Shattered Poppy

A fantastic cover from UK with a special postmark and a beautiful stamp ! 

Shattered Poppy - First World War series - 2017

Date of issue : 31-07-2017

Photographer : John Ross 

The First World War claimed millions of lives, changed the course of history and transformed the futures of the generations that followed. The fourth part of the UK commemorative programme marking the contribution and sacrifice of those who took part was released in 2017. 

Shattered Poppy is by photographer John Ross. Using a microscope in his work, Ross manages to reveal aspects of subjects not normally visible. The photograph of the poppy was taken with the flower frozen in liquid nitrogen before being shattered. 

In May 1915, Canadian military doctor Major John McCrae wrote a short poem entitled 'In Flanders Fields', which drew upon the image of delicate poppies and spoke with the voice of fallen soldiers, calling on their comrades to continue the struggle. The verses helped to turn the flower into a symbol of remembrance throughout the English-speaking world. Poppies, an abstract work by London-born artist Howard Hodgkin, was inspired by poppies from Normandy in France and was executed as a carborundum print. Hodgkin won the Turner Prize in 1985 and was knighted in 1992. 

Postmark

WW1 Centenary special postmark from London - showing the image of poppies 

Thanks Wolfgang for this superb cover ! 

( I have to study about the Machins of UK - the colour palette of the machins is quite intriguing )