Taiwan FDC on "100th Anniversary of the Alishan Forest Railway"

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Taiwan

100th Anniversary of the Alishan Forest Railway

Date of Issue : 25 December 2011

The Beimen to Erwanping section of Alishan Forest Railway was officially opened to traffic on December 25, 1912. Along with the mountain’s sacred trees, sunrise, sunset, and sea of clouds, the railway is one of the “Five Wonders of Alishan.” The Alishan Forest Railway was once a very busy train track because of logging on the mountain.

The souvenir sheet has a bright color scheme with mountains and a route map in the background. Four different trains are featured.
NT$25 stamp : A train pulled by a No.31 steam engine passing through flowering cherry trees
NT$5 stamp : A train headed by a diesel engine, is coming out of the No.1 tunnel
On the sheet there is a train on the No.13 Bridge over the Niuchou River and a train being pulled by the No. 25 steam engine. With its images of trains traversing the forest, the sheet is imbued with a great sense of dynamism. The beautiful golden emblem on the upper left corner signifies the railway’s glorious service over the last hundred years.

Antigua and Barbuda Postcard - English Harbour

Postcard
明信片
Bilhete Postal

Antigua & Barbuda

Really a very beautiful postcard showing the English Harbour and Nelson's Dockyard. Thank You very much to my friend !

China Postcard - Potala Palace

Postcard
明信片
Bilhete Postal

China

A very nice postcard showing the Potala Palace in Lhasa, Tibet. Thank You very much !

Portugal Postcard - Centenary of Portuguese Republic

Postcard
明信片
Bilhete Postal

Portugal

Centenário da República Portuguesa

Centenary of Portuguese Republic

Date of Issue : May 2010

Very nice postcards from Portugal. Thank You very much to my friend !

Argentina Christmas Cover

Cover
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Sobrescrito

Argentina

Very nice Christmas cover from Argentina.

Wishing you all a merry Christmas !

Slovakia FDC on "ART: Panel Painting of Metercia Rožňava"

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Slovakia

ART: Panel Painting of Metercia Rožňava

Date of Issue : 13 December 2011

The painting of Anna Selbdritt from Rožňava (1513), in literature also known under the name of Metercia from Rožňava, is one of the most famous works of art of the late Gothic period in Slovakia.

Very nice Slovak FDC sent from Rožňava. The stamp is very beautiful. On the FDC, there is also the special postmark of the inauguration of stamp. Thank You very much !

Sri Lanka Postcard

Postcard
明信片
Bilhete Postal

Sri Lanka

A postcard with Sri Lankan christmas stamp. Thank You very much to my friend !

China FDC on "Ancient Astronomical Instruments (China - Denmark Joint Issue)"

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China


Ancient Astronomical Instruments (China - Denmark Joint Issue)

Date of Issue : 10 December 2011

(Left)
2-1 : Abridged Armilla
Jianyi (literally simplified instrument), or abridged armilla was invented by Chinese Yuan Dynasty astronomer Guo Shoujing (1231 - 1316) in 1279. As one of the significant astronomical instruments in Chinese history, the device overcame the problem of traditional armillary sphere's interwined rings, which created inconvenience for observation, and had a simpler construction featuring seperate rings perpendicular to each other. Mainly used to determine positions of celestial bodies by measuring their right ascension and declination, it was the world's most advanced astronomical instrument of its time.

(Right)
2-2 : Equatorial Armillary Sphere
The equatorial armillary sphere, constructed by Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe in 1585, was employed to observe the ecliptic co-ordinates and measure the longitude and latitude of the celestial bodies. As the inspiration of modern telescope's equatorial mount, the device was considered a milestone astronomical invention during the Renaissance in the West.

Portugal Postcard - International Year of Forests 2011

Postcard
明信片
Bilhete Postal

Portugal

Ano Internacional das Florestas 2011

International Year of Forests 2011

Date of Issue : 9 May 2011

A very special postcard made of cork. Thank You very much to my friend !

