Sunday Stamps - Insects - Mexico, Great Britain

When I posted this stamp before I wondered what it was the  anniversary of - 

Mexico - 50th Anniversary of the ILO

As I have used up nearly all my butterflies before I just had to include this week one of my all time favourites that is welcomed in my garden at any time.

Great Britain - 12 March 1985

I would never recognise this from its Latin name - Coccinella septempuncata. Ladybirds have been around a long time - I did not realise that the rhyme "Ladybird, ladybird fly away home" has been known in one form or another since 1744.

Now you need to fly away to Sunday stamps to see more insects, linked in the comments.

Sunday Stamps L3 - Mexico, Malawi, Germany

If you liked the kestrel in last week's post I'm sure that, like me, you will be pleased to see one of the Big Five from Malawi.

Malawi - 11 March 2011 - Leopard

However that is one stamp where I wish the country name was smaller.

If going to the theatre is your thing, how about visiting San Luis Potosi - 

Mexico -27 July 1945
Reconstruction of the Theatre of La Paz

In Germany I found an impressive castle, and no it didn't belong to Ludwig.

Germany - 2 January 2015
Ludwigslust Castle

In 2013 a joint issue between Germany and Australia commemorated the 200th Anniversary of the Birth of Ludwig Leichhardt. Ludwig disappeared along with 7 men, 20 mules and 70 bullocks on an exploration expedition in Australia in 1848.

No trace of them has ever been found other than the burnt-out stock of a gun in a tree, despite searches  still being carried out. 

To search for more 'L' related stamps visit the links at Sunday-stamps-l.

Sunday Stamps II A-Z 'X' Mexico, Brazil, Denmark

I could only find stamps from two countries with an 'X' in their name so had to extend my search as you will see.

Mexico - 26 October 1963
100th Anniversary of the Red Cross

Maybe that cross in not an X but it was the nearest I could get.

Searching for names with an X in them led me to Brazil.

Brazil - 1954 Luis Alves del Lima e Silva
Duke of Caxias

The Duke earned the 'title' of Peacemaker, and his birthday became the date on which Brazil honours its soldiers.

In 1969 Denmark commemorated the 100th anniversary of writer - 

Denmark - 28 August 1969
Martin Andersen Nexo

But the nearest I could get to an X on a stamp was provided by the 700th anniversary of the Fall of the Dannebrog from Heaven.

Denmark - 12 June 1969

The Dannebrog, the Flag of the Danes, is believed to be one of the oldest flags in the world. You may read about the history of the flag and the legend behind it at The History_of_the_Flag where you will find the X waving at you.

To see how others have solved the X-word puzzles cross over to the links at Sunday-Stamps-II-162.

Places of Worship - Sunday Stamps II

There are two cathedrals among my Mexican stamps.

Puebla Cathedral - Mexico (1950)

The construction of this Roman Catholic cathedral began in 1575; it was consecrated in April 1649 but was not completed until 1690.

The airmail stamp showing Guerrero Cathedral was issued in 1963. So far I have been unable to locate more information about the building itself. However it does, like the Puebla stamp, depict colonial architecture.

Guerrero Cathedral (on the skyline)

For other places of worship from around the world please visit the links on Sunday-Stamps-II-125.

Free choice - Sunday Stamps II

While trying to catalogue my stamps I have had some problems, some of these applied to Mexico.

One stamp in particular proved hard to date until I found a Stanley Gibbons catalogue.

Mexico - 1895

The image is not very clear - perhaps this is not surprising considering the age of the stamp. The Statue of Cuauhtémoc dates from eight years earlier in 1887. 

Cuauhtémoc was ruler of Tenochtitlan from 1520 to 1521, making him the last Aztec Emperor of all.

In the late 1990s/early 2000s I used to pass his monument on Avenue Reforma in Mexico City on the way to my hotel. I never knew who it represented.

Monument of Cuauhtémoc

Yet another lesson I've learnt from stamps.

To see what others have chosen to start the new year check out the links at Sunday-Stamps-II-107.

Happy New Year!

Children - Sunday Stamps II

Dating old stamps is proving a bit of a minefield but it came up trumps for today's theme of 'Children.'

These two stamps from Mexico were issued between 1929 and 1934 but I have been unable to track down exactly when.

Mexico - Haga Patria

Haga Patria may be translated as "Be a Patriot" - Proteja a la infancia hardly needs explaining. I suppose we would say 'save the children' today.

I started work in Norway in 1979 and spent 30 kroner on a presentation folder of the stamps issued that year. It included these two of the issue of 26th April for the International Year of the Child.

This shows a painting by Mathias Stoltenberg. 

The second stamp is a painting of a little boy named James Collett by the German born, Norwegian painter Heinrich Christian Friedrich Hosenfelder.

The boy was a member of the Collett family who were timber merchants in Norway at the time - the painting dates from 1791/92.

