from a fellow stamp collector. The cover envelope featured: 

- Four 90 Italian lira stamps of "Completamento Rete Telefonica" (Telephone Network Completion), issued in 1970

- Umberto Boccioni (1882-1916) artwork titled "Woman at Table or Decomposition of the figure of a woman at the table with  a face value of 150 Italian lire, issued in 1975

- Artwork by Girolamo Di Castellana titled "Castellana Caves", depicting. 

 the interior of the Grotte di Castellana, a famous karst cave system in Puglia, Italy. It had a face value of 70 Italian lira, issued in 1977

- "Martyrs of Adreatine Caves" by Francesco Coccia marked the 30th anniversary of the Italian Resistance. The stamp carried a face value of 100 Italian lira, issued in 1975.

-  International Women's Year stamp had a face value of 70 Italian lira, issued in 1975

- Europa Majolica plate stamp had a face value of 150 Italian lira, issued in 1976

USSR "Liberation of the fraternal peoples of Western Ukraine and Western Belorussia" - 1940

USSR issued on 4 April 1940 a set of five stamps to commemorate the "Liberation of the fraternal peoples of Western Ukraine and Western Belorussia" (parts of Poland at the time) which occurred on 17 September 1939.

The set included various denominations and designs:  10, 30, 50, and 60 kopecks, as well as 1 ruble. 500,000 sets were printed. 

These stamps were part of a series intended to legitimise the Soviet annexation of the eastern territories of the Second Polish Republic, an action that was carried out in accordance with a secret clause of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact with Nazi Germany. The Soviet narrative presented the move as a protection and reunification of Ukrainian and Belarusian populations. 

The Soviets quickly began confiscating, nationalizing, and redistributing all private and state-owned Polish property. During the two years following the annexation, the Soviets arrested approximately 100,000 Polish citizens across Kresy.  

In August 2009, on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Soviet invasion, the authoritative Polish Institute of National Remembrance announced that its researchers reduced the estimate of the number of people deported to Siberia to 320,000 in total. Some 150,000 Polish citizens perished under the Soviet rule.

Sarawak Centenary (1841-1941) of the Brooke Dynasty

SARAWAK on 18 May 1946 issued a First Day Cover marking the Centenary (1841-1941) of the Brooke Dynasty, depicting the three White Rajahs of Sarawak. Four different stamps in denominations of 8 cents, 15 cents, 50 cents, and $1 showed portraits of the three White Rajahs: Sir James Brooke (left), Sir Charles Brooke (right), and the last Rajah, Sir Charles Vyner Brooke (center). The postmark cancellation originated from Kuching, Sarawak.

This four-stamp set celebrating 100 years of "White Rajah" rule proved to be the last stamps issued before the Kingdom of Sarawak became a Crown Colony of Britain on 1 July 1946.

Sarawak is on the Island of Borneo. In 1841 Sarawak was proving troublesome and the British adventurer James Brooke helped to subdue the rebellion for the Sultan of Brunei, for which he was given Sarawak to govern. The Brooke dynasty lasted until Sarawak became a British colony in 1946, gained independence in July 1963 and joined the Federation of Malaysia in that September.

French Indochina - 1930s Definitives

FRENCH INDOCHINA 1-centime (brown) and 2-centime (green) issued from 1931 until 1941 depicted  "La Jonque" (traditional Chinese junk sailboat). They were part of 34 definitive stamps printed by Helio-Vaugirard in Paris using the photogravure process. The stamps were printed by the French postal administration and designed by O. Menti (E) and A. Dawassy. 

FRENCH INDOCHINA 3-centime (brown), 4-centime, (blue) 5-centime (purple) and 6-centime (orange) stamps showed  "Ruines d'Ankor", two carved stone faces from the towers of the Bayon Temple in Angkor, Cambodia. It was  part of the "Local Motifs" series issued on 16 November 1931. This definitive series was printed by Helio-Vaugirard in Paris using the photogravure process. Designer / engraver was Antonin (Jean) Delzers (E) and Gabriel-Antoine Barlangue.