El Salvador Aerogramme - Basilica de Guadalupe

Aerogramme
航空郵簡
Bilhete Carta-Avião

El Salvador

A very nice El Salvador aerogramme featuring the Basilica de Guadalupe. Thank You very much !

Slovakia FDC on "ART: Ján Sambucus (1531 – 1584)"

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Slovakia

ART: Ján Sambucus (1531 – 1584)

Date of Issue : 25 November 2011

Johannes Sambucus (June 1, 1531, Nagyszombat - June 13, 1584, Vienna) was a Hungarian humanist scholar: physician, philologist and historian.

He was the composer of the most renowned Hungarian Emblemata book: Emblemata cum aliquot nummis antiqui operis, Ioannis Sambuci Tirnaviensis Pannonii. (1564). Sambucus' emblem book was edited five times and it was translated into French and Dutch. He also wrote the Icones veterum aliquot ac recentium Medicorum Philosophorumque in 1574, published in Antwerpen.

On the FDC, there is one of the illustrations of Sambucus collection "Emblemata".

Singapore Aerogramme - Scenes of Singapore

Aerogramme
航空郵簡
Bilhete Carta-Avião

Singapore

This is the third Singaporean aerogrammes from the "Scenes of Singapore" series . Thank You very much !

Israel FDC on "Israeli Football Legends"

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Israel

Israeli Football Legends

Date of Issue : 6 December 2011

Design :
Menachem Ashkenazi: (1934-2000) Israel’s senior football referee and an international referee. He officiated at the Final of the 1964 Olympic tournament in Tokyo and also in the 1966 FIFA World Cup in England.

Jerry Beit Halevi: (1912-1997) Moshe (Jerry) Beit-ha-Levi played for Maccabi Tel Aviv and for the Eretz Israel national football team. He managed Maccabi Tel Aviv and, in the early 1950’s, the Israel national football team as well.

Shmuel Ben-Dror: (1924-2009) Played soccer for the Maccabi Avshalom Petach Tikva team. He enlisted in the Jewish Brigade and fought during World War II. In 1948 he served as the first captain of the Israel national football team in a game against the U.S. national team in New York.

Ya’akov Grundman: (1939-2004) A Polish-born Holocaust survivor. He played for Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv as well as for the Israel national football team and managed the national team alongside Itzhak Shneor as half of the renowned “S.G.” duo.

Ya’akov Hodorov: (1927-2006) Born in Rishon LeZion and played for the local Maccabi and Hapoel teams. He transferred to Hapoel Tel Aviv and while there grew to be Israel’s premier goalkeeper. Hodorov was the Israel national football team goalkeeper from 1949-1964.

Avi Cohen: (1956-2010) Played for Maccabi Tel Aviv and transferred to Liverpool, with whom he won an English national league championship. He was captain of the Israel national football team and played with the team in the 1974 Olympic Games in Montreal. He was killed in a motorcycle accident.

Nahum Stelmach: (1936-1999) Played for Hapoel Petach Tikva, leading his team to six league championships. He was an Israel national football team player and captain, scoring the first goal ever scored by the Israel national team at the Ramat Gan national stadium during a game against the Soviet Union in 1956.

Eli Fuchs: (1924-1992) Joined Maccabi Tel Aviv as a youth and is considered to have been the team leader and one of its best players from the eve of Israel’s independence through the mid-1950’s. Fuchs was an Israel national football team player and its highly admired captain until 1954.

Natan Panz: (1917-1948) Began his career with Maccabi Tel Aviv, from which he reached the Israel national football team. In 1939 he transferred to Beitar Tel Aviv, with which he was identified. Penetz fell during a battle of Etzel fighters in Jaffa during the 1948 War of Independence.

Avi Ran: (1963-1987) An esteemed goalkeeper for Maccabi Haifa and the Israel national football team in the 1980’s. He was killed in a tragic accident in the Sea of Galilee. Today, the Israel National Youth Championship cup bears his name.

