Frangipani flowers on new Fiji stamps…..

 

Date of Issue : 12 July 2011

 

Frangipani are amongst the most colourful flowers known throughout the South Pacific

Frangipani flowers are known for their unique fragrant clusters of colorful, bright, waxy and long lasting flowers.The frangipani flower occurs as an introduced species in Fiji and is often extensively cultivated in towns and villages and naturalises along nearby streams. There are many forms of the species Plumeria rubra or frangipani with flowers observed throughout the year. Three of these have been formally documented as part of Fiji's flora. The stamp designs are based on water color paintings of the flowers. The actual flowers look as shown below.

Frangipani (Plumeria rubra), is  also known as the Hawaiin Lei flower.  Temple Tree, Champa, Dead man's fingers, Egg Flower (southern China) Amapola (Venezuela) are other synonyms of Frangipani. Plumeria or commonly known as Frangipani is a genus of flowering plants of the family that includes Dogbane: the Apocynaceae. It contains 7-8 species of mainly deciduous shrubs and small trees. They are native to Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and South America as far south as Brazil but have been spread throughout the world's tropics.

 

Special Covers

Tamil Nadu

 

SIPA GOLD’ 06 : 29 December 2001

 

 

SIPA GOLD’06 : 30 December 2001 

: Ashwani Dubey - Gorakhpur

Endangered Wildlife species on new Japanese stamps..

 

"Japan Collection of rare wildlife -

The first series of harmony with nature."

Date of Issue : August 23, 2011

Japan Post will issue a beautiful set of stamps next month featuring endangered wildlife of Japan. On 15 July sheetlets of  different flowers of Japan were issued.

The designs of a postage stamps :
(1) Tsushima
Feline mammal that lives only in Tsushima, Estimated populations of the 1960s was head 250-300, now in decline due to habitat suitability for broad-leaved forest by felling head is 80-110.
(2) Zugurokamome
The birds of the gull family locally-distributed in East Asia. Growth in summer plumage (the collar) is characterized by black and white around the eyes in the head. China, a breeding ground and are said to reduce the loss factor of habitat suitability as one of the western coastal wintering grounds.
(3) Leavenworth lady slipper
Rebun Island in Hokkaido  is only growing in orchid plants. The flowers are pale yellow, the petals  is a large oval in the destination is characterized by short sharpen. Because of the high value horticulture and are collected too, is now distributed, and also has a limited number of individuals.
(4) Green Sea Turtle
The world's tropical, reptile department of the subtropical sea turtles are widely distributed .

(5) Oorurishijimi
Honshu, Japan is a unique subspecies of Lycaenidae only distributed in Kyushu.

 

"The Flower of home (flower of Japan's 47 prefectures)"

 

Date of Issue : July 15, 2011

Stamps on summer flowers by Danish Post

 

The red poppy

Date of issue: 8 June 2011

Danish Post issued a set of four stamps featuring four beautiful summer flowers on 8 June 2011. Stamps show red poppy, cranesbill, Masterwort and Siberian poppy.

Summer Flowers

The red poppy is easily recognised by its scarlet petals, which are loosely attached and fall off easily. Once the leaves have been shed, all that remains is the distinctive, egg-shaped capsule. It contains up to 20,000 seeds, which are spread over a large area when the wind shakes the dry plants.
The optimum germination conditions for the seeds are close to the surface of the soil, so autumn ploughing often brings large numbers of them to the surface after they have been lying dormant for years. The next year, the entire landscape is coloured bright red with a lovely carpet of poppies.

Cranesbill

The cranesbill, or geranium, is a herbaceous perennial often cultivated in Danish gardens and common in the wild. This popular plant is easy to look after and, to the delight of many gardeners, it attracts butterflies. Cranesbill takes its name from the shape of its pointed fruit. The fruit is in five sections and gathered in a long beak that splits into five flaps that curve upward in an explosive movement and eject the seeds.

Masterwort

Masterwort is a charming and slender perennial, and not particularly well known. With its beautiful umbel of star-shaped flowers, this decorative plant looks great in herbaceous borders or as a border plant. Masterwort belongs to the umbelliferae family, and has both edible and poisonous cousins. The benevolent side of the family includes dill and celery, while the malevolent side includes deadly, poisonous plants like cowbane and hemlock, as well as the allergenic giant hogweed.

Siberian poppy

The Siberian poppy is a popular and hardy ornamental plant well suited to herbaceous borders, rockeries and pots. As the name suggests, this species of poppy originates from Siberia. Curiously, it is also known as the Icelandic poppy – which is something of a mystery, as it does not grow in Iceland.