FRENCH INDOCHINA "Hoi-Hao" (Paddy Field) was part of a definitive series issued between 6 August 1938. It featured an illustration of a person working in a rice paddy field. The set included various denominations: 10-centimes (blue), 15-centimes (blue and brown) and 20-centimes (pink), and 21-centimes (green). This definitive series was printed by Helio-Vaugirard in Paris using the photogravure process. Designer / engraver was Georges Hourriez (E) and Nguyễn Phan Chánh.

BACKGROUND HISTORY 

French Indochina was officially known as Indochinese Union (Union Indochinese) after 1887 and the Indochinese Federation (Fédération Indochinese) after 1947. This was a grouping of French colonial territories in Southeast Asia that issued postage stamps between 1886 and 1949.

This group comprised three Vietnamese regions of Tonkin (north), Annam (center), and Cochinchina (south) with Cambodia being formed in 1887. Laos was added in 1893 and the leased Chinese territory of Guangzhouwan in 1898. The capital was moved from Saigon (in Cochinchina) to Hanoi (Tonkin) in 1902 and again to Da Lat (Annam) in 1939. In 1945, it was moved back to Hanoi.

After the Fall of France during World War II, the colony was administered by the Vichy government and was under Japanese occupation until March 1945, when the Japanese overthrew the colonial regime. After the Japanese surrender, the Viet Minh, a communist organisation led by Hồ Chí Minh, declared Vietnamese independence, but France subsequently took back control of French Indochina. An all-out independence war, known as the First Indochina War, broke out in late 1946 between French and Viet Minh forces.

In order to create a political alternative to the Viet Minh, the State of Vietnam, led by former Emperor Bảo Đại, was proclaimed in 1949. On 9 November 1953, the Kingdom of Cambodia proclaimed its independence. Following the Geneva Accord of 1954, the French evacuated Vietnam and French Indochina came to an end.

Cover Stamps Finland, Germany, Norway, UK and USA

Recent stamp covers received from Finland, Germany, Norway, UK and USA.

Republique Française Poste Famous People and Architecture

REPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE POSTE stamps, from the 1950s through the 1970s. The collection includes a variety of commemorative stamps featuring historical figures and landmarks. Some stamps depict Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665), a famous French painter, physicists François Arago and André-Marie Ampère, playwright Pierre Corneille (1606-1684), Hippolyte Taine (1828-1895), Gaston Ramon, the bicentenary of the Alfort Veterinary School, and Élie Metchnikoff (1845-1916), Esprit Auber (1782-1871), Alfred de Vigny (1797-1863), Victor Grignard (1871-1936), and Anne-Marie Javouhey (1779-1851) and the agricultural goddess Ceres. Other stamps showcase architectural sites, such as the Château de Saumur, the Palais des Papes in Avignon, Salines de Chaux-Nicolas Ledoux, Vienne, Cluny, and Saint Pol de Leon.

République Française Postes Artwork

RÉPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE POSTES featuring famous paintings by various artists, including Johannes Vermeer's The Lacemaker, Raphael, Vlaminck, Albert Gleizes, Berthe Morisot, and René Magritte.

Many of the artworks represented here are housed in prominent museums, such as the Louvre in Paris.

Republic of China 400th Anniversary of the Birth of Johann Adam Schall von Bell

 

In 1992 REPUBLIC OF CHINA (Taiwan) issued a commemorative stamp marking the 400th Anniversary of the Birth of Johann Adam Schall von Bell (known as Tāng Ruòwàng in China), a German Jesuit, astronomer, and advisor to the Qing dynasty's Shunzhi Emperor.  

Schall von Bell played a significant role in reforming the Chinese calendar and was appointed Director of the Imperial Observatory and the Tribunal of Mathematics. 

Old Postcards

 

OLD POSTCARDS

Tattered and faded

picture postcards

of nameless maidens,

and forgotten lands

set in exotic climes

and idyllic villages,

all framed in an age

when colonialism, 

royalty and wars

reigned supreme.

Cursive impressions,

indigo inked

and penciled,

tell stories

of feluccas on the Nile,

Michaelangelo in the Sistine,

moonlit Balinese beaches,

trekking Machu Picchu,

homesick French soldiers.

Shared testimonials, all,

these timeworn paper tales

for a shilling or more.

