COVER N. 647 - SRI LANKA

Postmark: Headquarters P. O. Colombo Mail 10.10.2025  

Posted on the 10th October;  Received on the 22nd October 2025

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Ravi kindly sends me pieces of sky.... and I, for one, unlike Astérix, am not afraid that the sky will fall on my head... Bohoma Sthuthi, Ravi!

"The cosmos is within us. We are made of star-stuff. We are a way for the universe to know itself", thus spoke Carl Sagan, in the book that literally opened up (even if just slightly, for such is its dimension) the universe to a lot of us, me included, the curious kid who would not fail to watch the week's episode of "Cosmos" on TV.

At the time, the 80s of last century, when instead of typing www, you'd flip a page with the tip of your index finger,  National Geographic was also publishing covers with never before seen details of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, taken by those wonderful pieces of mankind named Voyager 1 and 2.

And what a discovery that was....who could ever forget the first shots of Jupiter's eye, that big red spot in the planet's atmosphere, for instance?  I pity I could never show them to my grandfather. Maybe like that I could try to convince him that yes, Man had walked on the moon, something he had most serious doubts about....

Today, images like those have become almost common place, such were the developments in technology of the last decades that have made it possible to photograph the solar system and beyond with a level of detail that is hard to imagine (who would have thought that it would be possible to photograph a black hole ????)

And yet, every time I look at one of those images I feel humbled, reduced in existence, as if dissolved in some cosmic fluid, the same fluid that binds us, the entire universe, together.

Yes, the cosmos is within me; yes, I am star stuff... we all are!

... Although, due to our transient nature, that stuff is more of the "shooting"  type than of the "wandering" category....

On 25SEP2025, Sri Lanka Post issued a minisheet comprising 10 x 50 Rupee circular stamps, entitled, "The wonders of the Universe", featuring many of the outstanding photographs of celestial bodies  that at some point have awed us in their uncommonness and beauty.

Four of  these stamps can be seen on this cover, illustrated (left to right) with marvellous photographs of  the colourful rings of Saturn; The great red spot on Jupiter, the Open star cluster of the Pleiades, and the Orion Nebula. 

As usual with Ravi's mail, the cover is postmarked from Colombo's Main P.O.

 Sometimes all it takes is asking.

In these days of everything digital, it can be a bit of a pain to wriggle up a decidedly analogical mind to work its way out of a technological doubt.

How the hell do I do it?

The interrogation pops up time and time again when, for a pressing reason, I am compelled to delve into the mysteries of computers, their intimate body parts or their intricate language (see how analogic I am?) .

I can be a bit of a stubborn beast when these things happen. I will go and try, and try, and try again.

Still, the first step I take is always untutored: conjuring up  all my faith in my “over par”  knowledge, abilities, capacities, capabilities and skills, I go down all the alleyways I might thing viable to solve the problem at hand.

This, of course, 9.5 / 10 times results in utter defeat. The problem will remain unsolved and, as usual, I will be humbled by the weightless wall of reality that will descend upon me.

Next step: go ask google and youtube, the voice within orders.

And so I do.

And this might produce results. In fact, comparing with the above approach, I would say that it would improve things a solid 50%.

But, then again, some tutorials are either too technically minded, too long to browse before you find any lead that you can follow that you think might be a viable way of approaching the problem, or simply you go through all of it (text or video) only to find that your question remains unanswered.

That, in itself, might not be a bad thing, if you are musically minded, of course – go ask Charles Ives – but most times it is just another easy path to frustration.

And then there’s the last resort.

And the best of all

For it is also the simplest.

Go ask someone who knows how to do it!

This option, by comparison with the other two I’ve mentioned, raises the success rate to the inverse of that of the first approach I always try.

Teachers, formal or informal, are vectors of positive infection, they are the yeast that knowledge needs to ferment, they can be chain reaction starters!

And we all are teachers, for we all know things that others do not.

Where the line is drawn is on one’s attitude, one’s willingness to share the knowledge one carries.

For knowledge is, as financiers say, “an active” and as such can be traded for money, influence, position…

Or it can just be given away,

Like most teachers are always willing to do, provided you ask.

So I never forget to say “Thank you”, when someone has helped me solving a question that might have proved too difficult for me to solve without the benefit of  the help of someone who already knew how to do it.

And it is so easy, sometimes. All it takes is asking!

P.S. I finally found out how to put links in a comment thanks to the help of Eva, the keeper of  the Mail Adventures blog

COVER N. 646 - USA

Postmark: 2026 Boston World Stamp Show First day of Issue,  August 14, 2025 Shaumburg IL 60194  

Posted on the 20th September;  Received on the 14th October 2025

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What a nice cover! Not only the stamps are truly beautiful but also the cancellation is remarkably uncommon. Thank you so much Geoffrey. Truly appreciated!