Stamps on Orchids from Thailand and Jersey…

 Date of Issue : 2 June 2011

Hi ! In today’s Post, some lovely orchids, featured recently on stamps. “Orchids on Stamps” are very popular with collectors all over the world.The reason is “The orchids are so beautiful to see”. Here are the new stamps issued by Thailand Post and Jersey Post featuring different varieties of orchids . The stamps are wonderful and sure to be liked by all lovers of flowers and thematic collectors.

In the second part of this Post, I am pleased to share a Press Clipping from Times of India that has given a coverage to Rainbow Stamp News. I thank all my readers and contributors who made it popular worldwide !! This is all for Today….Till next Post…Have a Great Time !!

Orchids on Jersey Stamps

Date of Issue : 17 May 2011

The orchids which feature on the six stamps are: Paphiopedilum La Garenne (Saint John), Odontioda Les Brayes (Pontac), Phragmipedium Don Wimber Kriegerara Kemp Tower (Trinity), Angulocaste Noirmont (Isle of Jersey), Calanthe Beresford (Victoria Village) and Miltonia Point des Pas (Jersey).The stamps in the set range in price from 37p for the Paphiopedilum La Garenne to £3 for the Miltonia Point des Pas with a miniature sheet.

Orchids

There are many interesting facts about these popular plants. Orchids are differentiated not only by their flowers but also from the leaves and roots. Grammatophyllum speciosum is the largest and Bulbophyllum globuliforme is the smallest orchid plant in the world.

Orchids are preferably grown on slopes to let the excess amount of water to flow off. This provides the orchids with the favourable conditions to grow in. Instead of just by ‘hybriding’ using the advanced technology, orchids can be resulted from the pollination by bees or butterflies too. Some orchid hybrids are extremely beautiful, while there are also many species with flowers which are unusual, bizarre or downright ugly.

Do you know ?

The vanilla flavouring comes from the pods of a leafy climbing orchid named Vanilla Planifolia.

Though orchids sometimes grow on trees/other plants, they are not parasites. They only use the trees for support. They do not take nutrients from them. Orchids are found on every continent except Antarctica and found in almost every color except black. Orchid leaves are thick and fleshy, giving them the impression that they can withstand drought well like cacti.

Club News

Press Clippings..

Coverage of Rainbow Stamp News by Times of India

News from UK…..

WW2 code breaking Tunny machine commemorative stamp and cover issued…

6 June 2011

To mark the opening of the new Tunny Gallery at The National Museum of Computing, Bletchley Park Post Office issued a commemorative cover and ‘Smiler’. The cover features 1940s photographs of the original Tunny machines, a map of World War II German “Fish” communications network, a Lorenz SZ42 encipher machine and explanatory text.

The Tunny machine was vital in World War II code breaking and was a British re-engineering of the Lorenz SZ42 cipher machine used in radio teleprinter communications amongst German High Command. It produced the final decrypts and provided key intelligence for D-day, Kursk and in ousting the Axis forces from Italy and France. The rebuilt Tunny machine is now on display in the museum and features on the ‘Smiler’.

The cover bears a Bletchley Park Post Office CDS for 26 May when the new Tunny Gallery opened in the presence of four surviving veterans associated with the Tunny machine. Amongst them was Gil Hayward who helped build the first Tunny machine. Each veteran was presented with a limited edition cover.

The National Museum of Computing commissioned the limited edition of 250 covers as a tribute to the war-time code breakers. The issue price is £12.50 each.

The 20 stamp ‘Smilers’ featuring the rebuilt Tunny machine are a limited edition of 50 at £40 each. The issue will contribute to the Museum’s fund raising drive

The stamps and covers are available, while stocks last, from The National Museum of Computing or Bletchley Park Post Office. They can be viewed at www.bletchleycovers.com.

- Terry Mitchell, UK

New Stamps from Czech Republic…

 

 Date of Issue : 15 June 2011

Ceska Posta will issue two stamps on 15 June 2011 featuring European hamster and commemorating European Florists Championship Europa Cup 2011. Both the stamps are beautiful and good collecting items for the lovers of Flora and Fauna.

Young Animals - Cricetus Cricetus

The European hamster (Cricetus Cricetus) is a species of hamsters relative to voles. The European hamster is a medium-sized, stout-bodied animal with short legs. The tail is short and furred. It is often taken for a marmot, but unlike a marmot, the European hamster is more colourful, with yellow to orange brown dorsal fur with black ends, and a dark brown to black chest and belly. The top head fur is reddish, with white or yellow patches behind the ears and on the nose (and on the front legs). The animal changes its rather thick coat colour once a year. Other prominent features include very large cheek poaches, and flank glands of males that are much larger during the breeding season.

