On this day 20th May, in 1932, Amelia Earhart the American aviator, set off from Harbour Grace, Newfoundland on the first solo transatlantic flight by a woman!
The flight lasted 14 hours, 56 minutes and she landed in a field in Culmore, north of Derry, Northern Ireland.
This 8¢ U.S. Air Mail Stamp featuring the aviation heroine was issued on what would have been her 66th birthday on July 24, 1963 (cat. Scott #C68).
The collection of aviation stamps and more specifically U.S. Air Mail Stamps is an increasingly popular thematic specialization known as Aerophilately.
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Posted: May 20th, 2008 by debs
| Filed under Anniversaries, Commemorative stamps, Famous people
Nobody living in Italy could have failed to notice that 2008 is the centenary year of the birth of one of Italy’s greatest and best loved actresses, Anna Magnani, with numerous television documentaries, exhibitions, DVD releases and book publications accompanying the event. Sadly, Nannarella as she was affectionately known in Italy, died in 1973 but left behind a long list of performances which have since become iconic in the world of cinema, most notably perhaps, the desperate plight of Pina in Rossellini’s Roma, città aperta. International audiences probably remember her best for her Oscar winning role as Serafina Delle Rose opposite Bert Reynolds in The Rose Tattoo, in a part written specifically for her by Tennessee Williams.
The Italian Post Office issued a stamp on her birthday 7 March, but this wasn’t the first time that she has appeared on an Italian postage stamp. This philatelic postcard was issued on the occasion of the second edition of the Rome Film Festival and was cancelled on 19th October 2007 although the 800 lire Anna Magnani postage stamp was originally issued on 27 August 1997 as part of a series celebrating Scenes from Italian cinema (Scene di film del cinema italiano ). In fact, this stamp shows a portrait of La Magnani in Pier Paolo Pasolini’s Mamma Roma . The stamp was designed by R.Morena and had a print run of 3.000.000.
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Posted: April 21st, 2008 by debs
| Filed under Anniversaries, Commemorative stamps, European stamps, Famous people
World leaders have always been an obvious choice as subjects on commemorative stamps but this stamp issued on 25 November, 1974 by Dominica on the occasional of the Centenary of Winston Churchill’s birth on 30th November, 1874 is unusual in the informality of the setting.
The one-half cent issue pictures Winston Churchill at the Race Track and was printed on unwatermarked paper by
Format International Ltd, London.
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Posted: March 15th, 2008 by debs
| Filed under Anniversaries, Commemorative stamps, Famous people, World stamps
With Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip celebrating their diamond wedding anniversary this week I thought this stamp might make a timely post - The Royal Silver Wedding Stamp issued in 1948 to celebrate 25 years of marriage between Queen Elizabeth II’s parents King George VI and the Queen Consort, Elizabeth (later known throughout her long life after the death of her husband as Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother).
A particular curiosity of this commemorative design is that the heads face right, whereas the King or Queen’s head always faces to the left on definitive stamps.
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Posted: November 22nd, 2007 by debs
| Filed under Anniversaries, Commemorative stamps, GB stamps, Royalty
The recent space shuttle mission reminded me of this set of stamps, although I waited till the crew got home safely before posting this! Issued by Saint Lucia in 1979 - The International Year of the Child - the set of six stamps was issued on the 10th Anniversary of the Moonwalk and features several popular Walt Disney characters as astronauts.
Donald Duck appears on both the 1 and 10 cent stamps;
Goofy graces both the 3 and 4 cent stamps;
Minnie Mouse is featured on the 2 cent stamp;
and Pluto buries a bone amongst the craters on the moon on the 5 cent stamp.
Mickey Mouse is, mysteriously, lost in space and nowhere to be seen! (Actually, he sits aboard a rocket on the 1/2 cent stamp which is sadly missing from my collection…)
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Posted: November 9th, 2007 by debs
| Filed under Anniversaries, Commemorative stamps, World stamps
I was lucky enough to have got tickets for the première showing of Elizabeth: The Golden Age starring Cate Blanchett and Geoffrey Rush at the Rome Film Festival last week. The film was a sumptuous romp through history with Cate Blanchett as fabulous as ever - the scenes showing the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588 were particularly impressive.