I think the first book I read by James Michener was "Centennial", published in 1974, as the United States of America was just two years away from celebrating the 200th anniversary of its independence from the English crown.

I must have read it in 1977-78, or so. If you asked me now, of course, I do not recollect the details, but I vividly remember the fact that the story spans millennia, from the formation of landmasses to what was then present day USA.

I liked the book so much that I went on to read a few more of Michener's hefty books like Hawaii or Chesapeake, all following the same  pattern of  setting the main plot against a hugely long time frame, thus enabling the reader to get him/herself immersed into a vast backdrop of historical and even scientific information that was one of the things that I found quite enthusing about his novels. 

50 years have passed since then. Half a century. I am quite older, haven’t touched a Michener book in decades, and the USA is about to celebrate 250 years of independence, on the 4th of July, next year. 

Ironically, as I type, the TV is full of images of the millions who took yesterday to the streets to reaffirm the principles laid down in the Declaration of Independence, this time around not to a foreign king, but to an internal wannabe one..."the enemy within"?

I digress....

One of the events that will be directly linked to the celebrations of the 250th anniversary of the American Independence will be the "World Stamp Show", which will take place in Boston, Massachusetts, between 23 and 30 May.

USPS made excellent use of the occasion to issue a couple of terrific in-taglio printed "Forever" stamps than began to circulate on the 14th August, drawing on the attention of philatelists and public at large to the forthcoming philatelic show.

According to USPS, the stamps, which when closely analysed exhibit a very fine 3D appearance, were created as replica vintage engravings so as to celebrate the stamps issued in the 19th and the early years of the 20th century, and they are illustrated with images of  the Old North Church, which is oldest church building in existence in Boston, as it appeared during the American Revolution, and of a  “Midnight rider”  galloping with a lantern in one hand, so as to light his way.

These are both symbols of the American revolution for lanterns in the bell tower of the  Church, there placed momentaneously, at the request of Paul Revere, on the night of April 18, 1775, warned patriots of the movements of the British troops.

Paul Revere himself was one of  the "midnight riders" (and the most famous of them all), evoked in one of the stamps, these being patriots dispatched to warn fellow revolutionaries of the whereabouts of the British troops, prior to the first battles of the American revolution: Lexington and Concord, which took place on the 19th April.

The postmark is decidedly unusual in that it is digitally printed over the stamps in two colours, blue and gold, with the 2026 Boston World Stamp Show legend superimposed over the same midnight rider image that is present on the stamp. All in all quite neat!

Postage was completed with a couple of definitive stamps from a series themed on fruits, started in 2016.

The 5 Cent grapes stamp was issued on 24FEB2017, while the 10 Cent pear stamp is a 2017 reprint of the  original, issued on 17JAN2016.

COVER N. 645 - FRANCE

Postmark: La Poste 08.10.2025 

Posted on the 8th October; Received on the 14th October 2025

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Once again I am visited by Monsieur Gustave Eiffel, the man who conceived wrought iron structures which went well beyond their functional purpose, for monumental masterpieces, art icons, they were.

M. Eiffel has already featured on my humble blog a propos cover #228 but I have to say that I quite like the way the envelope of this particular cover is embellished with a "stuttering" souvenir sheet which works a charm, from a composition point of view.

Un énorme Merci, Daniel!

 

Since all I said about Eiffel on cover #228 still holds, of course, true, I will not elaborate more on the life and deeds of this most famous French Engineer, but I'll register again the fact that the in-taglio one 1,80€ stamp souvenir sheet issued on 27MAR2023, on the occasion of the centenary of Eiffel's death, is a true masterwork of philatelic art, with all the intricate detail present not only on the engineer's portrait that occupies most of the stamp but also in the reproductions of the iron lattice works of the Eiffel Tower, the Gabarit Viaduct and Nice's Observatory cupola, that grace the souvenir sheet frame.

Another thing that I can't help but notice when inspecting the envelope is that the price of a base tariff stamp  for the  international service in France has gone up almost 17% since 2023.

To make up for the 80 cent difference, Daniel used a label of that value affixed on the back of the envelope, so as not to conflict with the beautiful layout on its face.

One final note to mention that the  postmark does not include any information regarding the place of expedition.

COVER N. 644 - KYRGYZTAN

Postmark: ? 24.07.2025 

Posted on the 24th July; Received on the 18th August 2025

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I have just noticed that I forgot to post a cover I got from the wondrous wanderer, The Ghost that Walks, my friend  The Phantom, I received back in August, mailed from Kyrgyzstan.

