Sun Science, TV Early Memories and UNESCO in Mexico

Well, once again I am three months behind with uploading my mail. I hope to get back on track at least a bit, but I do not think it will happen soon. After finishing my studies last year, I have moved and started a job that keeps me busy, so I have basically stopped everything connected to postcards and stamps. But to post at least once (or hopefully a bit more soon) this month after a hiatus since January, let's look at this set of five covers from the USA. The first four arrived on the last two days of 2021 and the last took until the 12th January. Two complete stamp sets are used here and they all got hand cancelled. The first is the brilliant set called Sun Science (issued 18-06-2021). These stamps were created in cooperation with NASA and show images of the sun from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, a spacecraft launched in February 2010 to keep a constant watch on the sun from geosynchronous orbit above Earth. They are printed with a foil treatment to make them glimmer. A wonderful stamp set to look at! The other set is called TV Early Memories (issued 11-08-2009) and shows some of the most famous TV shows of all time. Many of these still have a big impact on popular culture although they first screened decades ago. 

In the covers was this complete set of cards with of Mexico's UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Yes, you read right, ALL of them. Just by looking at them you can get an impression about what a diverse country Mexico is. You can see cultural remnants of multiple centuries as well as striking nature. 

Thank You very much Sam-Quito!

cover from the USA

On 16th December I got a cover from the USA.

Five nice stamps were used here. The four stamps on the right form a complete set called Message Monsters (issued 24-09-2021). The sheet comes with small stickers that can be used to decorate the stamps and although I personally like them, they were not very well received by many other stamp collectors. In the online Linn's 2021 U.S. Stamp Popularity Poll they are currently in the lead for Worst Design and Least Necessary among the commemorative stamps. The other stamp commemorates the 500th birth anniversary of Martin Luther (issued 10-11-1983).

In the cover were six postcards: four maxicards from the United Nations and two other cards.

This card is the most special, as it is my first from the United Nations in Geneva. Shown on it is a view of the Palais des Nations. It was originally built between 1929 and 1938 to serve as headquarters of the League of Nations and since 1946 it houses one of the four main offices of the United Nations. Every year roughly 8000 smaller and bigger international meetings take place there. The stamp was issued in 1991 to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the United Nations Postal Administration, the body that is responsible for the UN stamps used in the three offices in Geneva, New York and Vienna.

The next card shows an exterior view of the United Nations Headquarters in New York and a very interesting stamp was used on it. Although the postmark is just from 2019, the stamp is actually from the first UN stamp set ever. Together with five other definitive stamps it was issued on 24th October 1951. It is interesting to notice that this stamp is inscribed in Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish. These were at the time the five official languages of the United Nations. Arabic was added as official language in 1973. Nowadays however the UN stamps are incribed in French, English and German on the stamps for the offices in Geneva, New York and Vienna respectively. Official stamps for the offices in Geneva and Vienna by the way followed much later than the stamps from New York. I still wonder whether there is a possibility for stamps from the UN office in Nairobi in the near future.

The second card was also turned into a maxicard with the same stamp. This card shows the chamber of the United Nations Trusteeship Council, one of the six principal organs of the organisation established to help ensure that trust territories were administered in the best interests of their inhabitants and of international peace and security. The trust territories were mostly former mandates of the League of Nations or territories taken from nations defeated at the end of World War II and by 1994 have all attained self-government or independence. The organ is thus not really needed anymore and is inactive for over 25 years. It is however not eliminated, as that would require a revision of the UN Charter.

Although it looks similar to the long-running Endangered Species series, this maxicard from Geneva is actually from a seperate issue about Tropical Rainforests. This stamp from Geneva shows Orangutans, New York shows a Jaguar and Vienna chose the Ocelot. The card reminded me of a TED-Ed video I recently watched called "How smart are orangutans?". It is rather short, but you should check it out.

The other two cards show a view of Canada's Yukon and Carnival in Mexico.

Thank You very much Sam-Quito!

cover from the USA

On 8th June I got not only three postcards but also a cover from the USA.

Used on the cover was a nice stamp set issued on 23rd January 1986. It celebrates Stamp Collecting in conjunction with the Ameripex Stamp Exhibition and is a joint issue with Sweden. The other stamp is from a set of fifty which all show similar Greetings for all US States (issued 04-04-2002). This is Massachusetts. 

In the cover were two cards.

The first one is a maxicard from Greenland and celebrates the 250th anniversary of the Christianisation of Greenland in 1971. Interestingly there was a recent stamp set for the 300th anniversary of the same event. 

The other card shows two views of Nogales in Mexico, one taken in 1898 and the other from 2008. Nogales is a big city on the border between Mexico and the USA. Right across the border in the US state of Arizona there is another city with the same name.

Thank You very much Sam-Quito!