Royal Mail’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations for Her Majesty the Queen are launched by the first of three special Royal stamp issues on 2 February, 2012.

The House of Windsor Stamps feature the five monarchs from the start of the 20^th century. The Queen takes pride of place on the final stamp of Royal Mail’s epic ‘Kings and Queens’ series, marking the 60^th year of her reign, the second longest for a British monarch after Queen Victoria.

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published February 5th, 2012

The young Princess Elizabeth was the first child of The Duke and Duchess of York who later became King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. Together with her sister Princess Margaret, who was born when Elizabeth was six years old, she enjoyed a quiet life with her family; they resided at Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park and the four of them were very close.

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published February 5th, 2012

The next two passenger ferries in turn to be presented on Åland stamps are S/S Birger Jarl and M/S Sally Albatross. These are ferries number seven and eight in a series of twelve ferry stamps.

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published February 4th, 2012

The Isle of Man Post Office is pleased to present a set of six stamps to commemorate the Queen’s reign. Each year one of the themes of the Christmas message to the Nation and the  Commonwealth is a reflection of events during the year, we are pleased to include extracts from some of the broadcasts.

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published February 4th, 2012

The RMS Titanic was a passenger liner that struck an iceberg on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, and sank on 15 April 1912, resulting in the deaths of 1,517 people in one of the deadliest peacetime maritime disasters in history.

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published February 3rd, 2012

The Future City stamp booklet celebrates Helsinki’s position as the World Design Capital. Seven new stamp designers were awarded in the open design competition organized online in spring 2011. The highly popular competition produced a total of 1,422 designs, of which the jury and the public selected eight for the final stamp booklet.

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published February 2nd, 2012

One of the nation’s highest honors today was presented to pioneering entrepreneur and publisher John H. Johnson who was commemorated on this year’s Black Heritage Forever Stamp by the United States Postal Service.

Johnson, the founder of Johnson Publishing Company, which publishes Ebony and Jet magazines, is the 35th honoree in the Black Heritage stamp series. The Postal Service has recognized the achievements of prominent African Americans through the Black Heritage series since 1978. Past honorees have included Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Thurgood Marshall, Madam C.J. Walker, Paul Robeson, Jackie Robinson, Marian Anderson, Langston Hughes and Barbara Jordan.

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published February 2nd, 2012

The U.S. Postal Service showcases rural Pennsylvania’s Dutch country in its Scenic American Landscapes series with an international price stamp. The $1.05 Lancaster County, Pennsylvania stamp is being issued in self-adhesive sheets of 20 at a price of $21 a sheet. (read more)

published February 1st, 2012

The U.S. Postal Service today issued the 45-cent WeatherVanes First-Class Mail stamps in five designs available in pressure-sensitive adhesive coils of 3,000 and 10,000. The stamps are available at Post Offices nationwide, online at usps.com and by phone at 800-782-6724. (read more)

published January 31st, 2012

The United States Postal Service today announced the joint issuance of new Forever stamps honoring two of the world’s greatest musicians, Edith Piaf and Miles Davis. The stamps will be issued with the French postal service, La Poste in June.

“We look forward to issuing these great stamps jointly with La Poste, continuing a tradition of international celebration of stamps,” said USPS Manager, Stamp Services, Stephen Kearney. (read more)

published January 30th, 2012

The bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus) was released from Auckland to Southland in 1898 and 1899. Today its range is significantly reduced, but small numbers are thought to persist in southern Auckland and northern Hawke’s Bay. Few hunters have ever seen the bobwhite quail in the wild, with the majority of birds now in game farms. Their population is maintained by the release of hand-reared birds by enthusiastic aviculturists. (read more)

published January 29th, 2012