Better late than never, they say... Danke sehr, Alex!

In 2005, quite a few Postal Administrations issued stamps celebrating the 50th anniversary of the first CEPT/EUROPA stamps, and what I find quite remarkable is that many of the countries that issued these celebratory sets were not even part of CEPT or Post Europe.

Kyrgyztan is one such case, and on the cover Alex sent me we can see three of the six (15; 20; 25; 45; 60; 85 som) stamps issued on 29DEC2005, celebrating this fact.

As a side note, I should mention that the stamps were issued in perforated and imperforated versions, the latter being used on the cover.

The Kyrgyz issue highlighted "50th anniversary of the first EUROPA stamps - The great silk path - The first link between Asian and European Cultures" as can be read on the legend on top of the stamps, to the right of the CEPT logo.

Each of the stamp is then illustrated with a landmark of the silk road . Left to right we have:

The Uzgen Minaret, dating from the 11th century, this minaret located in Uzgen, a town in the Osh region, is built in bricks and stands 27.5 metres tall;

the Acropolis, Athens, not technically a silk road location, but very relevant to the formation of an European identity, Athens is represented by its most famous landmark, the Parthenon at the Acropolis, dating from the 5th century BC.

The Kolossi Castle, at Limassol in Cyprus, built in 1454 on the location of an earlier 13th century infrastructure.

And yes the castle is ok, but really impressive is the 200 + years old  Rosewood tree that lives in its yard.... absolutely amazing.

The Postmark of the  Kyrgyz Pochtasy SE - one of the two postal operators of Kyrgyztan - was issued at the town of Osh.

COVERs N. 642/43 - FRANCE

Postmark: Croisssant au Beurre 1er Jour 25 - Valence / Paris 07.10.2025 

Posted on the 7th October September; Received on the 14th October 2025

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What could be more French than say... Champagne? La Baguette? Escargots? Michelle of the Resistance?

A clue: it gets its name from its shape and, fresh from the baker's, just by itself or blessed with a slice of cheese, or ham, or both, alongside a cup of warm coffee, can do wonders to revitalise your spirit, after a good night sleep or a sleepless night....

Yes, you've guessed it...: Mesdames et Messieurs, je vous donne (drum roll, please), Le Croissant au Beurre!

And I had it double for breakfast today, for I got two wonderful covers, just in time for my morning cup of coffee, from Eric and Roland, to whom I could not be more grateful. Un grand Merci, les amis!

I am not an expert in croissants (although I expertely like to eat them....), so I did a bit of research as to their origin and it seems they can be linked to an Austrian pastry, called kipferl, which was introduced in France by an Austrian artillery officer, August Zang, in the last years of the thirties, of the eighteen hundreds.

Herr Zang started selling kipferls in the bakery he opened in Paris, to such a success that soon they were hitting the shelves of bakeries in a locally developed iteration, fashioned out of a yeast-leavened dough rich in butter, which, when expertly worked out, would produce the delicious laminations that fall everywhere on the table and on one's body with each new bite of the crscent shaped contraption.

The croissant, that fabulous monument of puff pastry, was thus born and its fame would cross rapidly cross borders, so much so that I do believe that it is one of those products that might be bought in all of the earth's continents, with the exception of Antarctica (and then again, there is a couple of French bases south of the Antartcic circle, so, there must be a croissant there, somewhere). 

Celebrating this edible piece of French culture and gastronomy, La Poste issued, on 07OCT2025, a  2.10 € stamp illustrated with  a photo of a croissant.

Of note is the fact that the stamp is scented, and it theory it should evoke the smell of a freshly baked croissant on the inquiring nose. Still, to me (and Eric also felt more or less the the same, he tells me) the scent it radiates makes me think more of  a  cross between  vanila and caramel than of the smooth, fatty smell of butter.

Another fact worth mentioning is that Eric went through the trouble of traveling to Valence, to get the First day Postmark, for Valence is the place where the annual  Best Croissant au Beurre Contest took place this year, and La Poste chose to issue it in connection with the Contest.

That said, the cover that Roland sent me has the First Day postmark of Paris, so I ended up getting two different first day postmarked covers. Neat!

Now... where did I put my cholesterol pills....?

COVER N. 641 - SOUTH KOREA

Postmark: Seoul C.P.O. Korea  18.09.2025 

Posted on the 18th September; Received on the 9th October 2025

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Oh another of my beloved airmail envelopes... and as usual with them, neat and dandy..... 매우 감사합니다, 매우 감사합니다ng

Not much to say about this cover. The envelope is very nice, the stamps quite striking, the postmark  very clear and there is even a nice airmail label...all in all a great addition to the collection.