The European hamster is a nocturnal species. It is an excellent runner and jumper. It lives in separate burrows, consisting of tunnels 6-8 cm in diameter, nesting chamber, hibernating chamber, food and storage chambers and droppings chamber. It can burrow as deep as 2 meters in winter months when it hibernates. Females usually have 2-5 litters each year. The gestation period is 20 days, and the size of the litter ranges from 3 to 12 young. It is native to a large area extending from south-west Siberia (the Yenisey river) to Belgium and north-east France.

Date of Issue 15 June 2011

European Florists Championship Europa Cup 2011

Like the Olympic games, the top prestigious EUROPA CUP competition in floral design takes place once every four years in one of the member countries of FLORINT, the European Federation of Professional Florist Associations. The federation was formed in Strasbourg in 1956 under the name Fédération Européenne des Unions Professioneless des Fleuristes (FEUPF) and changed its name to Florint in January 2009.

The first of these professional florist competitions was held in 1967. The EUROPA CUP 2011 will be held on August 31st - September 5th, 2011 and it will be the first time the competition will be held in the Czech Republic. The City of Havířov and the Czech Union of Flower Growers and Florists will be the organizers.

The competitors will come from 24 European countries. The six disciplines will take them through the history of the organizing city and the history of Czech music. A couple of the competition themes will reflect Havířov's early history and its relationship with coal and flowers. The next theme will be the 170th anniversary of Antonín Dvořák's birth. The final theme will focus on fashion and surprise.

: Česká pošta

From our Readers

Permanent Pictorial Cancellations

Uttaranchal

Philatelic Bureau, Dehradun

: Ashwani Dubey, Gorakhpur

Fruits and Butterflies on new Hungarian Stamps…

Date of Issue : 6 May 2011

Hi ! I In this Post some nice stamps featuring fruits and Butterflies…Well this is the time of fruits…..Magyar Posta issued a set of two stamps on 6 May 2011 featuring fruits from Hungary.The HUF 145 stamp shows the domesticated apple and the HUF 310 stamp depicts the cat’s head pear. Another set features beautiful butterflies and Moths with a nice MS. Both the sets are colorful and very attractive and sure to be liked by all stamp lovers !! This is all for this evening ….Till Next Post …Have a Nice Time !!

Domesticated apple

Its origin is uncertain but it was certainly grown in the 16th century in France. In Hungary it is still grown in small gardens and vineyards on the Great Plain. It ripens in August. Its 240-300 g fruit is a flattened ball with a whitish yellow flesh and stripy skin, and there is also a single colour clone version. Its flesh is hard and highly acid with little flavour. It is favoured for its size and is widely used in cooking. The tree has a large crown with big leaves and remarkably small buds. It starts producing late but then produces well, albeit in phases. The species tolerates a va-riety of growing locations but it likes alkaline soil the least. The tree is excellent for old fashioned gardens and requires minimal care. The fruit can be kept until the end of September in a cool larder.

Cat’s head pear

Already cultivated in 1590 in the Bamberg nursery, it became known in French areas as well as West Hungary. Its fruit is large, about 9-9.5 cm in diameter. Its stem is thick and strong and does not drop easily. Hard skin and yellow flesh are typical with a reddish-brown skin on the sunny side. Its flesh is crispy and coarse but not stony. Sweet, but a little tart, it is the typical kitchen type. It used to be popular for stewed fruit and jelly. In France it was also fermented to make perry. During November and December after-ripening is finished but it can be kept until spring.

Moths and Butterflies from Hungary

Date of Issue : 6 May 2011

Insects with scale covered wings (Lepidoptera) include moths and butterflies, which are thought to be the last order to have evolved among arthropods. To date about 150,000 species of moths have been identified, and 3,500 are known to have occurred in the Carpathian Basin. Insects belonging to the Lepidoptera order are commonly described in Hungarian by a number of words, which can be summarised in English as moth and butterfly. Most of the species representing 40 moth families living in Hungary are small and fragile, but there are some which are large and fat, and they usually fly at night. The ones that are nocturnal are called moths in everyday speech. The word butterfly is mainly used for the splendid dainty species with beautiful coloration, which are on the wing during the day. All butterflies belong to one family only, which is represented by 4 species in Hungary. These, compared to their wonderful rela-tives living in the tropics, are elegant but modest in appearance.