For more children related stamps, check out the links at Sunday-Stamps-II-101.

Cycles - Sunday Stamps II

As I couldn't find tricycles or any motorbikes I had to settle for bicycles.

I've always regarded cycling as a form of savage amusement as I learnt to ride on a fixed wheel bike and pedalled backwards too often by accident, with often spectacular results - for any spectators, that is.

By the time of the 1970  Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh I had given up and just admired this stamp, issued on 15 July, showing cyclists in action.

Great Britain - Ninth British Commonwealth Games

The road past our house is a favourite route for leisure cyclists, mainly men in Lycra who image they are Bradley Wiggins. Cycling club members may also be seen from time to time. 

It was 1978 that saw the centenaries of the Cyclists Touring Club and the British Cycling Federation commemorated on stamps.

Great Britain - 2 August 1978

Sir Bradley Wiggins currently holds the record, once held by Eddy Merckx, for the furthest distance cycled in one hour . Merckx set his record in Mexico City back in 1972. 

It's appropriate then that I should show a stamp issued in 1975 promoting the Mexican export of bicycles.

Mexico

I hope that when you have cycled over to Sunday-Stamps-II-58. you will find the links to some motor bikes and cycles from other countries.

A-Z Challenge 2015 - Butterflies 'M'

M - Meadow Brown, Monarch

You can find it in all parts of the British Isles except for the most mountainous areas. It's one of the commonest and widespread of our butterflies.

Meadow Brown butterfly (Maniola jurtina)

That one black eyespot on the forewing is unique to the meadow brown. The are is some variation with some showing two white pupils. The meadow brown  flies from June through to September, even in dull and inclement weather while many other butterflies wait out the rain.

It loves grasses, grasslands, heathland. parks and fields.

The summer/autumn migration of the Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) is legendary covering, as it does, thousands of miles from the US and southern Canada to Mexico.

Monarch butterfly on a Penta flower in Texas

 Monarchs have even been transported to and bred on the International Space Station.

A milkweed butterfly, the Monarch is one of the most familiar North American butterflies. With a wing span up to 4 inches, its orange and black pattern makes it easily recognisable. 

However it is yet another butterfly that I have never seen.

Love is like a butterfly
As soft and gentle as a sigh
The multicolored moods of love are like its satin wings
Love makes your heart feel strange inside
It flutters like soft wings in flight
Love is like a butterfly, a rare and gentle thing

I feel it when you're with me
It happens when you kiss me
That rare and gentle feeling that I feel inside
Your touch is soft and gentle
Your kiss is warm and tender
Whenever I am with you I think of butterflies

Love is like a butterfly

Photo attributions:

• Meadow Brown: By a footpath in Yerdley Wood, 21 June 2009, geograph.org.uk, by Shazz - CC BY 2.0
• Monarch on a Penta: October 2011, by A Yee - CC BY 2.0

A Virgin Case - Sepia Saturday

I struggled to find anything appropriate for association with a suitcase until I remembered a story, 'A Virgin Case,' written about my journeys to Mexico some years ago. Let me introduce you to Anita, the case in question.

'Anita' Antler

This isn't actually Anita but a more recent model. Not that Anita's shy; it's just that I can hear her sobbing inside her black plastic bag up there in our loft. Her sobbing is not so loud as it used to be before the extra 4 inches of insulation was added to aid to reducing our energy consumption

My acquaintance with Anita began when I was looking for a larger case in which to carry Mexican training course material. She was to replace a smaller relative who had done sterling service in Europe and the Middle East. As you can see Adam is looking rather tired as a result.

Adam Antler

The last thing Anita was told before she left a North East department store was to beware of anyone trying to undo her zips!

She was to share her trips to Mexico with Sam Sonite, a small shoulder bag.

Sam Sonite

Sam was always bragging about his superiority which earned him the right to travel in the warm cabin of the planes while Anita had to resist the attentions of loads of luggage down in the cold hold.

These days Sam would have been accused of sexual harassment for all the things he said he would like to do to Anita when he got her alone

On early morning in a Mexico City hotel bedroom the earth moved for Anita. 

No - not due to Sam; just a little 'trembolo,'  an earthquake to you and me.

Note: 'A Virgin Case' is much too long a story to tell in full. You will just have to be satisfied with what appears above.

In case that is not enough then I suggest you take a look at what other Sepians have to say this week at Sepia-saturday-213.

World Cup - Sunday Stamps

I have had to photograph two stamps from my daughter's album to take part this week. The stamps I selected show action from teams in 1958 and 1970.

Czechoslovakia - World Cup 1958, Stockholm

Yemen Arab Republic - World (Jules Rimet) Cup 1970. Mexico

I will not be taking part next week as I cannot access se-tenant stamps. My favourite market stall holder is too far away to visit although I could check out what America's Stamp Shop in Berkley, Michigan has to offer. We found them very helpful last week when we were looking for some album page refills.