The two reptile stamps are part of  a 5 x 430 won, strip of se-tenant stamps issued on 09JUL2025, dedicated to Endangered Species on CITES Trade Ban List.

CITES is the acronym for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, adopted in 1973 by the members of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and in force since 1975.

The convention aims at eradicating the traffic of endangered Fauna and Flora species, so as to guarantee their sustainability and survival in  the wild.  

At present, some 40,900 species are protected under the CITES convention, each of them being classified under one of the three appendixes to the convention:

Appendix I - species threatened with extinction and to which the highest level of CITES protection is afforded.

Appendix II - species not necessarily threatened with extinction, but whose trade must be controlled in order to avoid utilization incompatible with their survival;

Appendix III -  species that are protected in at least one country, and that country has asked other CITES Parties for assistance in controlling the trade. 

The stamps feature  (left to right) a Rhinoceros iguana (Cyclura Cornuta), endemic to the Island of Hispaniola (shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic) currently classified by IUCN as Endangered and a Saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus), the rather impressive, to say the least, largest reptile there is, which also is known to not say no to a bite of human flesh...

Occurring from the Indian East coast to Australia, the saltwater crocodile can grow up to six meters in length and weigh more than 900 kg.

The Postmark was applied at the central Post Office of Seoul, South Korea's capital.

COVER N. 640 - FRANCE

Postmark: Service des Oblitérations Philatéliques 24 - Boulazac  06.10.2025 

Posted on the 6th October; Received on the 9th October 2025

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Quite an uncommon addition to the collection, this nice cover from France, with an oval stamp. Un grand Merci, Roland. 

It is well know that there are things that we take for granted, and never ever give a thought as to their origin... they seem to have been there for ever and we just can't imagine our days, our lives, without them.

And yet , some of them are not that old. Take the Tetra Pak brik carton, for instance....If I strain my neurons a bit I can evoke the days when milk was sold in glass jars, sealed plastic bags, or even before that,  the days when the milkman would come by our house daily to supply us with freshly milked milk, which, when heated, would produce on its surface a delicious skin of cream that I would grasp with a spoon to lay on a dish and mix with some sugar.... hmmmm yummy.....

Many other artefacts that make our live much easier are much older than the Tetra brik, so much so that one would think that some of them would already have been named in the Book of Genesis, for hard as we try we can't recollect leaving without them.

The humble pencil is one such item. 

The practical and useful combination of a wooden stick with a graphite core was one of the first artefacts that I as so many children were presented with during their first formative years, just as we started to be able to coordinate our gestures and movements. 

Those first pencil scribbles, made it easier to later learn how to draw letters and numbers and gain access to the wonderful world of written expression. 

The origin of the pencil can be traced back to the days when coal would be used to leave a mark on a surface.... and ever since then, nothing has really changed in its purpose, although its form has significantly changed.

In fact, from the first sticks of coal and jet, to the later lead stylus, used by the Romans, the most common writing implement before the BIC ballpoint would evolve to the shape and composition we all know in the final years of the 18th century, as the brainchild of French army officer, painter, balloonist, and inventor Nicolas-Jacques Conté (1755 - 1805).

Story has it that when Napoleon's France was under an economic blockade that made it impossible to import  graphite sticks from the UK, Conté had the idea of mixing graphite powder with clay and encasing a core of the mix in cylinders of wood. The modern pencil was thus born and such was its success that Conté would create a company that bore his name - Societé Comté -  and which subsists to this day, dedicated to its production. 

220 years past his passing (or 270, past his birth) La Poste honoured Nicolas-Jacques Conté with the 2,10 €  stamp on the cover, issued on 28JUL2025.

The oval stamp, which is nested on the 15 stamp sheets on which the issue was printed as a traditional rectangular stamp, so that you can separate the stamp from the sheet as an oval or a rectangle, is illustrated with an engraving of  Monsieur Conté wearing an eye band over his left blind eye, a result of an accident with hydrogen during his aerostat development investigations.

The very neat postmark was applied by the Philatelic Obliterations Service, at  Boulazac.

POSTCARD N.190 - PORTUGAL 

World Postcard Day - sent on the 1st October; received on the 6th October 2025.

Postcard image: Lisbon trams   

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Postcrossing was a good idea and so was World Postcard Day, which I believe, was also the brainchild of the Postcrossing team, who established it in 2020, as a way to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the creation of the Correspondenz-Karte, the first  official post card, issued by the Austrian Post on the 1st October 1869.

