Date of Issue: 9th May 2023
one stamp (national value = 2.30 €) - NOTE this tamp is self-adhesive
this stamp is issued in a mini-sheet of 10 stamp
this stamp is issued in a mini-sheet of 10 stamp
Europe
PostEurop announced during their General Assembly in Dublin on 5 October 2022 the common design who will be used on all 2023 Europa stamps on the theme
“PEACE – the highest value of humanity”
29 entries were submitted for the design competition, 44 postal companies participating in the voting.
The winning
motif is the one submitted by Luxembourg : “The New Peace Symbol”.
Designers : Linda Bos and Runa
Egilsdottir from A Designers' Collective.
PostEurop writes in their press release this about the story of the design:
The world needs a new Peace symbol, uniting all nations. Cultural differences perchance a barrier for a state of Peace. If only mankind could respect each other's differences by understanding their significance and responding to them with consideration, the world would be a better place. This design shows a visual metaphor for a peacefully integrated, cooperative society in which people embrace each other’s culture. It was inspired by the Celtic Love Knot symbol, with interlocking hearts. The colour palette illustrates all the nations in the world. By adding hands with intertwined fingers, it conveys the message of mutual respect.
I find this logo not very original. You can see a quite similar design already used on the UPU 2016 World Post Day campaign. The design was made by Swiss designers
Büro Sequenz. The meaning of this one was explained like this :
The emblem's design represents the two remaining pillars, integration and inclusion. The crisscrossed arms and layered colours act to show the integration of knowledge and processes, enabling seamless and affordable services for all. The intertwined design was inspired by the Celtic knot, which itself has Persian roots. Finally, the clasped hands represent how the Post connects and includes people around the world.
Luxembourg (stamp 2/2) is the winner of the 2022 Best Europa stamp contest organized by PostEurop. Finland (stamp 1/2) finished second and Liechtenstein (stamp 2/2) is third.
As written earlier on this blog,
PostEurop changed the rules for this contest. 3 voting panels (public,
jury and operators) are selecting the best Europa stamp. The results of
these three panels are compiled and gives an overall winner.
Luxembourg wins the overall contest in a deserved way by winning 2 of the 3 voting panels :
Public voting :
1. Finland
2. Georgia
3. Turkey
Jury voting :
1. Luxembourg
2. Liechtenstein
3. Switzerland
Postal operators voting :
1. Luxembourg
2. Finland
3. Åland
Consolidated result of all three panels - top 10 :
1. Luxembourg
2. Finland
3. Liechtenstein
4. Croatia
= Georgia
= Åland
7. Azerbaijan
= Germany
9. Switzerland
= Turkey
Note that Belarus and Russia were excluded of this contest due to their aggression of Ukraine.
Armenia withdrew for "technical" reasons.
Bayterek and Samruk : Ancient Turkic myth a tree of life "Bayterek" and a sacred bird "Samruk". Bayterek in Kazakh means "High poplar tree", every year the Samruk, lays its egg (the Sun) in the crevice between the branches of the poplar tree.
this stamp is issued in a mini sheet of 10 stamps
16.05.2022 Faroe Is. - 1 stamp (29.- DKK)
24.05.2022 Jersey - 1 stamp (0.91 GB) out of set of 6 stamps
31.05.2022 Greenland - 1 stamp (20.- DKK)
07.06.2022 Liechtenstein - 1 stamp (1.80 CHF)
14.06.2022 Monaco - 1 stamp (1.65 €)
22.06.2022 Guernsey - 1 stamp (1.10 GBP) out of a set of 4 stamps
06.09.2022 Åland - 1 stamp (1.90 €)
13.09.2022 Luxembourg - 1 stamp (E50g value)
13.09.2022 Malta - 1 stamp (0.37 €) out of a set of 4 stamps
no issue Gibraltar
no issue Isle of Man
no issue Vatican
According to the Irish folklore tales, Balor caused great pain and anguish to the Tuatha Dé Dannan, the other supernatural race in Irish folklore.
The legend centres on Balor having an eye that, when unleashed, could cause instant death or poisoning.
Balor’s Poisoned Eye is the main focus of one stamp. The second stamp relates to the legend that claimed Balor had only to look on the landscape to cause damage, such as in the Poisoned Glen in County Donegal.
In both cases, contemporary colours are used to create the impression of poison almost leaping off the stamp.