Christmas. Wooden sculptures by Erasmus Kern

Liechtenstein 1977 Christmas. Wooden sculptures by Erasmus Kern. Erasmus Kern (* 1592 in Feldkirch, † after 1650) was an Austrian sculptor and woodcarver.

Erasmus studied with Jörg Zürn and operated in Feldkirch an important sculptor's workshop, which is why the exact allocation of works attributed to him is difficult. 

Thank you Merja for this nice cover with the four pretty stamps.

Life in Medieval Switzerland

A very graphically illustrated life and times in medieval Switzerland, very aptly portrayed on these five nice stamps of that country. These stamps are part of a set of nine definitive stamps issued in 1977. Thank you Maria for this lovely FDC.

A brief description of the stamps in order from Left to Right is given below;-

Sternsingen, Bergün (5). Depicts a star singing the Bergun.

Sechseläuten, Zürich (10). The Sechseläuten is a traditional spring holiday in the Swiss city of Zurich celebrated in its current form, on the 3rd Monday of April, since the early 20th century. Following the parade of the (guilds), the climax of the holiday is the burning of Winter in effigy, in the form of the Böögg, a figure of a  snowman prepared with explosives. The custom of burning a ragdoll called Böögg predates the Sechseläuten. A Böögg was originally a masked character doing mischief and frightening children during the season.

Silvesterklause Herisau (20). A New Year's Eve or even Klaus' Silvesterchlaus, is a masked person. It occurs within the Silvesterklausens, a service in the Swiss canton ofAppenzell Outer Rhodes. Today, it is estimated that the Chlausen do not have a pagan origin, but goes back to a late medieval custom of the monastery students. In the 15th Century seems to have become the buzz getting wilder and fasnächtlicher and did not fit the church in Advent. Perhaps the Chlausen was therefore moved from the advent of the New Year. 

 Gansabhauet, Sursee (35).

Escalade Geneva (40), or Fête de l'Escalade (from escalade, the act of scaling defensive walls) is an annual festival held in December in Geneva, Switzerland, celebrating the defeat of the surprise attack by troops sent by Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy during the night of 11–12 December 1602. The celebrations and other commemorative activities are usually held on 12 December or the closest weekend. The next weekend of celebration and remembrance will take place in the Geneva's old town on December 7th, 8th and 9th, 2012. 

1999 Europa - Famous City Parks in Helsinki and Turku 15.3.1999

The Esplanade in Helsinki and the island Ruissalo in Turku in all their luxuriant verdure adorn the Europa stamps, which were issued on March 15th, 1999. Parks and Reserves  were the theme of that year’s joint stamp series of all European postal administrations.

     The stamps are designed by Asser Jaaro. For the FIM 2.70 stamp, depicting the Esplanade, he has used Markku Ulander’s photograph of the park at its most beautiful: a popular place for a stroll and for meeting your friends on a lovely summer’s day. The FIM 3.20 stamp, dedicated to Ruissalo, features an aerial photograph by Pentti Harala, emphasizing both the lushness and the size of the area.

     To the inhabitants of Helsinki, the Esplanade, affectionately called “Espa”, is the real heart of the city. In the old days, it was a romantic promenade as well as a venue for many elevated national festivals, but this beautiful oasis in the center of the city, offering recreation of all sorts, is extremely popular with the inhabitants of today’s Helsinki as well. The northern walk leads to the theater and to the monuments honoring the great authors Zachris Topelius and Eino Leino, whereas the center of the park is dominated by the statue of the Finnish national poet, Johan Ludvig Runeberg. In the south, the market place and the Kappeli restaurant, rich in tradition, invite you to enter the world of exciting tastes.

The Ruissalo island is located in Turku, at the northwest coast of the Gulf of Finland and the mouth of the river Aura. It has a surface area of 870 hectares, of which approximately a half is forested. Nowadays the most popular nature resort and recreation area in Turku, it was a royal hunting ground in the 16th century. It was bequeathed to the City of Turku in the 1840’s on the condition that the unique nature in the area would be well preserved. Finland’s largest oak forests can be found in Ruissalo. This island of oak and lime trees and hazels is also the habitat of almost 260 species of birds and, for instance, 19 endangered species of butterflies. The Turku University botanical gardens as well as some architectually valuable villas from the 19th century are also situated on the island. Ruissalo is included in the Natura 2000 program of the European Communities, and there are plans to turn it into a national city park. 

Thank you my dear friend Merja for this nice FDC.

