#557 Japan 12/04/08

Hideo sent me this nice letter from Japan, thank you! It was posted in Mie prefecture on April 8 and arrived on April 10, 2012.

The mini-sheet was issued on November 11, 2011, and commemorates the Chinese Year of the Dragon.

#556 Cayman Islands 12/03/16

Jean Pierre sent me this very nice aerogram from the Cayman Islands, thank you! It was posted in East End on March 16 and arrived on April 11, 2012.

The imprinted value depicts the Queen opening the Legislative Assembly.

#555 Mayotte 11/09/08

Thank you, Jean Pierre, for sending this nice cover from Mayotte! It was posted in Mamoudzou on September 8 and arrived on September 16, 2011.

The left stamp was issued on 10 September 2011 and therefore was used before its issuing date! It depicts a Madjiliss ceremony. The two stamps on the right depict an orange (Citrus × sinensis) and kapok tree (Ceiba pentandra) with fruits. This set was issued on 18 August, 2011.

#554 Cambodia 12/02/25

Thanks, Juris, for sending this nice cover from Cambodia! It was posted in Phnom Penh on February 25 and arrived on March 12, 2012.

The left stamp is part of the set “Ancient Locomotives”, which was issued on August 17, 1995. It depicts the 1937 Norris steam locomotive model “Lafayette”.

The middle stamp is part of the definitive set “Rice Cultivation”, which was issued on 1 March 2000, and the right stamp is a definitive of 1997.

See also: #131 Cambodia 09/02/28

#553 France 11/07/01

Roland sent me this nice FDC from France, thank you! It was issued and posted in Paris on July 1 and arrived on July 4, 2011.

The stamp and cancellation commemorates the 2011 World Judo Championship, which was held in Paris from August 23 to 28, 2011.

#552 Greenland 12/02/27

Frede sent me this nice cover from Greenland, thank you! It was posted in Nuuk on February 27 and arrived on March 13, 2012.

The left stamp was issued in a set of two on 17 January 2011. It commemorates the kayak mail delivery.

The middle stamp is part of the 2009 EUROPA set (issued on 19 January 2009).

The right stamp is part of a set of three, which was issued on 1 October 2007. It commemorates the discovery of Tobias Island (Tubbiap Qeqertaa) in 1993 (see this article).

See also: #319 Greenland 10/04/23

#551 China 11/12/22

XU Hui sent me this very nice cover from the People’s Republic of China, thank you! It was posted in Nanchang (南昌) on December 22, 2011, and arrived on January 4, 2012.

The stamp set on the left is entitled “Liangzhu Jade“. It was issued on March 8, 2011.

The right stamp set was issued on 12 June 2010 and commemorates the Kunqu Opera. It depicts scenes from the plays “The Palace of Long Life”, “The Peony Pavilion” (牡丹亭), and “Washing the Silken Gauze” (浣紗記).

#550 Morocco 12/01/09

Thank you, Jean Pierre, for sending this airmail cover from Morocco! It was posted on January 9 and arrived on January 13, 2012.

The stamps are part of the set “Moroccon Currencies”, which was issued on October 20, 2011. The left coin was issued during the reign of Idris I (reigned from 788 to 791), the middle coin was issued under the last Almoravid king Ishaq Ben’Ali (died 1147), and the right stamp depicts a coin, which was issued under the Almohad caliph Abu Yaqub Yusuf (1135-1184).

#549 Brazil 12/02/03

Matheus sent me this nice cover from Brazil, thank you! It was posted in Caculé on February 3 and arrived on February 20, 2012.

The left 2011 stamp is part of the AIDS stamp set. The right stamp was issued 2002 and depicts a trumpet.

 

#548 French Southern and Antarctic Lands 11/04/20

Thank you, Jean Pierre, for sending this amazing cover from the Île Amsterdam! It was cancelled on Martin-de-Viviès on April 20 and arrived on September 16, 2011.

The left stamp was issued on January 1, 2009, and depicts the minerals pyrite.The second stamp commemorates the mineral tourmaline and was issued on January 1, 2010. The two stamps at the right are part of the set “Amsterdam Seals”, which was issued on June 2, 2010.

The cover also has a mission cancel of the 62nd mission to St. Paul and Amsterdam, which is signed by the ornithologist Benjamin Callard.

See also: #505 French Southern and Antarctic Lands 11/01/01

#547 Croatia 12/01/04

Željko sent me this beautiful card from Croatia, thank you! It was posted in Zagreb on January 4 and arrived on January 9, 2012.

The card and imprinted value commemorates Marco Polo (c. 1254-1324) and the World Philatelic Exhibition in China 1999.

Željko attached an additional stamp “Year of the Dragon”, which was cancelled with a special first day cancellation.

#546 Hong Kong 10/12/04

Thank you, Trudy, for sending this nice letter from Hong Kong! It was posted on December 4, 2010.

The left two stamps are part of the set “Redevelopment of Old Areas – Rehabilitation”, which was issued on 16 November 2010. The right stamp depicts the Collared Scops Owl (Otus bakkamoena).

#545 Malaysia 10/11/01

Khor Kok Keong sent me this nice airmail cover from Malaysia, thank you! It was posted on November 1 and arrived on November 8, 2010.

The stamp set on the top was issued on October 24, 2010. It commemorates the “Heritage of Pahang Darul Makmur”. The left stamp depicts HRH Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah (*1930) and HRH Sultanah Hajjah Kalsom (*1951). The middle stamp depicts His Royal Highness as Colonel in Chief, and the right stamp depicts His Royal Highness.

The two bottom stamps commemorate the cacao tree Theobroma cacao.

See also:

• #338 Malaysia 09/10/26
• #129 Malaysia 09/02/04

#544 Russia 11/07/15

Thank you, Tanya, for sending this nice cover from Moscow (Москва́), Russia! It was posted on July 15 and arrived on July 25, 2011.

The top left stamp is part of the set “Old Carriages”, which was issued on July 25, 2002. It depicts a closed sleigh of Moscow 1732.

The top middle stamp was issued on September 26, 2007. It is part of the joint issue set Russia/PDR Korea and depicts the flower Gladiolus gandavensis.

The stamp top right is part of the bridges set (issued on November 28, 2008) and commemorates the Zhivopisnyi Bridge (Живописный Мост) across Moskva River.

The two definitives on the left were issued on August 29, 2008, and depicts a hare and a fox. The bottom middle stamp is part of the beetles set and depicts a Lucanus cervus. It was issued on July 22, 2003.

Finally, the last stamp commemorates the 1946 bicycle ZiCh-1 (ЗиЧ-1). This bicycle stamp set was issued on December 11, 2008.

See also: Russia 08/11/28

#543 Estonia 10/11/01

Janek sent me this nice cover from Estonia, thank you! It was posted in Saue on November 1 and arrived on November 4, 2010.

The left stamp was issued in 1994 and depicts the Urvaste Church.

The right stamp is the EUROPA 2004 stamp, which was issued on May 4, 2004.