Its really a nice FDC. I just like it. Thank you very much to my friend !

Russia FDC on "225 Years of Insurance in Russia"

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Russia

225 Years of Insurance in Russia

Date of Issue : 25 November 2011

The stamp depicts the portrait of Queen Catherine II and the text of the manifesto

Another very nice Russian FDC. Thank You very much to my friend.

Israel FDC on "The Valley Railway"

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Israel

The Valley Railway

Date of Issue : 6 December 2011

Design :
Stamp – Hijaz Railway “Hartmann 2-8-2” steam engine and a train against the background of the Jezreel Valley landscape
Tab – Turkish period buildings at the Kfar Yehoshua station, which were renovated and restored and currently serve as a visitor’s center
First Day Cover – Steam engine number 152, an “SLM 2-8-0”, leading a train into the Beit Yosef station in the 1930’s. In the background – a map of the Valley

“The Valley Railway” (Rakevet HaEmek) is the Hebrew nickname for the Haifa branch line of the famed Hijaz Railway.

The branch line to Haifa was built from 1903-1906, to transport materials imported via sea and required for the construction of the Hijaz Railway’s main line. It was largely based on a failed project from the late 19th century, led by a British company that tried to establish a rail line from Haifa to Damascus. The line began at the Haifa Station (today Haifa East), continuing southeast along the foot of Mount Carmel to the Jezreel Valley and the city of Afula. From there, the track descended toward Beit She’an, where it turned north and continued through the Jordan Valley to Samakh, where a second main station was established, also serving the city of Tiberius. From Samakh the rail line continued eastward, ascending toward the Hauran Plateau through the Yarmouk Valley to Daraa in southern Syria, where it connected to the main line of the Hijaz Railway. This last section of the line posed complex challenges for the railway engineers, eventually leading to the construction of some 15 bridges and 7 tunnels along the Yarmouk alone.

The stamp and the FDC cover is very nice. Its just a pity that the stamp is double cancellation with an unclear datestamp postmark. Its a surprise to me that there is a Hong Kong TCL datestamp postmark of a rather special date of 13-12-11 on the back of the FDC. I just like it. Thank you very much to my friend !

Indonesia FDC on "50 Years of TRIKORA / 60 Years of TNI"

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Indonesia


50 Years of TRIKORA / 60 Years of TNI

Date of Issue : 5 October 2011

Operation Trikora was an Indonesian military operation which aimed to seize and annex the Dutch overseas territory of Netherlands New Guinea in 1961 and 1962. As a result, the Netherlands agreed on 15 August 1962 to hand over Western New Guinea to Indonesia.

Latvia FDC on "Christmas 2011"

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Latvia

Christmas 2011

Date of Issue : 2 December 2011

Very nice FDC from Latvia. The stamps are very cute. Thank You very much to my friend !

Slovakia FDC on "Postage Stamp Day: Historical Mailbox"

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Slovakia

Postage Stamp Day: Historical Mailbox

Date of Issue : 2 December 2011

The oldest preserved mailbox comes from 1820 and is located in the collection fund of the Museum of Balneology in Piešťany. The place of this mailbox is identified in the so-called Frauenfeld plan of Piešťany from 1824, in which the house “To the post trumpet” is marked. The branch of Hlohovec post office was here. In this post office, there was a mobile mailbox made of wood in the shape of a book with a metal holder in the upper part, forming the main motif of the postage stamp. The coupon of the postage stamp shows the mailbox of the system PARIS in the Art Nouveau version. It was used in Austria-Hungary between 1895 and 1918 and comes from the collections of the Postal Museum in Prague. The background of the postage stamp is completed with the image of riding, showing the postilion with a trumpet, adopted from the woodcut from 1811, in the background of crumpled paper.