1998 Europa - National Festivals - Finland 22.3.1998

Each year, the European postal administrations issue EUROPA stamps under a common theme. “Public festivals”   was the theme chosen for 1998. The Finnish EUROPA stamps are dedicated to celebrations of spring and summer, Labor Day and Midsummer. The stamps, with a face value of FIM 3.20 and 3.40, respectively, were designed by Mika Launis. The exuberant, romantic stamps were issued on March 27th.

Labor Day is the traditional day of celebration for workers and students, and marks the beginning of springtime in northern countries. Through the years it has become a carnival for the entire population, the most boisterous of all annual festivities.

While they celebrate Labor Day in hearts of cities, in streets, on squares and in restaurants, Finns think that Midsummer is best celebrated in the country, preferably surrounded by nature, on a lake shore, in the light and heat of a bonfire, just as the couple depicted on the stamp. According to popular belief, there is magic and romance in this, the longest and brightest day of the year.

Thank you My Dear Pia for this wonderful  and cheerful  FDC. Eating and Drinking can be fun. Yes. Really!

Greece- 1977 Funeral issue of the Archibishop Makarios

Greece issued these two stamps and the cover to honour Archbishop Makarios, the First President of Cyprus during his funeral.

The cover highlights the UN Security Council Resolution of 20 July 1974. United Nations Security Council Resolution 353, adopted unanimously on July 20, 1974, in response to the Turkish invasion of Cyprus, the Council demanded the immediate withdrawal of all foreign military personnel present in the Republic of Cyprus in contravention of paragraph 1 of the United Nations Charter. The resolution goes on to call upon Greece, Turkey and the United Kingdom to immediately enter into negotiations to restore peace on the island, and constitution government to its people.

Thank you Merja for this memorable FDC.

Royal Insignias

The items portrayed on the stamps on this cover are insignias and signs of royalty in Liechtenstein. Brief details are as under :-

-          (40 Rappen) A sword and the holy cross.

-          (50 Rappen) The Royal saint St. Mathews (also shown on the cover).

-          (80 Rappen) A purse.

-          (90 Rappen) Tabard (a loose outer garment, sleeveless or with short sleeves, especially one worn by a knight over his armour and usually emblazoned with the royal coat of arms) of the imperial herald.

Thank you dear Merja for this pretty cover with the nice stamps.

1999 Finnish Industrial Design 8.10.1999

1999 Finnish Industrial Design, stamp booklet issued on 8th Oct, 1999. Each of  these six stamps depicts some mechanical device with unique design features. 
Thank you Ella for this wonderful FDC.

Global Eradication of Smallpox

The Albert Lasker Public Health Service Award was presented to the World Health Organisation for its successful campaign against smallpox. The WHO received with this award a statuette, reproduced on this cover, of the winged Victory of Samothrace, symbolising victory over disease and death.

The stamp on the cover is one of a set of two. This nice FDC was given to me by my friend Merja.

Anniversaries and Events 17.10.1977

The four stamps on this FDC portray stamps that mark important anniversaries and events in the year 1977. Brief details are mentioned below.

Revitalization of Handicrafts

Man and the Biosphere Programme.  The Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB) of UNESCO was established in 1971 to promote interdisciplinary approaches to management, research and education in ecosystem conservation andsustainable use of natural resources.

Gymnasiade Orleans 1976. The Gymnasiade, or World Gymnasiade, is a quadrennial international multi-sport event which is organised by the International School Sport Federation (ISF). It is the largest event that the ISF holds – boy and girl athletes represented 37 countries at the 2006 Gymnasiade. Only children between the ages of 13 and 17 are eligible to compete. There are four sporting competitions at each Gymnasiade: athletics, artistic gymnastics, rhythmic gymnastics, and swimming. There are 34 athletics events (17 for boys and 17 for girls), which are held in agreement with the IAAF rules. There are also 34 swimming events which are split equally between the sexes. Boys compete in eight different artistic gymnastics events, while girls contest six artistic, six rhythmic, and one all-round gymnastics event.

The first edition of the Gymnasiade was held in 1974 in Wiesbaden, Germany and it featured solely gymnastics competitions and swimming. The athletics competition was added to the programme in the following edition in Orléans in 1976. The Gymnasiade continued as a biennial event until 1990, when it was altered to a quadrennial schedule. The next edition will be held in Brasília, Brazil.

