New stamps on Christmas and New Year …

 

2012 - The Year of Dragon

Korea

Date of Issue: 1 December 2011 

The year of 2012 is the year of the dragon.

Dragon is the creature of legends, the dragon is described to have an immense body of a snake, the horns of a deer, the ear of a cow, scaly skin, and four legs.Since ancient times, the dragon has been associated to greatness, thus symbolizing royal authority or the throne. Almost everything associated with kings was preceded by the prefix of “yong” (dragon) such as Yongan (king’s face), Gollyongpo (king’s ceremonial attire), Yongsang (the low wooden bench on which the King sat), etc.
The dragon has been positioned as an auspicious symbol in daily life: a dream of forthcoming conception that involves a dragon led to the expectation of the baby growing up to be a great man; farmers worshipped the dragon as the god of water that governs the success of their harvest; fishermen worshipped the dragon as the Dragon King that governs the sea.

New Christmas stamps

Italy

  

Date of Issue: 19 November 2011

The Italian Post has issued two stamps dedicated to the Holy Christmas 2011.

The first stamp reproduces the painting "Madonna and Child with Pomegranate" The second stamp on the secular subject is a typical Christmas snowy landscape with reindeer standing on the night sky.

Paintings on Christmas Stamps

The Christmas 2011 stamps feature some of the most notable artistic representations of The Nativity by world famous artists.

Slovakia

 

Date of Issue: 13 December 2011

Gibraltar

Date of Issue: 7 December 2011

Belarus

Date of Issue: 11 November 2011

Christmas stamp with unique design

Uruguay

The stamp illustrates Uruguayan version of Maria, gaucho (shepherd) and baby Jesus in Christmas crib, creations by Uruguayan artisan Maria Martinez. The figures are entirely handmade: they are made of pumpkin seeds, leather, wool, seeds of the country and other raw material in their natural forms.

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Stamp on Holy Bible …

 

 

 

The Brazilian Post has issued a block of commemorative stamps for Christmas 2011 featuring Holy Bilble'. The upper stamp has the image of an open Bible with the Planet Earth as background. At the lower stamp the closed Bible on a beam of light represents the word of God.

At a background image of the block, the universe is represented as a symbol of God's creative power. The drawings of Christian symbols on the sides have specific meanings: the dove is a symbol of the Holy Spirit, wheat and grape represent bread and wine, the body and blood of Jesus, lamb symbolizes Christ (as mentioned in the Bible - Lamb of God), the cross represents the Holy Trinity, and fish (called Ichsthys - fish in Greek) is an acronym for the phrase Iesus Christus Soter Theou Yicus, which means Jesus Christ, Son of God the Savior, the symbol used for identification and communication among Christians.

From our Readers…

11.11.11 in different forms

: Ashwani Dubey, Gorakhpur

: Vijay Modi, Himmatnagar - Gujarat

Exhibits

Here I am sharing last part of my  Rainbow Collection  If any one wishes to exchange  philatelic items on Rainbow …..is most welcome !! –

 

 

 

From page 13-16

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Festivals of India - Guruparv

 

 

Greetings on Gurunanak Jayanti 

Today is Gurpurav , also known as Guru Nanak Birthday, is the birthday of the first Sikh Guru, Guru Nanak, and one of the most sacred festivals in Sikhism.

Golden Temple of Amritsar is the most important shrine of the Sikhs

Celebrations take place on a large scale in Punjab, Haryana and other parts of the world where Sikhs reside. Processions are taken out and verses from the Guru Granth Sahib are recited. The festivities in Sikhism revolve around the anniversaries of the 10 Sikh Gurus. These Gurus were responsible for shaping the beliefs of the Sikhs. Their birthdays, known as Gurpurabs, are occasions for celebration and prayer among the Sikhs.

One of the main shrines of the Sikhs is the Golden Temple of Amritsar, in Punjab.  The Temple foundations were Laid by the Fourth Guru, Guru Ram Das (1534-1581). The birthday of Guru Nanak Sahib falls on Kartik Poornima, i.e., the day of the full moon in the month of Kartik. In the Gregorian Calendar, the birthday of Guru Nanak usually falls in the month of November, but its date varies from year to year, based on the traditional dates of the Indian calendar.

 

Christmas stamps from Royal Mail…

Royal mail  issued a set of new stamps  on 8 November for this year’s Christmas .

