In: from the USA

This year it's hundred years ago that the tallest man of Puerto Rico has been born, el Gigante de Carolina: Felipe Birriel Fernández.
This postmark is in honour of him, and with many thanks to FinnBadger I received this postmark, too.
Which has made me wonder: has this mail been traveling from the USA to Puerto Rico - which I always thought to be an independent country, but wikipedia learns me that it isn't - and from there into the world?!?

See more information about Felipe Birriel and other tall men on thetallestman.com.

The postmarks and stamps have been accompanied by this postcard, showing a painting by Charles Seeler, named 'Pertaining to Yachts and Yachting', painted in 1922.



Thank you very much, FinnBadger!

In: from Spain

Donostia-San Sebastián is a coastal city and municipality located in Basque Country. These wonderful views I received from Eva.

She also had traveled to Bilbao, from where she sent this card. I didn´t recognize the amazing building in the back, although I definitely have heard of this famous museum before, the Guggenheim.



Thank you very much, moltes gràcies, Eva!

In: from the United Kingdom

Some time ago John sent me a great postcard, showing a postman in former days. And now I like to share you this new old photo of another postman in uniform. The text on the back learns that this is William Gates, pictured circa 1897. The 'good conduct' stripes on the breast of the jacket were awarded by the Post Office to individuals of long and good service.
John adds that until fairly recently uniforms were obligatory for postmen. Nowadays his current postman can only be distinguished by the fact he has a Royal Mail bag.

Also on the back side of the card a pretty stamp, showing one of the characters designed by famous Peter Rabbit illustrator Beatrix Potter.



Thank you very much, John!

Sunday stamps: Odd shaped stamps

Today's Sunday Stamps theme is 'Odd shaped stamps'.

A nice theme! It shows the creativity of postal companies, and fortunately the present stamp printing machines are able to vary the shape of stamps.

Recently I received two wonderful shaped stamps from two different countries, which I posted on this blog before: a dragonfly from Eva from Spain, and a bat from John from the United Kingdom.

Eva also sent me a bat on a shaped stamp, this one from Spain:



Sometimes animals simply are too large for a stamp, especially prehistoric reptiles. Not only United Kingdom's Royal Mail but also Canadian Post knew how to solve the problem: just provide a little more room, and the dino's would be satisfied.
(click to enlarge)



The fourth dino on this envelope was so happy by the purposed enlarged room that he even decided to stay within the normal shape!




Finnish Post has issued many amazingly shaped stamps, and today I'm sharing this stamp showing more than one hexagonals:



'Hexagonal' is also known as honeycumb shape, and Japanese Post issued this matching stamp:




As far as I know Dutch PostNL has issued a few triangular stamps in the past, and apart from that, only one stamp sheet showing two really special shaped stamp designs.

One of the triangular stamps has been issued already in 1933, to be used for airmail between the former Dutch Indies and Holland:



The more recent stamps were issued as a stamp stickers on one sheet, for youth philately.
The names written on the stamps form a nice wordplay: 'postzegel' means stamp, but leaving the 'z' it becomes 'post-egel, which means 'mail hedgehog'. And 'postduif' means 'mail pigeon'.



Here you can see what the stamp stickers leave behind when used.



The disadvantage of odd shaped stamps is the fact that Dutch Post not always recognizes these as real postage! I once got a letter from PostNL in which I was told to pay 'missing postage'. Fortunately they included a code, and via this code I could find a scan of my outgoing mail, which proofed sufficient stamps had been sticked. Among them this Postduif, which apparently had been new to the controling employee!..




See more extraordinarily shaped stamps on and via today's Sunday Stamps post.

In: from Hungary

Micu surprised me with this beautiful map card (click to enlarge), showing Lake Balaton and surroundings.

Micu has a wonderful mail art project: 'Mail a Smile'. Check her website to see how you can contribute to cause a smile on someone else's face via snail mail.


On the back side of the card Micu added stamps showing an uncommon and interesting subject: fossils.



The third stamp is issued for the 25th anniversary of the okumenikus segélyszervezet, Hungarian Interchurch Aid (HIA), a charity organization.



Thank you very much, Micu!

Sunday Stamps: Lakes, rivers: the river Waal

Today's Sunday Stamps theme is 'Lakes, rivers'.

This time I show you just one river, the river Waal (see also here).
I grew up in the city of Nijmegen, and this nice, Roman founded city is located at this river Waal.
Since 20 years I live close to my birth place Amsterdam, which is 120 kilometers north-west of Nijmegen. But every time I'm visiting my old town and when I see this river Waal, its typical 'uiterwaarden' and the bridges, I feel like 'home'. Even though the city has changed, and most of my friends have moved to other places, too.



This is a so-called personalized stamp, which has been issued, via PostNL, by Quinta Buma, photographer from Nijmegen.
She also designed this postcard, on which you see a little more of this river:



The Waal is said to have been founded because of a quarrel between two giants, two brothers.
Long time ago these brothers started to dig a river in Switzerland, the river Rhine. After hundred years of digging they arrived at Lobith, where they got a fight. Each of the brothers went his own way. The younger giant continued digging out what's named the Rhine nowadays, the older brother created the river Waal.

PostNL (then TPG Post) has issued a stamp sheet in honour of Nijmegen in 2005, on which you can see parts of the river Waal, too:



See stamps on lakes and more rivers at/via today's Sunday Stamps post.