60th Anniversary of the Russian Revolution. 1977 marked the 60^th  anniversary of the Russian Revolution; an event which went a long way in shaping the 20th century in much the same way that the French Revolution shaped the 19th. That there appears to be nothing planned in Russia to mark the revolution shows a degree of nervousness by the government and the new Russian elite; a nervousness drawn from a fear that history just might repeat itself. There are two initial things to say about the Russian Revolution. When we talk of the anniversary we tend to refer to that event of October 1917 when the Red Guards stormed the Winter Palace in Petrograd and Lenin's address the next day to the Petrograd Soviet to make his famous announcement; "we will now proceed to construct the socialist order". In fact, the Revolution was really a serious of interconnected events which began with the overthrow of the Tsar in February 1917 and culminated in the founding of the Soviet Union in 1922.

Secondly; the revolution was based on a number of assumptions all of which proved to be erroneous leaving the revolution to engage in a grim struggle for survival before finally triumphing with the founding of the USSR five years later.

My Dear friend Merja gave me this very interesting First Day Cover.

1977 EUROPA CEPT - Landscapes 2.5.1977

The theme for the 1977 EUROPA CEPT stamps was 'Landscapes'. In keeping with that theme Cyprus issued these three lovely stamps shown on this first day cover given to me by my friend Merja.

Quo vadis

Quo vadis? is a Latin phrase meaning "Where are you going?" or "Whither goest thou?"

 The modern usage of the phrase refers to a Christian tradition regarding Saint Peter. According to the apocryphal Acts of Peter (Vercelli Acts XXXV), Peter is fleeing from likely crucifixion in Rome at the hands of the government, and along the road outside the city he meets a risen Jesus. Peter asks Jesus "Quo vadis?", to which He replies, "Romam vado iterum crucifigi." ("I am going to Rome to be crucified again"). Peter thereby gains the courage to continue his ministry and returns to the city, to eventually be martyred by being crucified upside-down.

The phrase also occurs a few times in the Vulgate translation of the Bible, notably in John 13:36 when Peter asks Jesus the same question, to which he responds, "Whither I go, thou canst not follow me now; but thou shalt follow me."

The history of the extraordinary love of a young Roman patrician and the beautiful Christian girl has been affecting and fascinating subsequent generations of readers for over one hundred years. The tense plot and an excellent, clear, and colourful picture of Rome during Nero's reign, ensured a huge popularity of the novel and a world-wide fame forSienkiewicz, leading to the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1905. The novel was translated into films several times. We will soon be able to admire its Polish version directed by Jerzy Kawalerowicz.

In 2001 the Polish Post introduced six postal stamps, each one of the face value of PLN 1.00. The whole series was published in the form of an ornamental publishing sheet, containing various sets of photographs from the film set (just like those represented in the stamps). Individual stamps  on these three lovely covers depict the following persons and events:

- Ligia, Vinicius, Petrinius against the Roman architecture at the background,

- singing Nero in one of the scenes of a feast,

- Peter the Apostle in the Roman catacombs during secret prayers of the Christians and a scene of the baptism of Chilon Chilonides,

- Chilon Chilonides against the great fire of Rome,

- Ligia tied to the back of the aurochs and Ursus, after a victorious fight with the auroch, holding Ligia in his arms, with Christians in the amphitheatre in the background,

- Peter the Apostle, Vinicius and Ligia blessed by Peter.

On the day the stamps were issued, 3 types of first day envelopes (FDCs) with a special cancellation of the Post Office Warsaw 1 were also released. These three FDCs are now on view here, kind courtesy of my friend Krystyna from Poland.

Joint issue by China and Singapore - City Outlook 9.10.1996

On 9^th October 1996, Singapore and China jointly released a set of stamps featuring similar designs on Suzhou’s Panmen area and the Singapore skyline and warterfront.

Chinese artist, Jiang Zhi Nan of the Central Academy of Arts and Design, painted the two beautiful scenes in watercolour. In spite of the obvious physical differences between  Singapore and Suzhou, Zhi Nan used his skill and creativity to produce two beautifully executed and complimentary paintings.

These two covers were specially produced to commemorate the joint release of the two sets of stamps by Singapore and China. The two matching sets of stamps and special cancellations, together with the signatures of the artist and the graphic designer, make these covers a special memento of the two countries’ collaboration in this issue.

LEMANEX 1978

LEMANEX 1978 was a Swiss National Philatelic Exhibition at Lausanne in Switzerland from 26^th May to 4^th June, 1978.

