Christmas in China

A cover from China 🇨🇳 

The cover posted on the Christmas Day  25-12-2018 with a special postmark of the Santa 🎅 riding his sleigh pulled by a reindeer - with the words “ Merry Christmas” in English and Chinese ! 

Christmas in Germany

A cover with Christmas stamps and postmarks from Germany 

The Christmas stamp issued on 2-11-2018 showing Santa riding on his reindeers pulled sleigh - flying across the sky atop the town 

The 2018 Christmas stamps reproduce an excerpt from the stained-glass windows of Saint Stephen’s church in Mainz, designed between 1976 and 1985 by the Russian-French artist of Jewish origin Marc Chagall. This year’s stamps follow a long tradition: the first series was launched by Diakonie Deutschland in December 1949. The stamps are also sold by parishes and local non-for-profit organisations related to Diakonie Deutschland, enabling them to directly fund their social projects. The projects funded by this initiative will have a particular focus on youth, elderly people and persons with disability.

The special postmark - makes the 200 year anniversary of the most famous Christmas carols - Silent Night ! 

Thanks Dustin for this wonderful cover :) 

Christmas in Russia

A first day cover of Russia 2018 Christmas stamp - uprated with other stamps 

The Russian 2018 Christmas stamp was issued on 4-12-2018 and shows a Russian lady in the traditional costume standing in a snowy night ! 

The stamp is an augmented reality stamp - but the app doesn’t work on my phone :( 

The first day postmark is that of nice snowflakes ! 

Thanks Anton for this beautiful cover :) 

Christmas greetings from USA

A Christmas greetings cover from USA 

The 7.9¢ Drum stamp (Scott 1615) is one of the stamp in the Americana series, according to denomination, but as mentioned earlier, this stamp actually preceded the 7.7¢ bulk rate stamp, and was intended to satisfy the third class bulk mailing rate for 250,000 pieces or more that was enacted on December 31, 1975. This rate was only in effect for just over 7 months.

The 7.9¢ Drum stamp was released on April 23, 1976

at a ceremony in Miami, Fla. The stamp was issued in conjunction with Stamporee ‘76 USA, an International Philatelic exhibition sponsored jointly by the Florida Fed- eration of Stamp Clubs and the Cuban Philatelic Club of Miami.

The stamp was designed by Bernard Glassman from the Philadelphia design firm responsible for the overall theme of the Americana series: Kramer, Miller, Lomden, and Glassman. 

 The design features a Revolutionary War era drum, and is only representational as the design is made up of a composite of several actual drum designs of the era. The legend on the stamp starts at the bottom left of the stamp, continues across the bottom and then curves around to stop at the upper right corner of the stamp. The legend reads “Beat the Drum for Liberty and the Spirit of ‘76”. The origin of the legend is unknown.

The stamp bears the service inscription “Bulk Rate” to the right of the denomination.

It should be remembered, when considering the Americana series, that the country was deeply involved in a year-long celebration of it’s 200th anniversary. The Americana series was a series of United States definitive postage stamps issued between 1975 and 1981. While the stamps were not part of the Bicentennial Series of stamps released from 1971-1983, their theme fit in well with the idea of looking back over two hundred years. For the series celebrated basic American concepts that have animated the nation's entire history, rather than individual heroes or heroines from any particular period. Unlike any previous definitive series, the Americana set did not contain a single image of a president (an omission that may perhaps reflect national disillusion in the wake of the recent Watergate scandal).

1990 - Christmas greetings stamp 

The meter cancellation on the cover - says Happy Holidays and has an image of Santa riding on his reindeer cart over the cityscape! I have seen different cityscape images on the postmarks from different cities !! 

Christmas cancellations

A cover from Czech Republic with special Christmas cancellation ! 

A postcard from Singapore with the special Christmas cancellation on the Christmas Day - with images of Little Prince ( Singapore philatelic museum mascot ) 

Russian dolls and Christmas

A prepaid envelope from Russia ! The prepaid envelope was issued for the Sochi Winter games of 2014 .

The official mascots of the Paralympic Games in Sochi  were - 

Ray of Light, alternative known as Fire Boy (in Russian: Luchik, Лучик)

Snowflake, also known as Snow Girl (in Russian: Snezhinka, Снежинка)

EUROPA 2015 - Old toys - Russia 

Russian Post released a special stamp on 16th February 2015 with the EUROPA theme “Old toys” - depicting Dymkovo toys and Matryoshka Dolls. Dymkovo toys, also known as the Vyatka toys or Kirov toys are molded painted clay figures of people and animals (sometimes in the form of a pennywhistle). It is one of the old Russian folk art handicrafts, which still exists in a village of Dymkovo near Kirov (former Vyatka). Traditionally, the Dymkovo toys are made by women.

