Carousel horse 24.2.2017

Minna Havas, a versatile illustrator and fabric pattern designer, has drawn a carousel horse for a festive, spring-themed stamp. 
– Old circus aesthetics is very fascinating. It was very inspiring to design the Carousel stamp and the ornamental patterns on the horse. The stamp conveys both joy and beauty, Havas says.
Havas was also behind the popular Valentine’s Day stamps with faerie motifs in 2010. She has also drawn the tricholoma matsutake for the Edible mushrooms stamps that were published last fall. Havas, who has also run a clothing company, currently makes clothing fabric patterns for Vimma Company.

Thank you Ella.

200 Years since the Birth of J.L. Runeberg 14.1.2004

Johan Ludvig Runeberg (5 February 1804 – 6 May 1877) was a Finno-Swedish lyric and epic poet. He is the national poet of Finland and the author of the lyrics to Vårt land (Our Land, Maamme in Finnish) that became the Finnish National Anthem. Runeberg was also involved in the modernization of the Finnish Lutheran hymnal and produced many texts for the new edition.

Runeberg Day (Runebergin päivä) is celebrated annually on February 5, the day of Runeberg's birth. A pastry flavored with almonds called Runeberg's torte (Finnish: Runebergintorttu; Swedish: Runebergstårta) is generally available in stores from the beginning of January until February 5.

There is a statue of Johan Ludwig Runeberg by his son Walter Runeberg is located on Esplanadi in the heart of Helsinki.

Runeberg was selected as the main motif of the Finnish commemorative coin, the €10 Johan Ludvig Runeberg and Finnish Poetry commemorative coin. It was minted in 2004 celebrating the 200th anniversary of his birth. The obverse of the coin features a stylized portrait of Runeberg's face. The reverse features an 1831 font sample from the Swedish language newspaper Helsingfors Tidningar, since Runeberg wrote most of his work in Swedish.

Thank you Merja.

Cats 4.5.2006

By the way, this 2006 FDC on Cats was given to me by Ari and his cat Pipo from Finland. Thank you Dear friends.

Eurovision 9.5.2007

The latest winner is Måns Zelmerlöw of Sweden, who won the 2015 contest in Vienna, Austria with "Heroes".

Thank you Ari for this lovely First Day Cover of Eurovision 2007.

Ari gave me this lovelyFDC with the impressive minisheet issued by Finland in 2007. Several countries have issued Eurovision stamps in the past, but special mention must go to… Finland again! In 2007 it marked its hosting of the event with an issue celebrating some of its previous entrants, including, of course, Lordi, the awesome glam horror metal band who had won it for Finland the previous year (2006).  

The Eurovision Song Contest (French: Concours Eurovision de la chanson), often shortened to ESC orEurovision, is the longest running annual TV song competition held, primarily, among the member countries of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) since 1956. The competition was based upon the existing Sanremo Music Festival held in Italy.

Each member, or invited, country submits a song to be performed on live television and radio and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition. The contest has been broadcast every year for sixty years, since its inauguration in 1956 and is one of the longest-running television programmes in the world. It is also one of the most watched non-sporting events in the world, with audience figures having been quoted in recent years as anything between 100 million and 600 million internationally. Eurovision has also been broadcast outside Europe to such places as Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, China, Colombia, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Japan, Jordan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, South Africa, Suriname, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States, Uruguay, Venezuela and Vietnam, although these countries do not compete. However, Australia was invited to compete as a guest country in 2015 for the 60 years of Eurovision celebration. Since 2000, the contest has also been broadcast over the Internet, via the Eurovision website.

Winning the Eurovision Song Contest provides an opportunity for the winning artists to capitalise on the surrounding publicity and further their careers. Artists whose international careers were directly launched into the spotlight following their participation at Eurovision include: Italian Domenico Modugno, who came third with the song "Nel blu dipinto di blu" ("In the sky, painted blue", popularly known as "Volare") in 1958; ABBA, who won the contest for Sweden in 1974 with "Waterloo"; Céline Dion, who won for Switzerland in 1988 with the French-language song "Ne partez pas sans moi" ("Don't leave without me"); the Spaniard Julio Iglesias, who has sold over 300 million records worldwide, was beaten into fourth place by Dana, winning for Ireland in 1970 with "All Kinds of Everything"; and Bucks Fizz, who won in 1981 for the United Kingdom with "Making Your Mind Up".