A Sunday afternoon, special boat excursion across the lake to Thonon in France gave rise to conviviality and to a host of special cachets, as well as to a special French cancellation from Thonon honouring Lemanex. The Cover on display with the lovely cachet and the special cancellation, is this very cover from  Thonon, issued on 28^th May 1978. Thank you Dear Maria for this memorable cover, with the nice stamp honouring Charles Lindbergh.

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

The UN Postal Dept. issued these two nice stamps and the impressive cover to honour the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO). Merja gave me this nice FDC.

The World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) is an international organization dedicated to facilitating worldwide protection of the rights of creators and owners of intellectual property. WIPO's origin dates back to 1883 in Geneva, Switzerland when the Paris Convention entered into force and an International Bureau was set up to carry out administrative tasks. This International Bureau evolved over time to become known in 1970 as WIPO. In 1974, WIPO became a specialized agency of the United Nations and in 1996, WIPO expanded its role into globalized trade by entering into a cooperation agreement with the World Trade Organization.

WIPO currently has 182 states (as of 26 Sept 2005) that are members of the organization and administers 23 treaties (two of which are in conjunction with other international organizations).
The 23 treaties administered by WIPO are divided into three classes:

1. Intellectual Property Treaties that define the internationally agreed basic standards of intellectual property protection; e.g. Paris Convention
2. Global P
3. rotection System Treaties that aim to ensure that one international registration or filing will have effect in any of the relevant signatory States; e.g. PCT and Budapest Treaty.
4. Classification Treaties that create systems that organize information concerning inventions into indexed structures to enable easy retrieval; e.g. International Patent Classification (IPC).

World Cup for Trained Dogs

The World Cup competition amongst trained dogs was held in Nova Gorica, Slovenia from 13^th to 16^thSeptember 2001. This cover was issued on 13.9.2001 in order to commemorate this popular event. The stamp on the cover was issued in 1992 during a similar competition.  Thank you Maria for this pretty FDC.  

1996 EUROPA CEPT - Famous women - Finland

The theme for EUROPA CEPT stamps in 1996 was Famous women. Finland took this opportunity to issue a stamp on the 90th Anniversary of Women's Suffrage in Finland. A single stamp was issued on 8th March 1996. Thank you Merja for this memorable FDC.

Netherland Antilles 31.5.1978 - Flowers

Thank you Maria these are indeed very pretty stamps depicting the flower's on these lovely Islands affixed  on a very nice FDC.

Famous Castles of Switzerland

In 1909, a small group of patriotic and charitably minded personalities led by the St. Gallen businessman Albert Schuster initiated the "Swiss National Day Donation". Its guiding idea was to mark the Swiss National Day with a collective act by the population. An annual collection was intended to increase solidarity in the country. The noble aim of the initiators was supported by the Federal Council from the very beginning.

With the aid of the Post Office, a valuable fund-raising instrument was introduced in 1910, namely the National Day postcards and, from 1938, the National Day stamps (known as Pro Patria stamps since 1952). The charitable surcharge (carriage surcharge) on these specially created miniature works of art was earmarked for social and cultural works. 

The 1976 Pro Patria stamps on this cover  featured famous castles of Switzerland. Brief details of these castles are given below. Maria gave me this FDC. 

Kyburg Castle is a castle in the municipality of Kyburg and the canton of Zurich in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.

Murten Castle. The castle dates to the time of Count Peter of Savoy II who ordered its construction in 1255. Under the castle gate, dating from 1516, much rebuilding took place.Today’s castle is from 1755. Step through the entry and immediately look on the ground. You’ll find the outline, in stone, of the original castle water well. The tall quadrangular tower or the keep, known as the “Luegisland,” served as a watch tower for Adrian von Bubenberg so that he could oversee the Battle of Murten. 

Grandson Castle (French: Château de Grandson ) is a medieval castle in the Swiss municipality of Grandson in the canton of Vaud. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance. The Lords of Grandson were first mentioned in the second half of the 11th Century.^[2] The castle was probably built around the same time. Over the following century, as the Lords of Grandson expanded their power, they often came into conflict with the nearby monastery of Romainmôtier.

The Three Castles of Bellinzona are a group of fortifications located around the town of Bellinzona in canton Ticino, Switzerland. The group is composed of Castelgrande, castle Montebello, castle Sasso Corbaro and fortified walls.

Windsurfing

Windsurfing is a surface water sport that combines elements of surfing and sailing. It consists of a board usually 2 to 3 metres long, with a volume of about 60 to 250 liters, powered by wind on a sail. The rig is connected to the board by a free-rotating universal joint and consists of a mast, 2-sided boom and sail. The sail area generally ranges from 2.5 m² to 12 m² depending on the conditions, the skill of the sailor and the type of windsurfing being undertaken.