Surcharge on the FDC is made up of c. k. the mobile letter collector, showing the image of the postman on a bicycle, prepared on the basis of a model of the Austrian graphic artist from 1890. The motif of the FDC stamp is based on sheet metal, atypical mailbox of the system VRZBA that was used in the territory of Czechoslovakia after 1918. The model of this mailbox also comes from the Postal Museum in Prague, where the most historic three-dimensional objects associated with the history of postal services in the former Czechoslovakia are deposited.

Russia FDC on "100 Years of the Russian Olympic Committee"

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Russia

100 Years of the Russian Olympic Committee

Date of Issue : 25 November 2011

Very special and nice Russian FDCs and the "A" postage paid envelope. Thank You very much to my friend.

Estonia FDC on "Christmas"

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Estonia

Christmas

Date of Issue : 24 November 2011

Indonesia FDC on "26th Southeast Asian Games"

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Indonesia


26th Southeast Asian Games

Date of Issue : 18 October 2011

The 26th Southeast Asian Games was held in Jakarta and Palembang, Indonesia on 11 until 22 November 2011. Indonesia's fourth time to host the SEA Games, it last hosted the Games in 1997. Parallel to the SEA Games, the 6th ASEAN ParaGames for physically disabled athletes, begins 2 weeks after the SEA Games ends, with competition to be held in Surakarta (Solo), Central Java, Indonesia.

Korea FDC on "New Year's Greetings"

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South Korea

New Year's Greetings

Date of Issue : 1 December 2011

Stamp Design :
- The dragon crisscrossing the sky

The year of 2012 is the year of the dragon.

The New Year’s greetings stamps have been printed with photostorage ink since 2001. This year, the dragon's body and the pearl-white snowflakes in the stamp are also printed using photostorage ink and glow in the dark.

Taiwan FDC on "New Year's Greeting Postage Stamps (Issue of 2011)"

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Taiwan

New Year's Greeting Postage Stamps (Issue of 2011)

Date of Issue : 1 December 2011

Continuing the pop modern art and traditional Chinese ink-wash styles of the 2010 issue, the vignette of each of the stamps features a dragon or dragons colored with regal purple and nature's green against an orange background with random yellow splatters. The bright color scheme brings a joyous atmosphere to the Year of the Dragon.

NT$3.50 Stamp: Staring into each other’s eyes, this pair of dragons represents the idea of “belonging to each other” and symbolizes that “all one’s wishes will come true.”

NT$13.00 Stamp: Holding its head up high and ready to spring into action, the image of this dragon represents “pride” and symbolizes “joy and good health.”

NT$12.00 Souvenir Sheet: The image of a proud dragon soaring in the sky conveys the idea of “promotion” and “success.”

This set of stamps features the work of Chen Peiyi, who won a competition to design the stamps.

Algeria FDC on "Sheeps of Algeria"

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Algeria

Sheeps of Algeria

Date of Issue : 16 November 2011

The Algerian Post has issued a set of two stamps illustrating the
widespread breeds of sheep in Algeria: Ouled-Djellal and Hamra.

The "Ouled-Djellal" sheep composes the largest ethnic group of
Algerian sheep, occupying most of the country with the exception of some areas in the southwest and southeast. This is the true sheep of the steppe, the most suitable to nomadism. This is an all-white sheep. Wool covers the entire body to the knees and hocks, his head is white with spiral horns. Their long and strong legs support walking for long distances. This is a breed resistant to arid zones; it uses very different highland pastures of the steppe and rangeland of Sahara.

The "Hamra" breed is a dark-skinned animal with black mucous membrane. Its head and legs are brown red, almost black. The wool is white with brown red. The sheep has medium spiral horns. The range of this race is located in the southwest, it is found also in the foothills of the Saharan Atlas. It is considered the best beef breed in Algeria because of the delicacy of its meat and the roundness of its lines. This is a breed highly resistant to cold and icy winds from the steppes of Oran.