Antique Coins, Macedonia

time for another Sunday Stamps entry, and this time the topic revolves around archaeology and anthropology..from the very beginning i somewhat knew it was gonna be Macedonian stamps, I just wasnt sure which ones...well, after some thinking, I decided to go with these coins..even though the entire post may end up being controversial due to some political issues due to that silly Macedonian-Greek dispute. but this blog is certainly not the place to debate upon that and solve such an issue, right? All that should be in focus here are the stamps...and it would be a pity not to use them for today just cos someone may take this whole post wrong

Anyways...this set of antique coins was issued on  March 1st, 2002 - consisting of four stamps and one souvenir sheet.

the first stamp, with the lowest face value of 6 denars, shows a coin with Lycceios, who was an ancient Paeonian king who lived in IV century B.C
He was a son or a close relative of the Paeonian king Agis. He was forced to acknowledge the supremacy of the Macedonian king Philip II of Macedon (358 BC), and then seized the opportunity and joined the anti-Macedonian coalition led by Athens, in which also p Thracian king Ketripor and the Illyrian king Grabos took part. He is famous for having developed the monetary production and for the coins' production under the reduced Phoenician standard, later known as Paionian.

next is the 12 denars stamp, showing Alexander III of Macedon....or better known as Alexander the Great...one of the greatest rulers of all time

the third stamp in the set has a face value of 24 denars, and here Lichnidos is portrayed, which is not a person, but it used to be an ancient city, originally named as Lichnidos, while later it became known as what is nowadays known as Ohrid...some of you may have heard about it...those who haven't...it is the most popular tourist destination in summer here (and way toooooo crowded), and also our only UNESCO whs.
However, in May/October, it is one of the loveliest places to visit, when it is calm, peaceful, yet sunny and beautiful and one can enjoy his time without all those noisy tourists around....plus the weather ain't that hot either..

the last stamp in the set shows Philip II of Macedon, Alexander's father...and also Philip III's father...he ruled the kingdom from 359 BC until his assassination in 336 BC.

and finally comes the souvenir sheet, where you can simply see all the above coins at one place...it's a pity the face value is just useless for regular letter or postcard...

hope you liked the stamps for today...for more different choices visit Viridian's blog!

Dolphins and Sharks, India-Philippines

Time for Sunday Stamps...and my first ever post written from my backyard! On a sunny day!! Feels so lovely! My dad just installed this roof over our terrace, so now, rain or shine I can sit, eat, work, read...in my backyard, outside in the fresh air! Cannot explain how happy I am cos of this..even work feels more pleasurable now!

Anyways, without any further ado...the theme for today is 'anything you wish' and while checking some of the recent envelopes I have received, my eyes got set on this...a perfect kind of cover for me, so here it comes to see the light of day...

well I must say that I absolutely ADORE ADORE ADORE dolphins!! And my earliest memory of them is this Flipper TV Series. Yeah, I may not have been born when the show was created, but they did show it here years later when I was a kid...and loved it! I have seen dolphin shows, but my absolute dream is one day to swim with dolphins...even the very thought of it gives me this stomach anxiety..I cannot even imagine how i would actually feel once it happens..and I hope it DOES happen one day.
Speaking of sharks....my earliest memory is again from the childhood...with one of those horror shark-related movies...and NO, i would not want to swim with them, though I still do not approve people killing them...unless in actual danger

Anyways, regarding the cover...this is a joint issue between India and the Philippines, issued in 2009, where first of allyou can see the South Asian river dolphin (Platanista gangetica), which is a freshwater or river dolphin found in India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan.
Besides the dolphin, you can also see the whale shark (Rhincodon typus), which is a slow-moving filter feeding shark and the largest known extant fish species.It is usually found in tropical and warm oceans and lives in the open sea, with a lifespan of about 70 years.

Well, dangerous or not, I do love the cover...and as long as the sharks are on stamps, I feel on the safe side ;-)

For more interesting stamps, click on the button below...and enjoy your Sunday!

Vintage Circus Posters, USA

Time for Sunday Stamps...ok, still Saturday here, but since the host's post is up already, and I just have been sort of on alert as well, why not use the time wisely...and get back to work later...it's not like 20-30 minutes are gonna change much either way..

Anyways, I was aware that this issue will be posted by someone else, and Viridian did post 4 of these stamps...but having received this cover this week...and being such a beautiful one, I just couldnt resist and told myself that no matter what, I'll go with this one..this shouldn't go in vain..at least, the chances of someone posting the whole set ON a cover, shouldn't be that big...so we'll see :)

from the accompanying letter :)

"Ladies and gentleman, children of all ages, welcome to The Greatest Show On Earth!" The Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey ringmaster''s famous words welcomed crowds to the circus, an extraordinary place brimming with irresistible attractions.
Posters gave audiences a taste of what awaited under the big top - an astounding magical spectacle. Like the circuses they touted, the posters were big and bold. A "sheet" was 42x28 inches, and stunning imagery often sprawled across dozens of them at a time. Sometimes, massive arrays of posters covered entire sides of buildings.
These eye-popping early 20th century posters showcased majestic elephants, fierce tigets, and colorful clowns, alongside acts such as acrobatic gymnasts, graceful wire dancers and daring stuntman.

Whether in small towns or large cities, the circus brought together folks of all ages and walks of life, to share its magic and to let imaginations soar like aerialists above their daily routines and cares.
Joyful posters beckoned the masses toward the grand show, thus proving P.T. Barnum right: "The noblest art is that of making others happy"


Speaking of circuses...when I was a child, I was overjoyed when one would come in town...eventually it was not so fun...esp. after realizing what may be happening to those animals behind the scenes...however, I would probably still enjoy a cool acrobats' show.

for more circus fun, click this big button...and have a great Sunday!