These British commemorative stamps were designed by Graham Evernden and issued on 19 July, 1988 on the 400th anniversary of the event. The set of five stamps was printed se-tenant (joined together in a horizontal strip) and the individual stamps form a composite design which runs across all five. All five stamps were valued at 18 pence and feature, reading from left to right: Spanish Galeasse off The Lizard; English Fleet leaving Plymouth; Engagement off the Isle of Wight; Attack of English Fire-ships, Calais; Armada in Storm, North Sea.
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Posted: October 27th, 2007 by debs
| Filed under Anniversaries, Commemorative stamps, GB stamps
More Italian stamps! This time a brand new souvenir sheet issued on 18 October 2007 with a print run of 2 million. I picked this up at the Poste Italiane stand at the Rome Film Festival.
The set was designed by R Fantini and depicts three anniversaries of celebrated entertainment figures on three separate 60 Euro cent stamps: Italian tenor Beniamino Gigli, who was born in Recanati in Le Marche - also the birthplace of poet Leopardi - and who died fifty years ago on 30 November, 1957; Maria Callas, possibly the world’s most famous opera singer ever, who died thirty years ago on 16 September, 1977; and Italian actor Amedeo Nazzari, in this the centenary year of his birth on 10 September, 1907.
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Posted: October 22nd, 2007 by debs
| Filed under Anniversaries, Commemorative stamps, European stamps, Famous people
I’ve lived in Italy since 1994 so I thought it was time that I listed some Italian stamps. I picked up this 1967 Italian First Day Cover at an antiques market at Piazza Cola di Rienzo in Rome; Primo Giorno di Emissione (first day of issue) is printed in red. It celebrates the 50th anniversary of the round-Italy cycling championships the Giro d’Italia, and was issued by a prestigious Italian First Day Cover collectors’ society - the Venetia Club - stamped and numbered by them as Venetia 250/it.
All three stamps were designed by the team of Consolazione, Cuzzani, de Stefani and depict: 40 lire - Ciclisti in salita (cyclists climbing uphill) - print run of 25 million ; 90 lire - Ciclisti in volata (racing cyclists) - print run of 15 million; 500 lire - Ciclisti in pianura (cyclists on level ground) - print run of 3 million.
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Posted: October 10th, 2007 by debs
| Filed under Anniversaries, Commemorative stamps, European stamps
Here’s an interesting curiosity…A very nice strip of three London Post c.1839 13p GB commemorative stamps on an envelope above another strip of three Policeman on the Beat 10p GB stamps. What makes this unusual, however, is that I received this envelope in the post the other day – in fact if you look carefully you’ll see a post mark dated 10 September 2007 - whilst the commemorative stamps were issued in 1979! As it happens, this is no accident – the envelope contained other stamps purchased on eBay. One of the fun things about buying stamps from dealers on eBay is that on some occasions you get more than you bargained for!
The London Post stamp (SG Cat. 1097) was part of the four stamp set produced for the Centenary of the Death of Sir Rowland Hill (22 August – 24 October, 1979), whereas the Policeman on the Beat (SG Cat.1100) was issued on 26 September, 1979 along with three other stamps celebrating the 150th Anniversary of the Metropolitan Police.
The London Post Stamp also appeared in the 1980 Miniature Sheet issued at the London 1980 Stamp Exhibition.
Posted: September 17th, 2007 by debs
| Filed under Anniversaries, Commemorative stamps, GB stamps
1971 Postage Stamp issued in North Vietnam to celebrate the 200th Anniversary of the Tay Son
Rebellion led by the Tay Son Brothers in 1771.
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Posted: September 9th, 2007 by debs
| Filed under Animals, Anniversaries, Commemorative stamps, World stamps
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