Ever since the first edition of WPD, special commemorative cancellations have been created for the event by CTT, the  Portuguese Postal services provider and as usual I do not let pass the date without sending out a few postcards to friends and also one to my own self.

This year I used a postcard from a series that I find quite striking , which features scenes of Lisbon drawn up in a typical graphic novel fashion by Inna  Korneeva, a talented Russian illustrator whose appreciation for our capital is quite apparent in the marvellous illustrations she produces.

To send the postcard I chose a N20g (domestic up to 20g) stamp from a very recent issue - 12SEP2025 - dedicated to Portuguese  contemporary art, featuring a light sculpture by Pedro Cabrita Reis, titled Central Tejo, which can be seen by the Tagus river in front of the Electricity Museum.

The artwork was a commission by EDP the largest electric power supplier in Portugal, whose foundation manages  Lisbon's Electricity Museum implanted in the facilities of  a former power generating central - Central Tejo.

The celebratory postmark is self-explanatory and was applied at Lisbon Restauradores Post office.

My National Covers

Every now and then I have the opportunity to add what I call a "National Cover" to my collection.

These are nothing fancy. In fact they are but covers that I print  at home with the flag and coat of arms of a specific country and which I then either send to a fellow collector who is willing to help or give to friends or family or take my own self whenever travelling abroad, in the hope that these might find a way to a local post office to get a stamp and a postmark.

I will be adding these to a new "My National Covers" section in this blog.

If you don't see your country here and are willing to help me add your own country's national cover to my collection, please email me at pnsoares1@gmail.com. 

You'll get a cover from Portugal (if you want I'll be happy to print a Portuguese National Cover just like the ones I print for myself, although in a somewhat larger envelope) and a printed envelope with the relevant symbols printed, so that you can then return it to me.

Thanks a lot.

Note: Whenever possible I will try to transcribe the flag and coat of arms information from the relevant national site. Failing that I'll transcribe from Wikipedia.

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 Kingdom of Spain  / Reino de España

The Flag

Pursuant to Article 4.1 of the Spanish Constitution of 1978, "the Spanish National Flag consists of three horizontal stripes - red, yellow and red, each red stripe being half the width of the central yellow stripe".

The origin of the current Spanish Flag dates back to the reign of Carlos III of Spain (1759-1788). Three types of flag coexisted in Spain at the time: the royal standard, the military flags and the Spanish navy jack. Most countries were using jacks that were predominantly white. This caused identification problems and confusion between warships at sea. To solve this problem, Carlos III of Spain commissioned his Minister of the Navy, Antonio Valdés y Bazán, with designing a replacement for the Spanish navy jack.

The king chose two of the 12 sketches presented to him - on which he adjusted the dimensions of the stripes. He declared the first to be used as the War Ensign and the second as the Civil Ensign by means of the Royal Decree of 28 May 1785.

During the reign of Carlos IV of Spain (1788-1808), the General Orders on the Spanish Navy of 8 March 1793 made extensive use of the so-called red-weld flag [from rojigualda and the more archaic use of gualda to refer to the colour of the central yellow stripe] in maritime plazas, castles and coastal defences, and it became known as the Royal Flag.

A phenomenon emerged during the Spanish War of Independence (1808-1814), in which a series of non-regulation flags proliferated. A number of sailors lent their services to terrestrial campaigns and, for the first time, bi-colour ensigns were seen throughout inland Spain.

Under the reign of Queen Isabel II of Spain (1833-1868), use of the bi-colour flag spread to the Army and the Spanish flag was thus unified. The Royal Decree of 13 October 1843 provides for the replacement of all flags, standards and badges, and military ensigns with other new red-weld ones.

Subsequently, the Instructions on Navy ensigns, flags, honours and salutes, of 13 March 1867 once again explicitly describes the flag to be used by ships, arsenals and maritime plazas.

Amadeo I of Spain (1871-1873) respected the heraldry of the Spanish Flag. During the First Republic (1873-1874), plans were drawn up to include a purple stripe to replace the lower red stripe. However, no change was actually made.

During the reign of Alfonso XII of Spain (1874-1885), an Instruction on naval ensigns, flags, honours and salutes was enacted on 10 December 1878. Article One of this document defines the national flag in the same terms as the aforementioned Instruction of 1867.

Under the Interim Government during the Second Republic (1931-1939), a decree was enacted on 27 April 1931 requiring the adoption of a tricolour national flag comprising "three horizontal strips of equal width; the upper being red, the central being yellow and the lower being dark purple".

