Sunday Stamps Z3 - Tanzania, Switzerland

To bring this A-Z to an end I had to chose two countries with a 'Z' in their name but than found an extra 'Z' associated with them.

Switzerland - 4 February 1963

This building, Zunfthaus zu Waldlueten in Biel, is a guildhall for craftsmen - I haven't discovered which. But now you can see my hidden 'Z'.

I used a butterfly from Tanzania when doing 'X' but you have to look at this stamp to find the 'Z'.

Tanzania - 9 December 1967

The Yellowback Fusilier is a fish on the endangered Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
If you look closely 'Kijakazi Mrembo' appears at the top of the stamp. I have not succeeded in tracing this so far but is it  the name of the stamp's designer? The language appears to be Swahili for beautiful (mrembo) slave (kijakazi). Can anyone help me decipher this?

For other 'Z' stamps please visit Sunday-stamps-z where Zambia may be seen.

Sunday Stamps - Y3 China, Yugoslavia, USA

I have had  to revert to a country name this week by choosing Yugoslavia for one of my stamps.

Yugoslavia - December 1951

The country broke up in 1992 and the area has had a turbulent history since.

Another country that has seen major changes in my lifetime is -

China - 6 January 1949

The gentleman on the stamp is Dr Sun Yat-sen, once leader of the Chinese National Party known as the father of modern China. He served as the first provisional president of the Republic of China in 1911/1912 and as defacto ruler 1923-1925.

I have never had the chance to visit any of the National Parks in the USA but here is one that is known worldwide.

USA - 24 February 2006
Yosemite National Park

For other Y related stamps check out the links at Seeitonapostcard-y.

Sunday Stamps X3 - Denmark, Tanzania

A Danish King provides me with an X (and by chance the only King of Iceland too as Kristján X from 1918-1944).

Denmark - 1942

King Christian X of Denmark became the symbol of Danish resistance to German occupation during WWII and helped finance the transportation of Danish Jews to neutral Sweden. He reigned from 1912 to 1947.

A Tanzania butterfly's Latin name provides me with two Xs - 

Tanzania - 10 December 1975

Axiocerses styx 

For other X related stamps cross over to seeitonapostcard.blogspot.com x.

Sunday Stamps W3 - USA Architecture & Law

In the American Architecture series issued in October 1982 'W' featured in more ways than one.

USA 

I had heard of Frank Lloyd Wright before and it was the Falling Water stamp for Mill Run PA that caught my eye. It was pure chance that another 'W' appeared in the second stamp of this pair - Walter Gropius and his Gropius House in Lincoln MA. It was Walter who said 'Architecture begins where engineering ends.'

An envelope sent to my attorney daughter (address removed) proved just right for today.

I chose it because I saw the World Peace stamps (unfranked as you can see). However the embossed envelope  refers to the White House Conference for youth in 1971 - my daughter was very young back then. Unfortunately I cannot read the franking date on the Jefferson stamp but it's in 2000s I'm sure. I wonder where the envelope had been since 1971 when 'Tricky Dickie' was President. The World Peace stamps were first issued on 29 April 1975. My daughter had passed the bar exam in 2010.

To examine other 'W' related stamps checkout the links at Violet's Seeitonapostcard.

Sunday Stamps V3 - Rwanda, Sweden, Singapore

The Stampworld catalogue heads this stamp 'Waterfalls and Volcanoes.'

Rwanda - 24 June 1966

The Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda borders National Parks in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda. It is the home of mountain gorillas and golden monkeys and was a base for Dian Fossey. The five volcanoes in the park are five of the eight in the Virunga range - Karisimbi, Bisoke, Muhabura, Gahinga, Subyinyo - but I don't know which one is depicted on the stamp.

Sweden - 26 April 1973

I'm sure you will all recognise the Viking ship. One from Norway stands on our mantle piece.

Although we get cats in our garden, none match this - 

Singapore - 6 June 2007

If you look closely you can see its Latin name is Viverra zibertha.

For 'V' related stamps take a look at the links on Sunday-stamps-v.

Sunday Stamps U3 - Germany, Netherlands, Sweden

 Some letters are proving more difficult as we near the end of another A-Z round but the DDR gave me an unexpected surprise with - 

DDR (East Germany) - 6 December 1967

This was Walter Ulbricht, the German communist leader and someone I vaguely remember.

In the Netherlands I came across this heavily postmarked commemoration for the 100th anniversary of the United Nations Telecommunications Union (ITU).

Netherlands - 17 May 1965

Finally it was Sweden that came to mind, I just knew that Uppsala would appear on a stamp - even in this case with a double U.

Sweden - 2 June 1977

Founded in the 1477 it was a donation from King Gustavus that put Uppsala University on a sound financial footing.The stamp commemorates its 500th anniversary.

For 'u' to see more related stamps visit the links at Seeitonapostcard

Sunday Stamps T3 - USA

The UK press has had articles this week about Tombstone and 'The Gunfight at OK Corral.' I preferred the film 'High Noon' myself - and the ballad that accompanied it.

Frankie Laine

In case you are wondering what Frankie Laine has to do with 'T' related stamps, this is who composed the music for both films.

USA - 16 September 1999

This stamp came from the American Music Series for Hollywood Composers.
On the clear morning of August 6, 1945  Little Boy, the first atomic bomb, was dropped on Japan. The man who authorised that act was - 

USA - 18 February 1999

Fortunately the stamp does not commemorate the act. The stamp from the Celebrate the Century Series chose this for the 1940s. Truman is reputed to have had a sign on his desk declaring 'The Buck Stops Here'.

Tom Sawyer is said to be the first book written (in 1904) on a typewriter - by 

USA - 25 June 2011

The stamp is part of the Literary Art Series.

I cannot find a date on the copy of 'The Adventures of Tom Sawyer' that sits on one of our bookcases - but its pages are turning brown!

For other 'T' related stamps check the links at Sunday-stamps-t.