Colourfully stamped 

with squares,

rectangles,

triangles,

etched images 

of Queen Victoria,

Belgian missionaries,

Honai huts,

kangaroos,

edelweiss,

biplanes,

and countless wonders of the world,

all postmarked from a bygone age.

Neither snow nor rain 

nor heat nor gloom of night 

stayed the Orient Express,

Special Delivery,

Zeppelin Luftpost,

or Boat Mail.

Horseman, 

footman,

bicycle courier,

all kept their appointed 

destination.

As I read the words,

I hear the voices

of friends, 

of loved ones,

of acquaintances.

I imagine these picture postcards

when they reached the letterbox.

What joy,

what excitement,

what incredible news,

each card must have sparked

when remembered by one

who shared thoughts

and feelings from faraway.

© Breyel, Timm. "Old Postcards". 2026.

Korea Post 70th Anniversary of the Korean Election System,

KOREA POST on 13 June 2018 issued The National Election Commission's first commemorative stamps, "On the Way to the Polling Station" and "Central Election Commission Building". It marked the 70th anniversary of the Korean election. A total of 516,000 commemorative stamps were printed.

"The Road to the Polling Station” is a painting by Kim Dae-nyeon, Secretary General of the National Election Commission, and contains the message that “when voters’ desire for good politics is gathered through elections, the Republic of Korea will be filled with hope.”

The stamps were created to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Korean election system, which began on May 10, 1948, and to raise awareness of the upcoming 13 June local elections.

Czechoslovakia 10th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

CZECHOSLOVAKIA on 23 March 1959 issued a First Day Cover to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The FDC set included three different designs, featuring distinct illustrations and text (in Czech/Slovak) related to the theme: "Rovnost ras" (Racial Equality), "Den lidských práv" (Human Rights Day) and "Svět'u mír" (Peace to the World). The circular postmark indicates the FDC originated from Prague.

The face value of the stamps were: 

- 50 haléřů (indicated as "50h") 

- 1 koruna ("1 Kes")

- 2 koruny ("2 Kes")

Nyassa Company

NYASSA COMPANY, one of three British owned companies formed out of large parts of the colony of Portuguese East Africa (Mozambique) between 1891 and 1929. The company's role was to develop the region as well as run the affairs of cotton fields and plantations.  The company was also granted a charter by the Portuguese government which included the right to issue its own stamps. 

The first definitive stamps were issued in 1901 and printed by Waterlow & Sons in London. 

The stamps feature two main designs: a giraffe browsing a palm tree and a pair of dromedaries  or camels (shown here). 

Having gained this concession to issue its own stamps, the Nyassa Company issued over 140 different postage stamps between 1898 and 1925, far in excess of the normal needs of postal services in the territory. Many of these issues were beautifully designed and generated great philatelic interest, especially in Great Britain. 

The first issues in 1898 were overprints on the stamps of Mozambique, but in 1901 a lovely set of 13 pictorial Nyassa Company stamps featuring a Giraffe and a pair of Dromedaries was issued. The issues popularity was increased by the existence of an “Inverted Centre” error on every value! In fact such was the interest in the philatelic world that the London printers, Waterlow and Sons, reprinted the entire set in 1922.

In 1903 and 1910 the stamps were surcharged with new values, and in 1911 two new designs were added showing a Zebra, and Vasco da Gama’s Ship “Sao Gabriel”, these being overprinted “REPUBLICA” (shown here) to reflect to Portugal’s newly found status as a Republic.

In 1918 the original 1901 set was again surcharged, this time for the new currency of escudos and cents (shown here), and in 1921 the 1911 new designs were also similarly surcharged.

Between 1921 and 1923 a complete new set of twenty stamps was issued in the new currency featuring a reworking of some of the older designs, as well as a Native Dhow, and a portrait of Vasco da Gama (shown here). 1924 and 1925 saw the issue of a triangular Postage Due set, and overprinted Charity Tax stamps, similar to those issued in other parts of the Portuguese Empire.

When control of the area reverted to the Portuguese Colonial Government in 1929, the company lost its concession to issue postage stamps, and the stamps of Mozambique came into use.