Shortly after the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939), the red-weld flag was reinstated among rebel troops. After the Military Uprising (18 July 1936), a number of different flags proliferated among troops. To prevent this, the Chairman of the National Defence Council - General Cabanellas - signed the Decree of 29 August 1936 whereby the traditional flag was recovered. The Sole Article of this document states: "The red and weld bi-colour flag is re-established as the Flag of Spain".

A few years later, during the dictatorship of General Francisco Franco (1939-1975), the Decree of 11 October 1945 approved the New Regulations on Ensigns, Flags and Badges that governs their use and form, and defined the characteristics of the three types of National Flag for units of the Armed Forces, warships and buildings.

Following the death of Franco in 1975 and the restoration of the House of Bourbon through King Juan Carlos I of Spain, these Regulations were replaced by Royal Decree 1511/1977, of 21 January, which approves the Regulations on Flags and Standards, Crosses, Ensigns and Badges.

Current legislation is based on the Spanish Constitution of 1978, which defines the Spanish Flag in its Article 4.1.

Source: La Moncloa. The State Symbols of Spain

The Coat of Arms

The current Spanish Coat of Arms reflects much of the country's history. The elements of which it is composed have a long tradition dating back more than nine centuries.

The heraldic process of the Coat of Arms of Spain has passed through the following periods:

The Trastámara Dynasty: The Coat of Arms of the Catholic Monarchs (1474-1492) was composed of the Coat of Arms of the Kingdoms of Castile, Leon and the Crown of Aragon. After the conquest of Granada, the coat of arms of the Kingdom of Granada was incorporated.

The Habsburg Dynasty: Initially (1504-1506) it included the arms of Bourgogne, Flanders, Brabant and Tyrol. Carlos I stamped the coat of arms with the imperial crown and added the Pillars of Hercules and the motto "Plus Ultra", as well as the Golden Fleece. Felipe II, Felipe III and Felipe IV and Carlos II, whose reigns lasted from 1556 to 1700, used this coat of arms without the imperial crown. In 1580, Felipe II incorporated the arms of Portugal.

The Bourbon-Anjou Dynasty: The coat of arms of Felipe V (1700-1759) incorporated the fleur-de-lis of the house of Bourbon with an outline in gules (red). It continued to use the Golden Fleece and added the Order of the Holy Spirit in form of a necklace. Carlos III (1759-1788) added the arms of the Duchies of Parma and Tuscany and replaced the Order of the Holy Spirit with the order that bears his own name. Carlos IV used his father's model.

Bonaparte Dynasty: José I divided the shield into six quarterings: 1 Castile, 2 Leon, 3 Aragon, 4 Navarre, 5 Granada and 6 the New World, represented by the Pillars of Hercules. He also added an inescutcheon with the Bonaparte coat of arms.

The Bourbon-Anjou Dynasty: Fernando VII recovered the coat of arms of his ancestors and his daughter Isabel II used the same model.

Provional Government (1868-1870): A ruling by the Royal Academy of History unified the Coat of Arms of Spain with the following quarterings: 1 Castile, 2 Leon, 3 Aragon, 4 Navarre and 5 Granada. It drew a nebuly, stamped it with a mural crown, removed the shield with the coat of arms of the Bourbon-Anjou dynasty and added the Pillars of Hercules, without crowns.

The Savoy Dynasty (1870-1873): Continued with the previous coat of arms, re-established the royal crown and added an inescutcheon with the family arms.

The First Republic (1873-1874): Re-established the mural crown and removed the arms of Savoy.

The Bourbon-Anjou Dynasty: Alfonso XII and Alfonso XIII re-established the royal crown and added the fleurs-de-lis with the gules (red) border of their family and incorporated the necklace of the Golden Fleece.

The Second Republica (1936-1939): Re-established the mural crown and eliminated the arms of Bourbon-Anjou, using the same arms as in the First Republic.

Dictatorship of general Franco (1938-1975): Used heraldic devices similar to those of the Catholic Monarchs, replacing the arms of Aragon-Sicily by those of Navarre, adding the Pillars of Hercules and the motto "una, grande y libre" (one, great and free).

The Transition Period (1977-1981): Royal Decree 1511/77 of 21 January, approving the Regulation on Flags, Insignia and Badges, altered the design of the motto on the coat of arms, but the main change consisted of presenting the eagle of Saint John rising, or about to take flight, shielding the Pillars of Hercules under his wings, rather than outside as previously.

This coat of arms was in force from 1977 until it was replaced by the current one in 1981, under Law 33/1981, of 5 October, governing the Coat of Arms of Spain.