The stamps of the set show, in order of ascending face value, on a white background Freyer’s Purple Emperor (Apatura metis), which is characteristic in the Danube’s catchment area, Esper’s Marbled White (Melanargia russiae), which used to live in our forest steppe areas but has now disappeared, Garden Tiger Moth (Arctia caja), now a less frequent visitor to our gardens, and the Willowherb Hawk-moth (Proserpinus proserpina), still quite common in wet meadows. In the border and the stamp design of the numbered block the splendid Large Copper with its original coloration is repeated in a delicate drawing, imparting a special rhythm. This butterfly occurs in marshland in Hungarian areas. Butterfly motifs are likewise repeated in the design of the first day cover and the special postmark.

: Magyar Posta

Wolfgang Beyer, Germany

David Jastrzbski, Dijon - France

Water lilies from Sweden..

 

Date of Issue : 12 May 2011

 

Hi ! After cool Ice cream stamps here is another set of very cool stamps from Sweden issued on 12 May. The water lily is a perennial water plant and Sweden is home to yellow and white water lilies as well as the rare red water lily, which is a variation of the white water lily. The water lily is plant with large floating leaves that are round or oval. The Nymphaeceae family, which the water lilies are called in Latin, includes around 60 species, of which three are found in Sweden.The stamps are very nice with different colors of water lilies.  A good collecting set for Flora thematic collectors. I am giving a series of permanent Cancellations of different states. Readers may send details of permanent pictorial cancellations of different states.

This is all for Today….Till Next Post…Have a Nice Time !

Permanent Pictorial Cancellations

Tamil Nadu

Pictorial Permanent Postmark 5

Kodikkarai / Point Calimere

Date of Inauguration of PPP - December 02, 1977

Kodikkarai / Point Calimere is located 60 Km south of Nagapattinam. The postmark depicts Greater Flamingo. Point Calimere Wildlife and Bird Sanctuary (PCWBS) was created in 1967 for conservation of the near threatened Blackbuck Antelope, an endangered endemic mammal species of India. It is famous for large congregations of water birds, especially Greater Flamingos. The sanctuary includes the cape and its three natural habitat types: dry evergreen forests, mangrove forests, and wetlands. Greater Flamingo is also the state bird of Gujarat.

: Kasinath R.,Thanjavur email : kasinath80@gmail.com
Blog : My Watercraft Philately - http://shipthemegallery.blogspot.com/

Gujarat

Dwarka

Ellisbridge, Ahmedabad

: Vijay Modi – Himmat Nagar, Gujarat e mail : vijay_idom@rediffmail.com

50th Anniversary of first men in Space

Date of Issue – 5 April 2011

San Marino issues a stamp today , commemorating first Men in space.The stamp of €0.50 portrays Gagarin set against the Soviet Union flag and the stamp of € 2.40 portrays Shepard set against the American flag. On 12 April 1961, Gagarin became the first human to travel into space .

The Soviet Union Aboard the Vostok 1 spaceship, the cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin (1934 –1968) makes the first orbital flight around the Earth and then lands in the Saratov region. He leaves the space capsule, which brought him safe and sound through the atmosphere, with an ejection seat and ends his historical space flight by parachute. The event marks the first milestone in the space conquest.

Americans take up the Russian challenge on the 5th May 1961. The cosmonaut Alan Bartlett Shepard (1923-1998) orbits aboard the Mercury spaceship called Freedom 7, reaching the height of 185 km and the speed of 8.262 km/h. He is the first American cosmonaut to travel into space.

: San Marino Post

New Rose Stamp from Latvia

Date of Issue – 25 March 2011

Courtesy – EN Limanski

My Recent Covers

Andrzej Bek – Poland

EN Limanski – Riga, Latvia

Ivan Wong – Hong Kong

Thanks all of you for nice covers. I will send covers very soon . I am sorry I could not send covers to my friends since a long time as the covers are not available here but trying to get them soon for all my friends… Thank you very much !!

New stamps on Flowers and Floral paintings....

Date of Issue : 22 March 2011

Australia Post issued a set of five stamps to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV). It features five paintings by Australian artists drawn from the collection of the NGV.

This stamp set features a selection of floral still life paintings by famous artists of Australia.

A bunch of flowers by Nora Heysen (1911-2003)
Camellias by Arnold Shore (1897-1963)
Fruit and flowers by Vida Lahey (1882-1968)
Still life, Zinnias by Roy de Maistre (1894-1968)
A cottage bunch by Hans Heysen (1877-1968).

The decorative gutter strip incorporates tubes of artist paint as graphic elements.

Maxim cards

The maxim card set brings in to sharper detail these striking floral arrangement paintings.

: Australia Post

New Stamps on Rosesby Cyprus Post

Date of Issue : 23 March 2011

: Cyprus Post