Vulcano Island | Italy

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Vulcano is a small volcanic island in the Tyrrhenian Sea, the southernmost of the seven Aeolian Islands. With four (active) volcanoes on the island, its name is no surprise. Around 470 people live on the island.

The Aeolian Islands are an archipelago in the Tyrrhenian Sea, to the north of Sicily. The archipelago consists of seven islands: Lipari, Vulcano, Salina, Panarea, Stromboli, Filicudi and Alicudi. The islands are popular tourist destination in the summer.

St Michael’s Mount from the air | Cornwall - United Kingdom

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St Michael’s Mount is a small and rocky tidal island off the Cornwall Coast in the United Kingdom. The island is separated from the mainland by a causeway covered by sea at high water.

On top of the island you will find a medieval church and castle, the oldest buildings date back to the 12th century.

Motu Kōkako or Piercy Island | New Zealand

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It is easy to see why Piercy island or Motu Kōkako in Māori language, is also known as The Hole in the Rock. The small island is located off the north coast of New Zealand’s North Island. The 64 meters hole at sea level was created over centuries by wind and waves.

 

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Ross Dependency is New Zealand’s claim to a part of Antarctica. New Zealand Post issues special Ross dependency stamps. This 2014 issue features the Macaroni penguin (what’s in a name), one of five unique breeds of penguin that calls Antartica home.

The Apadana Palace, Persepolis | Iran

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Persepolis, meaning "city of Persians", was the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire. The earliest remains of Persepolis date from around 515 BC.

Darius the Great was the third king of the Achaemenid Empire. He built the greatest palace at Persepolis on the western side: Apadana Palace. The walls were tiled and decorated with pictures of lions, bulls, and flowers. The bas-relief on the postcard can be found one of the stairways. It depicts the ‘the battle of the sun (the lion) and the moon (the bull)’. 

Stamps

Amzing stamps!

Thx David

Frigate Birds on Barbuda Island

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Barbuda is a small flat coral island in the Eastern Caribbean. The island forms part of the state of Antigua and Barbuda and has a population of about 1,600. Barbuda is located approximately 30 miles north of the island of Antigua.

 

Barbuda's Frigate Bird Sanctuary is located in the island's northwestern lagoon. The sanctuary is home to over 5,000 frigate birds. The male frigate is marked by its red throat pouch, which it can inflates as part of its courtship behavior and as a defensive display. 

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The Painted Bunting, part of a large set of 15 bird stamps, issued 1996. 

Porto Novo, the capital of Benin

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Porto-Novo is the official capital and second largest city of the West African nation of Benin. The “Big Mosque” of Porto-Novo is actually a replica of a Catholic Church in Salvador de Bahia in Brazil.

 

On the bottom left you see what appears to be Voodoo ceremony. Benin is the birthplace of the Voodoo cult. From where it spread over the whole world due to slave trade, to Northern and Southern America and the Caribbeans where it has found its own interpretations.

India Gate, the war memorial in New Delhi | India

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The India Gate is a war memorial located in New Delhi, India. The monument is a memorial to the 82,000 soldiers who died in the First World War.

New Delhi is the capital of India. The Delhi metropolitan region has a population of over 22 million.

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The Tata family is a family of Indian industrialists and philanthropists who founded iron and steel works, cotton mills and power plants that contributed to India’s industrial development. A prominent member of this family is J.R.D. Tata (1904-1993).

A postcard from Zimbabwe

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Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in southern Africa. It is bordered by South Africa, Botswana, Zambia and Mozambique. Robert Mugabe is the 90-years-old! president of the country.

The card shows a painting by Craig Bone (1955), a “Rhodesian” artist.

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The Collared Sunbird. A rather tiny bird-stamp. Part of a series of 10 bird-stamps, issued in 2005. 

Himeji Castle | Japan

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Himeji Castle is a hilltop Japanese castle complex located in Himeji, Japan. The wooden castle dates back to 1333 and is nicknamed "White Heron" castle because of its white walls which are covered with white plaster. The castle is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

 

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International letter writing week 1997.

Thx Steve!

Nikko Toshogu Shrine | Japan

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Nikko Toshogu is a Shinto shrine located in Nikko, Japan. It is part of the "Shrines and Temples of Nikko", a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Shinto (meaning "way of the gods") is the largest religion in Japan.  

Pictured on the card is the Yomeimon Gate. Unlike most Japanese temples and shrines, elaborately decorated with 508 sculptures of all kinds of dragons and (imaginary) animals. There are also numerous sculptures of people from Chinese legends and Japanese life.

 

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International letter writing week 1997.

Thx again Steve!

Itsukushima Shinto Shrine | Japan

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The Island of Itsukushima, in the Seto inland sea, has been a holy place of Shintoism since the earliest times. The first shrine buildings here were probably erected in the 6th century.

The construction in red is the great Torii, the boundary between the spirit and the human worlds. During low tide, you can walk to the foot of the great Torii.

The shrine is a Unesco World Heritage Site.

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International letter writing week 1997.

Thx Steve!

A postcard from the Solomon Islands

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The Solomon Islands are a wide-spread archipelago of mountainous and heavily forested, volcanic islands. The six major islands and 1,000 smaller ones are located east of Papua New Guinea and northwest of Vanuatu. The archipelago is covering an area of over 28,000 square kilometres.  

According to the back of the card, a warrior from Simbo Island is pictured on the front.

 

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The stamp is part of a set of 25! Stamps about fishes. This one depicts a White Marlin.

Khartoum, capital of the Republic of Sudan

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Khartoum is the capital and second largest city of the Republic of Sudan. This card pictures the five star luxury Corinthia Hotel Khartoum, situated at the meeting point of the Blue and White Nile rivers and in the centre of the city's commercial district.

 

The building has an oval curved facade; like the Burj Al Arab, it was designed to resemble a ship's sail. It is known as "Gaddafi's Egg" because it is funded by Libya.

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A Sudan 2003 definitive.

Dushanbe, capital of Tajikistan

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Dushanbe is the capital and largest city of Tajikistan. Dushanbe means "Monday" in the Tajik language. Since 1991 it has been the capital of independent Tajikistan. The city grew from 300 inhabitants in 1922 to 750,000 today.  

 

The building on the postcard is the national museum, opened  in June 2013. 

Stamps

(top) Part of a set of five stamps, issued 1994. This a 1997 overprint from the 1994 series. (bottom) Part of a set of five definitives, issued in 2014. This one is picturing Rudaki  Park.