This year, the seven Christmas 2011 stamps each feature a beautiful image inspired by the accounts of the Nativity from the Gospels of Luke and Matthew. The large and small second class stamps show the Angel speaking to St Joseph in a dream. The large and small first class stamps depict Our Lady dress in a red holding the Baby Jesus.

The 68p stamp portrays the stable scene. The £1.10 one shows an Angel speaking with the Shepherds, and the £1.65 stamp is of the Three Kings, discussing the Star which will lead them to Bethlehem.

Date of Issue :19 October 2011

Dwarkapex 2011 – Bosco Public School, New Delhi

: Ashwani Dubey – Gorakhpur 

 

From our Readers…

Maxim Card 

 

Maxim card prepared by Sanjiv Jain, Dehradun email : jainsanjiv@live.com

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New Christmas Stamps from Jersey

 

 

Christmas Tree decorations

Date of Issue : 8 November 2011

On 8th November 2011, Jersey Post issued six stamps depicting Christmas Tree Decorations. The tradition of decorating trees at Christmas began centuries ago. Decorations which started with sweets, gingerbread, nuts and paper roses, were followed by tinsel and a huge variety of miniature dolls, instruments, glass beads, baubles and so on, remaining to this day an indispensable part of Christmas celebrations.

Views and Opinions

A comment from reader…. 

The article is about philately. It’s a nice one. But the author of this article is more of a business person rather than a professional philatelist. Budding philatelists, who cannot assess the exact value of a stamp get cheated by these people because they sell stamps at a very higher price in online portals like ebay. These guys are not at all professional and they tend to cheat newbies by playing cheap tricks. Beware !!!! In fact I am an enthusiastic philatelist, got cheated by these people badly. I lost around $ 70 because of a damaged item they've sent and refused returns. It was my first bitter experience till date.

This comment was given by anonymous on an article published in RSC Blog. The name of a noted stamp dealer mentioned in the comment has been removed.

Special Covers

Gujarat

Gujpex – 73

Kutch Embroidery

Arch – Kapadwanj

: Ashwani Dubey. Gorakhpur

 

Exhibits

Here I am sharing my Rainbow Collection that I put in 16 sheets to make a small one frame collection !! If any one wishes to exchange  philatelic items on Rainbow …..is most welcome !! –

 

 

 

Sheet No 5 - 8

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New Stamps on Christmas

 

Date of Issue : 31 October 2011

Australia Post and Christmas Island  issued new stamps on 31st October 2011 for this year’s Christmas celebration.

This year's Christmas issue from Australia Post includes two stamps with a religious theme and three that focus on the more secular elements of Christmas.

The beautiful religious stamps show two episodes from the Biblical story. In the 55c stamp the Virgin Mary, dressed in her traditional deep blue robe, gazes tenderly at the newborn baby Jesus. In the $1.50 stamp, the three Kings or Wise Men, Caspar, Melchior and Balthazar, are shown journeying from the east to Bethlehem in order to worship the Christ Child. They are dressed in rich robes as befits their royal station. The guiding star can be seen in the night sky.

Stamp and Coin Cover

The three secular stamps offer an alternative to those who celebrate the festive season but who would prefer not to focus on the religious aspect of Christmas. Many people identify Christmas with the Christmas tree and the excitement of opening elaborately wrapped presents early on Christmas morning. The decorative Christmas star is a reference to the bright star that the Wise Men followed from the east. 

 

 

Date of Issue : 31 October 2011

Festive designs appear on new Christmas Island stamps to celebrate  this year’s Christmas.  The stamp issue takes a light-hearted approach to Christmas, integrating symbols of Christmas with the island’s natural environment in a humorous graphic manner.

55c Pulling crackers.
In a classic Christmas Island setting and surrounded by a number of delighted birds and a green sea turtle, Father Christmas and a Red Crab pull a Christmas cracker. A lovely Ridley’s Orchid hangs among the Christmas lights while a Christmas Island Frigatebird, a Golden Bosunbird, an Abbott’s Booby and a Green Sea Turtle look on.

$1.50 Father Christmas arrives on Christmas Island.
Christmas Island is known for its snorkelling sites. Father Christmas has taken time out to do some snorkelling before arriving on the island to be met by a number of excited crabs, birds and fish, including an Eastern Reef Egret, a Red-footed Booby, a Moorish Idol and a Whitelined Cod.

 

: Australia Post

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