A matryoshka doll, also known as Russian nesting doll, refers to a set of wooden dolls of decreasing size placed one inside the other. The first Russian nested doll set was made in 1890 by Vasily Zvyozdochkin from a design by Sergey Malyutin, who was a folk crafts painter at Abramtsevo. Traditionally the outer layer is a woman, dressed in a sarafan, a long and shapeless traditional Russian peasant jumper dress. The figures inside may be of either gender; the smallest, innermost doll is typically a baby turned from a single piece of wood. Much of the artistry is in the painting of each doll, which can be very elaborate.

The cancellation is on the Christmas Day , 2018 with an image of Santa Claus ! 

Thanks Natalie for this cover :) 

And another postcard with a Santa Claus special cancellation from Penza, Russia again !! 

I guess Santa has been very happy with me this year ;) 

Exorcism in SriLanka

An eerie cover from SriLanka ! 

Two stamps from the series on Traditional exorcism rituals in SriLanka ! 

Exorcism rituals are called Sanni Yakuma in SriLanka and they form one of the three dance forms of the island country . The ritual consists of 18 masked dances, each depicting a particular illness or ailment affecting humans. These 18 dances are the main dances of the Pahatharata, or low country, dancing form. The ritual calls the demons who are thought to affect the patient, who are then told not to trouble humans and banished.

It was believed that illnesses were brought on humans by demons and these beliefs and rituals could have prehistoric roots. According to folklore, the 18 demons who are depicted in the Sanni Yakuma originated during the time of the Buddha. The story goes that the king of Licchavis of Vaishali suspected his queen of committing adultery and had her killed. However, she gave birth when she was executed and her child became the Kola Sanniya, who grew up "feeding on his mother's corpse". The Kola Sanni demon destroyed the city, seeking vengeance on his father, the king. He created eighteen lumps of poison and charmed them, thereby turning them into demons who assisted him in his destruction of the city. They killed the king, and continued to wreak havoc in the city, "killing and eating thousands" daily, until finally being tamed by the Buddha and agreed to stop harming humans.

Each of these demons are believed to affect humans in the form of an illnesses, and the Sanni Yakuma ritual summons these demons and banishes them back to the demon world after bringing them under control.

The Sanni Yakuma is still performed today, particularly along the south coast, though more often as a cultural spectacle than an exorcism ritual. However, it is not widely performed because of the high costs involved and also because of its long duration. The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami also has affected its survival. Though the coastal regions came under colonial influences as well as prior foreign influences, the art was best preserved in the south-west coast.

Christmas 2018 

SriLanka has a significant Christian population and it issues Christmas stamps yearly - with a very traditional tone to it 

Thanks Nimal for this beautiful cover ! 

Christmas in Singapore

Thanks Johnny for this lovely special cover !

Singapore GPO issues special cancellations for every Christmas and also gives a concession postage ( 70c ) for all letters posted on Christmas Day ! 

Christmas greetings from Santa

Another Christmas cover from Santa Claus ! 

This time it is from Santa Claus of USA . The USA has a town named Santa Claus in Indiana. The postoffice sends Christmas covers to children who write a letter to Santa Claus 

The postoffice offers special cancellation for every Christmas and is usually designed by a resident of the town . This year’s design is by a local school student :) 

Thanks Satgurunathan for this cover ! 

Christmas Down Under

A cover from Down Under ! 

A beautiful Christmas stamp from Australia - 2018 - Noel with a red star ! 

And while the international postage rate for overseas mail in Australia is $2.30 , there is a 30c discount for Christmas mails :) 

Merry Christmas Irene ! 

Japanese Santa wishes Merry Christmas

A Christmas cover from Japan ! 

The cancellation is a very interesting and clean one 

It shows the Japanese Santa on a reindeer two-wheeler , riding with letters and gifts :) 

Happy Holidays from Santa Clarita

A cover from the city of Santa Clarita , California - USA with the meter cancellation- Happy Holidays ! 

The stamp is 2018 USA global rate stamp ! 

USA has several cities named with Christmas related names ! 

Christmas Markets of Poland

A Christmas cover from Poland - smelling like warm cookies :) 

The cover has a Christmas stamp of Poland 2017 and the postmark of the “Christmas Market , the main square , Krakow 2018” - Targi Bozonarodzeniowe , Rynek Gloway , Krakow 2018 

The Christmas markets are very popular in all major European cities and the ones in Krakow don’t seem any less grand ! 

My friend had sent me not one but two covers - the one - an FDC of the Christmas stamp 2017 with beautiful cachet and postmark 

And also a handmade beautiful Christmas card ! 

Thanks so much ! And I wish I can visit Europe during Christmas to soak in the festive mood ! 

Merry Christmas to all my (pen) friends ! 

Baby Christ market in Austria

A very beautiful cover from Austria ! 

Christkindl Market / Christ Child Market is a street marketassociated with the celebration of Christmas during the four weeks of Advent. These markets originated in Germany, but are now being held in many other countries. In Austria, Vienna's "December market" can be considered a forerunner of Christmas markets and dates back to 1298. In many towns in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, Advent is usually ushered in with the opening of the Christmas market or "Weihnachtsmarkt". In southern Germany, Switzerland and Austria, it is called a "Christkind(e)l(s)(i)markt"

The Christmas markets in Vienna truly are an age-old tradition. The forerunners of the present-day events date back to the Middle Ages when in 1298 Albrecht I granted Vienna's citizens the privilege of holding a December Market or "Krippenmarkt". Since then, the character and prevalence of these markets has changed considerably. Nowadays, over 20 official Advent Markets sell a vast array of seasonal gifts and mouth-watering treats.