And a HUGE HUGE HUGE thank you to Bryon for being a partner in crime in my Sunday Stamps adventures :P

One Century of Aviation in Serbia (1910-2010), Serbia

Time for Sunday Stamps again, with the subject of airplanes, and my contribution are these two Serbian FDC's issued on 09 December 2010, to commemorate One Century of the Aviation in Serbia, as well as a guy named Ivan Sarić (You will read more below)

The idea of flying has haunted man for thousands of years. At the beginning it was just a dream, arisen from a mere human's thought to soar like a bird in the sky.
The pioneers of aeronautics became heroes of their time but also prominent persons of today.

On the stamps above you can see:
- a Breguet 14 (a French biplane bomber and reconnaissance aircraft of World War I)
- a Spartan Cruiser ( a 1930s British three-engined transport monoplane for 6 to 10 passengers built by Spartan Aircraft Limited at East Cowes, Isle of Wight.)
- The Rogožarski IK-3 - a 1930s Yugoslav low-wing monoplane single seat interceptor fighter with retractable landing gear, and was designed by Ljubomir Ilić and Kosta Sivčev as a successor to their IK-1/IK-2 fighter
- McDonnell Douglas DC-9 - a twin-engine, single-aisle jet airliner that was first manufactured in 1965 with its maiden flight later that year. The DC-9 was designed for frequent, short flights

The first among the first was Ivan Sarić (1876 - 1966) whom you can see on both FDCs (and on the latter on the stamp as well), sportsman, enthusiast and constructor from Subotica (town in northern Serbia). Since his first meeting with the aviation, his sports spirit completely devoted to the idea of conquering the last unresearched area on Earth. With a great elan and modest technological knowledge, he builds an airplane, based on his own construction plans. Intuitively, and with great luck and courage, already in the summer of 1910, he accomplished the first successful flights on the racetrack of Subotica. Gradually, he learns the techniques of piloting. On 16th October 1919, he had his first public performance in front of 7000 spectators.
With this accomplishment, made over 100 years ago now, Ivan Sarić has given Serbia the chance to celebrate the Centenary of Aviation, a jubilee of national importance, which just a little number of states in the world can be proud of.
On these laid foundations, a small country elevated aeronautics to an enviable level of development. During the decades that followed, the aviation proved itself to be one of the bearers of state's prosperity.

for more world-flights, click on the big button below

Musical Instruments, Macedonia

As easy as this Sunday Stamps' theme may have sound, I realized that I do not have so many things to choose from, even though this year's EUROPA theme is indeed musical instruments.
However, on one hand, I do not collect EUROPA stamps, on the other, Macedonia still hasn't issued this year's stamps, even though they were scheduled for April...but luckily, Macedonia did once issue some musical instruments on stamps, so here they are for my entry today.

There are four stamps in the set, issued February 19, 2003.


first is the 9 denar stamp, showing гајда, (gajda=, which is a bagpipe from the Balkans and Southeast Europe
Gajda bags are generally of sheep or goat hide. Different regions have different ways of treating the hide. The simplest methods involve just the use of salt, while more complex treatments involve milk, flour, and the removal of fur. In the Macedonian regions, the hide is normally turned inside out so that the fur is on the inside of the bag, as this helps with moisture buildup within the bag.

the next, 10 denar stamp shows a тамбура (tambura) - s a stringed instrument that is played as a folk instrument in Macedonia and Bulgaria. It has doubled steel strings and is played with a plectrum, in the same manner as a mandolin.
The Macedonian tambura has 4 steel strings in 2 doubled courses. It is tuned D D, A A or another pitch but at the same relative intervals of a fifth. Sometimes octave strings are used on the lower course. It has a floating bridge and a metal tailpeice. The instrument body is more often made from staves like a lute.

The 20 denar stamp shows a 'ќемене' (kemene), a three or four-stringed musical instrument that has the shape of a pear, and play with a fiddlestick over the strings, in order to play some music. It is thought that the origins of the word kemene come from the countries of Turkey, Iran, Syria, Saudi Arabia....

the last stamp of the set is this 50 denars one (yeah that one is a bit pricey so I have only one :)) and it shows a тапан (tapan), which is a drum used in the Balkan and Turkish music. (it is a large double-headed drum that is played with mallets). These drums are commonly used in the folk music of Iran and Turkey, as well as Romania, Bulgaria and the Republic of Macedonia, portions of Greece and Serbia, as well as Iraq and Armenia. These drums have both a deep bass sound and a thin treble sound due to their construction and playing style, where different heads and sticks are used to produce different sounds on the same drum.
In the southern Balkans, the rhythm of the tapan is complex and utilizes many accents in numerous traditional time signatures. In Macedonia, tapans are most often used to accompany other instruments such as the zurla and gaida, while in Bulgaria they usually accompany gaida and gadulka. They are also played solo in some Bulgarian and Macedonian folk dances and songs. For centuries the tapan is irreplaceable at Macedonian and Bulgarian village festivities such as weddings and celebrations of patron saints of homes and villages. Players often use a rope hooked to the drum to hold the drum sideways, so that one head is accessible with the left hand and one with the right. Each hand is usually dedicated to playing one side of the drum exclusively, though this can vary by local style and tradition.

well, I hope you got to see and learn something new today. I almost missed this entry due to overall feeling of slow-motion and a bunch of work..
For some more music, tune in over at Viridian's!