The stamp on this cover was issued by Belarus on 25.10.2001 to encourage and popularize this wonderful sport. Thank you Natalia for this nice FDC.

National Communication Day 1995

To commemorate Thailand’s Coomunication Day in 1995, a stamp was issued on 4^th August 1995.

The design illustrates linking parts of the world through the Optical Fibre Submarine Cable System. Also included in the design is the logo of National Communications Day.

The digital working optical fibre submarine cable is made of highly pure silicon glass fibre.  The fibre, which ranges from 0.1 to 0.15 mm in diameter, serves as a wave guide for transmitting wave signals in digital mode with greater efficiency than previous systems.

The Communication Authority of Thailand has utilised both the optical fibre submarine cable system and the satellite communications system to efficiently link Thailand to the rest of the world.

Thank you Maria for this nice and interesting FDC.

Netherlands Antilles - Butterflies

The Netherlands Antilles, also referred to informally as the Dutch Antilles, was an autonomous Caribbean country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Although the country has now been dissolved, all of its constituent islands remain part of the kingdom under a different legal status and the term is still used to refer to these Dutch Caribbean islands.

There were two island groups in the Netherlands Antilles, both in the Lesser Antilles. The ABC islands of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao are in the Leeward Antilles just off the Venezuelan coast, and the SSS islands of Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius are in the Leeward Islands southeast of the Virgin Islands.

Aruba became a separate country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1986. The rest of the Netherlands Antilles was dissolved on 10 October 2010, with Curaçao and Sint Maarten becoming two new constituent countries and with the other islands becoming special municipalities within the Netherlands.

Thank you Maria these are indeed very pretty stamps depicting the butterflies on the Island, and are affixed  on a very nice FDC.

Medieval Postal Couriers

The stamps on this First Day Cover were printed by Switzerland. They were issued on 29.1.1974 to commemorate the INTERNABA stamp show celebrating the Centenary of the Universal Postal Union (UPU). The stamps depict Medieval Postal Couriers. Thank you Maria for this lovely FDC.

Rauma - Idyllic, culturally rich seaside town 6.3.2002

Rauma in Finland,founded in 1442, is an idyllic seaside town steeped in culture. Rauma offers its 37,000 inhabitants high-quality modern services.

Rauma provides a spacious and safe living environment. Whether you choose a home in the town centre or a more country-type dwelling, good basic public services and high-quality education, cultural and leisure services are available to you.

The town is a dream come true for shoppers and gourmets. Especially during the summer months, the marketplace is a popular meeting place. The heart of the town is Old Rauma, which is the largest preserved coherent medieval wooden town area in the Nordic region. In 1991 the area was selected for UNESCO's World Heritage Sites.

The lovely stamps on the minisheet affixed to the cover were issued by Finland on 6.3.2002 the 560th Anniversary of the founding of this nice town

Thank you my friend Ella for this lovely first day cover.

Loviisa - 250th Anniversary - Pearl of the Southern Coast of Finland 30.6.1995

Thank you my friend Pia for this pretty first day cover commemorating the 250^th Anniversary of Loviisa on 30.6.1995.  Loviisa, an idyllic old port town between Porvoo and Kotka, is less than an hour's drive east of Helsinki. The Swedish King Adolf Fredrik was very fond of the town and named it after his wife,Queen Lovisa Ulrika.

The coastal town of Loviisa has a rich history. The bilingual town has a remarkable main square surrounded by the 19th century stately stone houses and immediately next to the centre, you will find the old town districts with their wooden houses, gravel and cobblestone streets. On the western side, you will find the bold neo-gothic Church, while fortresses built in 18th century are on the eastern side. The sea stretches all the way to the town centre. The Laivasilta area is related to the sailing history of the region and is characterised by its red salt warehouses, making it a popular area for meetings and events during summers.

Loviisa offers a wide range of cultural sites, rich natural beauty and plenty of activities. Only a short distance from the Loviisa town centre, you can admire manors and craftsmen's workshops in the area of the Strömfors Iron Works. You can also learn about the interesting past of the area through historical buildings and fortresses. The pristine natural environment offers swimming, picnic areas, hiking and fishing as well as golf courses. The high-quality accommodations and a long list of cultural events optimise a guest's stay. The biggest events in Loviisa are the Open Gardens in Loviisa, the Rootsinpyhtaa Bluegrass & Rendezvous, the Liljendal Days, the King Comes to Loviisa, the Fascination of Roses, the Small Ships' Race, the Loviisa Sibelius Festival and the Historical Houses of Loviisa - Traditional Finnish Building and Renovation Days.