Since 1950, about two million letters and cards stamped with the special Christkindl postmark have been sent around the world each year before Christmas. The golden via Christkindl sticker ( on the left side of the cover ) - when stuck on the cover , the cover gets redirected to the Christkindl markets and a hand stamped postmark is placed on the cover . The designs of the postmark is changed every year ! 

Thanks Tom for this beautiful cover with the lovely cancellations ! 

One of the stamp honours the 200th anniversary of the most famous carol - Silent Night and the other one is the Austrian Christmas stamp of 2018 

Jingle bells !

A cover sent by Santa Claus from his official postoffice in Finland ! 

Santa Claus' Main Post Office is a tourist destination in Santa Claus Village in the Arctic Circle, about 8 kilometres north of Rovaniemi. It is the only official Santa Claus´ Post Office and part of the Finnish postal services. It is open all year and over 100 international media and about half a million visitors from around the world are welcomed. 

Each letter, card and parcel mailed at Santa Claus’ Main Post Office is franked with a special postmark and stamp. The logo of Santa Claus’ Main Post Office was designed by Finnish graphic designer Pekka Vuori.

 The logo is also a registered trademark. The postmark contains a stylized logo that was changed to its current form by graphic designer Jukka Talari in 2012. This special Arctic Circle postmark is a popular collectable and souvenir.

The postmark shows the latitude and longitude of the Arctic circle postoffice ! 

Update : 

I couldn’t find the Christmas stamp that was on the cover , in the Finland stamp catalogues . So I had enquires the Santa’s elves 

So these are stamps issued exclusively for the Santa’s main post office in Arctic Circle ! 

Joyeux Nöel

A Christmas greeting inside a cover from France - sent by Santa Claus ;) 

This beautiful cover is a yearly feature of La Poste ! It’s a prepaid envelope where the stamp including the cancellation is all pre- printed , and there is an indication that the envelope is valid for postage from France throughout the world ! So that makes this prepaid envelope - a postal stationary :) 

Thanks Santa ! 

Merry Christmas from Israel

A cover from Israel - with Christmas greetings ! 

Season’s greetings from the Holyland ! 

The concept combines Christmas signs, like snow, trees and the atmosphere of a cool night in Bethlehem, and the occasion and the reason for that holiday, which is of course the birth of Jesus Christ.

The message in the design is about the light and the salvation that he brought with him at the time of his birth, hence, the great star, even in the stamp, which is indicative of light and happiness and the strong connection between a mother and her son.

The cancellation shows the birth of Christ with Mary and Joseph by the side and the star ! 

The stamp is an ATM label . 

A variable value stamp, is a gummed or self-adhesive postage stamp of a common design, issued by a machine similar to an Automatic Teller Machine, with a value of the user's choice printed at the time the stamp is dispensed. The value may be variable or from a fixed selection of postal rates. The stamps and machines are typically for use in retail or post office environments. As only the postal value varies from stamp to stamp, these stamps have been described as key type stamps. They are also closely related to meter stamps from postage meters.

As the concept has developed, a variety of different names have been used, including Automatenmarken (Germany), ATM stamps (USA), Autopost stamps (USA), Frama labels (Europe) or machine labels(Stanley Gibbons catalogues)

Thanks Yuri for the beautiful cover and Merry Christmas to you too ! It’s quite a nice feeling to receive a Christmas wish from the Holyland itself ! 

Update : 

Received another cover with Christmas Eve cancellation ( 24-12-2018 ) from Nazareth ! 

Christmas covers from Bethlehem and Nareth ! 😇

Update : 

One more cover from Israel - this one from Jerusalem ! 

Jerusalem , Nazareth and Bethlehem !! 😇😇😇

Karácsony from Hungary

A beautiful cover from Hungary that screams “ Merry Christmas “ 

Being in India, I really don’t know how the Christmas season is in the snow laden countries. They are all images I have read from books , magazines and those that I have seen in movies. 

I had asked a friend how the Christmas season is in her country , and she sent me this envelope with a note inside about how it’s celebrated in Hungary and also a recipe for a cake :) 

The festive stamp of 2018 depicts a snowman while the first day cover shows children and animals decorating a Christmas tree together. The special postmark is a storybook reindeer motif. The stamp was designed by the graphic artist Edit Szalma and was produced by Pátria Nyomda Zrt.

The stamp design of 2015 Christmas stamp shows reindeer prancing playfully in a snowy winter landscape. The stamp was designed by the graphic artist Ágnes Berta and produced by Codex Értékpapírnyomda Zrt. 

The Christmas 2013 stamps are shaped stamps and one of them is angel shaped stamps 

Thanks Christina for this lovely envelope ! Karácsony !