Source: La Moncloa. The State Symbols of Spain

The coat of arms of Spain represents Spain and the Spanish nation, including its national sovereignty and the country's form of government, a constitutional monarchy. It appears on the flag of Spain and it is used by the Government of Spain, the Cortes Generales, the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court, and other state institutions. Its design consists of the arms of the medieval kingdoms that would unite to form Spain in the 15th century, the Royal Crown, the arms of the House of Bourbon, the Pillars of Hercules and the Spanish national motto: Plus Ultra. 

Source: Coat of arms of Spain - Wikipedia

The Stamp

José Saramago (1922-2010) was, to this date, Portugal's sole recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature, for a vast body of literary work which includes such magnificent books as "Memorial do Convento" (Baltasar and Blimunda) or "O ano da morte de Ricardo Reis" (The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis) or "Caim" (Cain), to name but three of his best known novels.

Further to novels, Saramago also authored poetry, theatre, essays and even a well respected sort of intimate travel book: "Viagem a Portugal" (Journey to Portugal)

Loved by some, hated by a few also, Saramago was a controversial name due to his ideological and political positions, (he was a member of the rather orthodox Portuguese Communist Party).

His position regarding the Catholic Church in a highly catholic country and such titles as the "O Evangelho Segundo Jesus Cristo" (The Gospel according to Jesus Christ)  and "Caim" (Cain) would also earn him a fair share of enmities and, at some point in his career,  he would be censored by the Portuguese Government who shamefuly withdrew his name from a list of canditates to an European literature prize.

This happened in 1991... he would win the Nobel the very next year, in 1992.

Saramago was also a defender of the integration of Portugal into an Iberian federation of Nations, which would be called Iberia not Spain, so as not to hurt Portuguese feelings.... so it is not a surprise that  he would choose Spain, Lanzarote in the Canary islands to be more precise, to exile himself after the censorship episode I mentioned above. There he would live until his death in 2010.

On 15NOV2023, Correos de España issued a 1,23€ stamp in its "Literatura" series, honouring the Portuguese writer and Iberian man of culture. The stamp features a Black and White photograph of Saramago in Lanzarote.

The Postmark

The Pictorial Postmark is that of the main Post Office of Madrid, located in the sumptuous Palacio de Cibeles, the former Palacio de Telecomuniocaciones, whose façade is rendered in the postmark stamp.

The cover was sent me by none other than myself on my last visit to Madrid.

COVER N. 639 - CUBA

Postmark: Correos de Cuba Oficina de Correos Jesús Menéndez CP-77300 07.08.2025 / Correos de Cuba Las Tunas 25.08.2025 

Posted on the 7th August; Received on the 1st October 2025

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A new entry into my country's list, thanks again to the kind and generous collaboration of the Ghost who walks, my friend the restless wanderer, Das Phantom! Danke Sehr, Alex!

Cuba, a Spanish colony in the Caribbean until the end of the Spanish/American war of the end of the 19th century, after which it became independent, in 1902.

Cuba... a sad history of  dictatorships and geo-political harassment that has brought its people, ever since the second half of the 20th century, totally undeserved hardships, denial of freedom, and privations; an ongoing embargo on top of that that only the US and Israel (hmmmm....) sustain in the UN...

And yet, a very good public free health care system, very high schooling and life expectancy indicators...

Lifting the embargo, I'm sure, could help foster Cuba's ailing economy, and so would freedom, democracy, but those are aims for people in power truly concerned about the welfare of those their actions impinge upon or they represent...

Cienfuegos (a hundred fires) is the name of  the Capital of one of the provinces of Cuba, that goes by the same toponym.

It is located in the centre south of the country and it was originally founded as the villa Fernandina de Jagua  by French settlers in 1819, its name being changed to the current Cienfuegos in 1829, as a way of  honouring José Cienfuegos Jovellanos, Captain General of Cuba who had died also in 1819.

It is one of the country's main ports, being implanted in the heart of industrial Cuba, especially in what concerns the energy and sugar sectors.

Celebrating the 200 anniversary of the foundation of the city Correos de Cuba issued, on 22APR2019,  the single 1 peso stamp souvenir sheet on the cover, illustrated with an panoramic bird eye's view of the city.

The stamp itself carries the coat of  arms of Cienfuegos on one side and the statue of  "El apóstol cubano",  José Martí (1853 - 1895), the famous  nationalist, poet, philosopher, essayist, journalist, translator, professor, and publisher who is revered in Cuba (and all across Latin America) for his lifelong fight  against Spanish colonialism.

Further to the postmarks on the face of the cover issued at Jesus Menédez, in the Northeast coast of the island, the envelope carries on its back another postmark, dated of 11 days later, applied at the city of Las Tunas, located some 50 km as the bird flies to the southwest of José Menéndez.