They have a massive stock of stamps and collections from all over the world. As the reverse of their card shows they have been in business for 35 years.

But for stamps others have chosen this week pop across to Vliridian's Sunday-Stamps-137.

A-Z Challenge 2013 - 'X' - Xanthoceras

My A-Z posts this year are based on my garden – flowers, animals, the birds and the bees, butterflies - with a bit of poetry thrown in. For some letters I am expecting to cheat somewhat –wishing they were here.

X –.Xanthoceras, Xanthorhiza, Xantus’s Hummingbird.

You have probably guessed already that I have had to cheat or be marked with a rather large X.

Xanthoceras sorbifolium

This beautiful shrub, appropriately photographed in April (2009), was in the Botanical Garden of the University of Vienna and is also known as Yellowhorn. Anyone would want it in their garden not just me.

Xanthorhiza simplicissima (Yellow Root)

Yellow Root which has yellow flowers in Spring is rare in British gardens but I understand it may be seen at Westonbirt Arboretum, near Tetbury, Gloucestershire.

For several years I have been trying to photograph hummingbirds at my daughter’s home in Michigan, I haven’t succeeded yet so I was delighted to find one that begins with ‘X’

Xantus's Hummingbird - Baja, Mexico

Xantus’s Hummingbird is predominately green on its upperparts and back; its straight tail is darkly coloured and it has a white eye stripe.

I couldn't find a poem that related to the photos but I did find this, an Alphabet poem for the letter 'X'

X was once a great king Xerxes,
Xerxy
Perxy
Turxy
Xerxy
Linxy Lurxy
Great King Xerxes!

Poem:

• Alphabet Poem; Letter 'X' - Edward Lear.  

Photos:

• Xanthoceras sorbifolium –Athenchen – CC BY-SA 3.0
• Xanthorhiza simplicissima – TheAlphaWolf – CC BY-SA 3.0
• Xantus’s hummingbird – marlin harms – CC BY-SA 2.0

A Hemulen's Collection - Sunday Stamps

This week theme of hobbies proved difficult for me until I came across the Hemulens, a species of characters created by the Finnish author Tove Jansson.

Hemulens tend to be obsessive characters devoting themselves to one interest - skiing, stamp collecting, butterflies or whatever. Does anyone recognise themselves?

It may have been a coincidence but in Saturday's Daily Telegraph an article appeared about the author Vladimir Nabokov who wrote 'Lolita.' Apparently Nabokov was an accomplished lepidopterist.

Now I had something to work with. I wouldn't say I am a Hemulen, but I have a butterfly or two.

USA Common Buckeye

Of course a lepidopterist is also interested in moths.

Romania - Saturnia pyri

The Saturnia pyri is a native of Europe, but not Britain, and is also known as the Great Peacock Moth or Giant Emperor Moth.

Mexico - Helasus

Malaysia

Malawi - Parasa moth

If I wanted to be obsessive about butterflies the one set of stamps I'd like are these from much nearer home.

Great Britain - Butterflies 1981

Shame that I have had to scan them from a catalogue. Oh well, I guess I shall have to remember the Tortoiseshell and Peacock flying round my garden in the summer.

Peacock butterfly on knapweed.

 

But now it's time to explore the hobbies from others on Viridian's Sunday Stamps 94

Steamed Up - Sepia Saturday

I've got quite steamed up this week.

Animation - Uniflow Steam Engine

(CC Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 unported license)

Until I found this in Mexico.

Minature train ferry at the Feria del Caballo

Texcoco, Mexico State - 2010

(By Alejandro Linares Garcia - Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 unported license)

But in the days of skiffle there was only one rail line that mattered.

Catch other miniature and train adventures at Sepia Saturday 124

Famous Women - Sunday Stamps

My collection seems to be short on stamps to meet this week's theme especially if you exclude Heads of State and France's Marianne. However I discovered one or two which I had to find out about first.

Sigrid Undset 1882-1949

Sigrid was born in Denmark but moved to Norway when she was two. Her claim to fame is that she was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1928. Her most famous book is probably Kristin Lavransdatter a trilogy about life in Scandinavia in the Middle Ages. You can read about her on the Nobel Prize site - "Sigrid Undset - Autobiography".

My second stamp comes from Mexico.

Josefa Ortiz

Josefa Ortiz De Dominguez was the heroine of the Mexican Independence. One of her most important contributions to the Independence movement was when she alerted Father Miguel Hidalgo that the conspiracy had been discovered by the Spanish.You can read more about her here 

This is the year of the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. I do not have any of the stamps issued to commemorate the event. I can however show some issued for her 60th birthday.

Queen Elizabeth II

 To see other famous women you should switch over to Viridian's Sunday Stamps 61