COVERS N. 636/7 - NORWAY

Postmark: Lillehammer Maihaugen 13.09.2025 

Posted on the 13th September; Received on the 25th September 2025

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Two almost identical covers from Norway with the return of two of my first circuits. I think I have to apologise for having closed two circuits with the same fellow collector. I must have misread my notes. Anyway, I'm sorry, but I am also very thankful to Egil both for his covers and for all the nice stamps he enclosed in the circuit letters.

 

Marine life is a theme that has been chosen a few times by the postal services provider of Norway (Posten, nowadays) for some of its stamp series and understandably so in a country where the sea and sea related economy play an important part.

Starting in 2004, an annual series that would run up to 2007 was initiated, the  stamps being illustrated with photographs of local maritime fauna. 

On the covers we have examples from two of these annual issues. 

As such, the Aesop Shrimp (Pandalus montagui) and the Edible Brown Crab (Cancer pagurus), were issued on 221SEP2007, as part of a 4 Tariff A (Domestic) self-adhesive stamp set (incidentally, an 11 Krone stamp in the series was also issued in the same year, on 02MAY2007).

The Cuckoo Wrasse (Labrus bimaculatus), on the other hand, was issued on 29MAR2006, as part of that year's 3 stamp set of the series.

As stated above all of the three species featured in the stamps can be found in the seas of Norway.

 

The beautiful and very clear pictorial postmark was applied at Maihaugne, an open air museum in the city of Lillehammer,  which includes several hundred historical buildings in its collection, preserving the culture and traditions of Norway.