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POSTCARD N.189 -  BRITISH OVERSEAS TERRITORIES - SAINT HELENA, ASCENSION AND TRISTAN DA CUNHA

Postcard sent on the 15th May; received on the 1st October 2025.

Postcard image: Tristan da Cunha, Innaccessible Island; thumbnails: Tristan Albatros, Sooty albatros, Innaccesible rail  

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Quite fitting that on World Postcard Day I should receive such an wonderful postcard from such an uncommon place as the one I got thanks to the offices of my good friend The Flying Dutchman. O meu muito obrigado Eric! Que surpresa fantástica!

There are remote places, and then there is the Tristan da Cunha Archipelago, midway between the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Horn....

While the archipelago comprises a total of six islands, only one, the largest, Tristan da Cunha, is inhabited, although a rather small contingent of six persons is also permanently placed in the island of Gonçalo Alvares (also called Gaugh Island), manning a meteorological station.

This is the second postal object I rceived from this farthest of all faraway places, the first being cover #536, and the postcard Eric sent me, really empathises the remoteness and "untouchedness" of the location from the very start since what could be more pristine and remote than an island called "Inaccessible"?

Inaccessible Island in truth is what is left of an extinct volcano and it occupies an area of less than 13 square kilometres, being inhabited only by colonies of  penguins and subantarctic fur seals, thriving in perfect peace for along with Gonçalo Alvares Island the island is  part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Gough and Inaccessible Islands, a protected nature reserve.

As can be seen in postcard photo, the few beaches on the island are quite rocky with steep cliffs that seem to rise almost directly from the sea.

Further to the penguins other avian species also inhabit the island and some relevant dwellers are highlighted in the thumbnails. Top to bottom, we have:

- Tristan Albatross (Diomedea dabbenena), endemic to the islands, considered to be Critically Endangered by IUCN standards, and one of the largest of the albatross family, with a wingspan that can reach 3.05 metres;

- Sooty Albatross (Phoebetria fusca), an endangered species also of large dimension, with a wingspan of up to 2 metres, which can be found in the South Atlantic Ocean, the southern Indian Ocean, and the Southern Ocean between Australia and South America;

- Inaccessible rail (Laterallus rogersi), the smallest of all flightless birds there is, classified as vulnerable, endemic to Inaccessible island.

The ship themed stamps on the postcard are part of a thirteen definitive stamp set issued on 14DEC2020, dedicated to Modern Mail Ships, that serviced the Island. 

The 5p stamp bears the image of the Gilligan Gaggins, operational between 1965 and 1973;

The 1p stamp is illustrated with an image of  the RRS John Biscoe, a supply and research vessel used by the British Antarctic Survey which provided mail services to the island in1957;

The 2 p stamps carries the image of  the S.S. Brasil, an American built ocean liner launched at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi in 1957., which provided mail service to the Island between 1960 and 1965.

The 10 p stamp on the face of the postcard is illustrated with a photo of MV RSA, South Africa's first Antarctic supply ship, a  1572 gross ton vessel, built by the Fujinagata Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, in Osaka, Japan, launched on 28 September 1961. 

According to the date on the stamp, it provided  services to the Islands between 1963 and 1977. 

In 1980 MV RSA was transformed into a static training ship for merchant seamen and it was moored in Cape Town docks. It was later partially scrapped and then sunk, when asbestos was found to be present on it.

The 30p stamp illustrated with an Hawker Hart, the famous Sidney Camm design of 1928 that would father a line of very important, and quite beautiful I may add, biplanes which included the Osprey, the Hind, the Demon, the Hardy, to name but a few, was issued on 01APR2008 included in a 5 x 30 p stamp set celebrating the 90th anniversary of the establishment of the Royal Air Force (which, upon inception in 1918, was called the Royal Flying Corps).

The Postmark reads "Tristan da Cunha South Atlantic" and is dated of 15May 2025.

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In 1980 MV RSA was transformed into a static training ship for merchant seamen and it was moored in Cape Town docks. It was later partially scrapped and then sunk, when asbestos was found to be present on it.

The 30p stamp illustrated with an Hawker Hart, the famous Sidney Camm design of 1928 that would father a line of very important, and quite beautiful I may add, biplanes which included the Osprey, the Hind, the Demon, the Hardy, to name but a few, was issued on 01APR2008 included in a 5 x 30 p stamp set celebrating the 90th anniversary of the establishment of the Royal Air Force (which, upon inception in 1918 was called the Royal Flying Corps).

The Postmark reads "Tristan da Cunha South Atlantic" and is dated of 15May 2025.