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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Canada

The Flag

The National Flag of Canada was adopted on January 28, 1965, by proclamation of Queen Elizabeth II. On February 15 of that same year, the new National Flag of Canada was raised for the first time on Parliament Hill.

Every year, on February 15, the entire country celebrates National Flag of Canada Day to highlight this anniversary.

The National Flag of Canada is a red flag, twice as long as it is wide (proportion 2:1, or 64 units in length and 32 units in width or depth, as shown in the accompanying diagram). In its centre is a white square the width of the Flag, with a single stylized 11-point red maple leaf in the centre. The flag is horizontally symmetric.

The maple leaf is one of the most recognizable symbols of Canada, and has been used to represent Canadian identity since the 19th century. 

Red and white are colours that have historically been used by many nations, including those that contributed to the founding of Canada. Many Canadians have come to embrace these colours as representative of natural features prominent in some parts of our country: the white of winter snows, and the red of autumnal maple leaves.

Source: Official symbols of Canada - Canada.ca

The Coat of Arms

The Coat of Arms of Canada, called the Arms of Canada or the Royal Arms of Canada, were adopted by proclamation of King George V in 1921.

The Coat of Arms of Canada display the royal emblems of England, Scotland, Ireland, and France, while also featuring distinctly Canadian symbols.

The Royal Crown that sits atop the Coat of Arms indicates that these are the Arms of His Majesty the King in Right of Canada.

Canada’s motto is A Mari Usque Ad Mare, which translates to “From Sea to Sea”.

In 1994, a circular, red ribbon was added to the Arms, displaying the motto of the Order of Canada: Desiderantes Meliorem Patriam (meaning “They desire a better country”).

Source:  Official symbols of Canada - Canada.ca

The Stamps

The two "Permanent" stamps featuring flowers are the 2024 issue of the ongoing "Flowers" series. They depict :

- Butterfly Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa) - a species of milkweed native to eastern and southwestern North America. It is commonly known as butterfly weed because of the butterflies that are attracted to the plant by its color and its copious production of nectar. (source: wikipedia)

- Spotted Beebalm (Monarda punctata) - a herbaceous plant in the mint family, Lamiaceae, that is native to eastern Canada, the eastern United States and northeastern Mexico. (source: wikipedia)

- The "Permanent" stamp illustrated with the portrait of  Chloe Cooley was issued on 30JAN2023, being that year's issue of the Black History Month series.

Chloe Cooley was a young black woman held as a slave in Fort Erie and Queenston, Upper Canada, in the late 18th-century, as the area was being settled by Loyalists from the United States. Her owner forced her into a boat to sell her in 1793 across the Niagara River in the United States.

This incident was observed by several witnesses, who petitioned the Executive Council of Upper Canada. Although charges were dropped against Cooley's owner, the incident is believed to have led to passage of the Act Against Slavery, 1793, in Upper Canada. It prevented slaves from being imported into the province and provided for gradual abolition of slavery within a generation among those held there. (source: wikipedia)

The Postmark

The stamps were cancelled at the main  Post Office of Quebec City with a pictorial cancel evoking the establishment in 1608 of the colonial outpost of Québec as the administrative seat for New France, the name having been  chosen by French explorer Samuel de Champlain.

I had the pleasure of requesting the use of the commemorative cancel in person, at Quebec's Post Office.