ARCHBISHOP MAKARIOS THE GREAT LEADER 3.8.1978

Archbishop Makarios isfeatured on  many Cyprus stamps. This issue of 3.8.1978 proclaims Makarios as the "Great Leader", as he was often refered to and depicted figure throughout his life. Thank you Merja for this fabulous FDC.

Archbishop Makarios III of Cyprus became the nation's first President when Britain granted the island independence in 1959. In his three terms (1959-1977), he survived four assassination attempts and a 1974 coup. Born Michael Mouskos, Makarios was elected bishop of Kition in 1948 and archbishop of Cyprus in 1950. Leader of the Greek Cypriots in the movement for enosis (union with Greece), he was exiled by the British in 1956 on charges of encouraging terrorism.

In 1958 he begins to press for Cypriot independence from Great Britain rather than union with Greece. When an agreement is reached on the independence of Cyprus, he is elected president. He pursues a neutralist policy, favoring a peaceful solution between the island's Greek and Turkish communities.

In 1972 he came under increasing pressure from the Greek government to allow for greater Greek influence in Cypriot affairs; the Cypriot Orthodox Church pressured him to resign if he failed to do so. Gen. George Grivas (also in photo), leader of the enosis movement, launched a terrorist campaign aimed at overthrowing Makarios, finally succeeding in July of 1974, when a Greek Junta-sponsored coup deposes Makarios declaring that he is dead in the rubble of his palace. But shortly thereafter Makarios's voice is heard on the radio telling his people that he is alive and that they should resist the leaders of the coup. When Turkey invades the island it precipitates the fall of the Junta in Athens. After several months of exile he returns to Cyprus and resumes the presidency.

When Makarios died in August of 1977 of a heart attack the funeral is interrupted by a rainstorm, unheard of in Cyprus for that month. Some call it a miracle. Greek Cypriot newspaper refer to the extraordinary event as proving an old Greek proverb, that when a good man is buried, even the heavens shed tears. A Turkish Cypriot newspaper however, said that the un-seasonal rain had proved an old Turkish proverb, that when an evil man is buried, the heavens open to wash away his misdeeds. Regardless of what people thought of him, Makarios' leadership created an identity for Cypriots that went beyond being Greek or Turkish

1963 EUROPA16.9.1963

A stylised cross design composed of 4 3-sided U shapes with CEPT inlaid. Designed by Arne Holm of Norway. This is how Iceland commemorated the European CEPT stamp year 1963. Thank you Maria.

Viivi & Wagner 15.1.2008

Viivi & Wagner is a somewhat absurdist Finnish newspaper comic strip drawn by Jussi "Juba" Tuomola.

The titular main characters are Viivi, a Finnish woman in her twenties, and Wagner, a mature male pig. Wagner is fully anthropomorphic and sentient, yet still considers himself a pig instead of a human. Though often mistaken for married, the two are cohabitating in an Odd Couple-ish relationship and genuinely fond of each other when not bickering.

The comic originally appeared in Kultapossu, a promotional children's magazine by a Finnish bank. In the original version of the comic, Viivi was a small girl and Wagner was her animate piggy bank. When the Kultapossu magazine was discontinued, Tuomola adapted the characters to fit a newspaper comic strip style, also changing the characters to adults in the process.

Viivi & Wagner is extremely popular in Finland, above all because of its quirky humour. Most of the strips concern either arguments between Viivi and Wagner ("You ate the wrapper, too?!" "I always eat the wrapper."), or Wagner getting into totally absurd situations, either in everyday life or in a fantasy world ("I'm stuck in the moment before the Big Bang"). Some strips break the fourth wall ("Hey, your outline is loose.") or the classic comic strip format by not having a definite punchline at the end.

Some readers, who have been unaware of the strip's history in a bank's promotional magazine for children, have taken Wagner's porcine appearance as a statement of feminism, specifically implying that "men are pigs". Some have even thought Tuomola was a woman. It has been noticed that many medical inside jokes appear in the strips - many of them originate from an old friend of Juba, whose profession happens to be a doctor.

Thank you Dear Merja for this delightful FDC with the minisheet of six stamps issued on 15.1.2003.