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.

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.

Taxi transport in Finland 11.1.2006

Taxi transport in Finland marks its centenary in 2006. In earlier times, only the upper crust used taxis, but today they serve some fifty million customers a year, carrying them a total of roughly 700 million kilometres. One of the jobs performed by taxis is to take about 40,000 children to school. Old people and the disabled are also regular customers. In towns where buses have buses have become uneconomical to run, taxis run services to order and on preplanned routes. Taxi transport is therefore an inseparable part of life and transport in Finland, on special occasions and every day.

Century of taxi transport. In honor of the century of taxi transport, a stamp booklet with four self-adhesive stamps is to be issued. The stamps depict taxis from different decades. The models shown are Oldsmobile (photo from 1906, Helsinki City Museum/Hanko Museum), Chevrolet from 1929 (photo: Helsinki Taxi Drivers Association), Pobeda from 1957 (photo: Vantaa Taxi Drivers Association) and Mercedes-Benz 2002 (photo: Finnish Taxi Association).

Thank you Dear Pia for this lovely FDC.

Aku Ankka aka Donald Duck Comics in Finland, 50th anniversary 13.3.2001

So far, Donald Duck has been the most popular weekly magazine in Finland. It entertains over a million readers every week and is educational too, in teaching a third generation of Finnish children to read and use good Finnish. The Donald Duck magazine advocates the use of correct and eloquent Finnish language and promotes reading and writing in general. It has been a candidate for the Finnish Agricola literature prize and has the whole-hearted support of Finnish teachers.

Aku Ankka (Finnish for Donald Duck) is a Finnish weekly Disney comic’s magazine published by Sanoma Magazines. The first issue was published on December 5, 1951 and sold 34,017 copies. The first issue, with a special Christmas theme and the Snow White story published later in the 1950s, are very prized collectors' items and can fetch a price of several thousand euros on the collector market. Until 1956, the magazine was published monthly, between 1956 and 1960 biweekly, and since 1961, once a week every Wednesday. As of August 2010, 2893 issues have been published.

Despite being a part of a multinational franchise with most stories produced abroad, Aku Ankka has become a cultural icon in Finland. This is largely due to the magazine's colourful and innovative use of the Finnish language. Many characters' names are Finnish language spoofs of established celebrities' names. In 2001, in recognition for their work for the Finnish language, the Finnish language department of University of Helsinki’s Faculty of Arts gave the Kielihelmi-award the editorial team. With a circulation of over 320,000 and more than a million readers weekly,

Aku Ankka is the most popular weekly publication in Finland as well as the largest edition per capita in the world for a Donald Duck magazine. There is a popular belief that Donald Duck was once banned in Finland for not having any pants. This myth was sparked up by an incident in 1977, when Helsinki councilman Markku Holopainen proposed discontinuing the use of city funds for the purchase of Aku Ankka comics for youth centres, as a reaction to financial difficulties. The following year, as Holopainen was running for a Parliament seat, his opponents then called him "the man who banned Donald Duck from Helsinki". A similar incident also took place a few years previously in Kemi and international reports then exaggerated the situation with claims that the character's attire and his unmarried relationship to Daisy Duck were the culprits.

The Aku Ankka comic is now more popular in Finland than in the country of its origin, the United States (where Disney is better known for its cartoons and films than comics). The United States Donald Duck cartoonist Don Rosa is exceptionally popular in Finland, and has acknowledged this by creating The Quest for Kalevala, a Donald Duck story specifically set in Finland. Pia gave me this lovely FDC. This Five-stamp miniature sheet was issued on 13 March 2001 The magazine is celebrating its 50th anniversary in Finland this year. Designers of these lovely stamps and cover were Susanna Rumpu and Ari Lakaniemi

Europa 2002 - 'The Circus & Famous Clowns' - Finland 15.4.2002

The Europa 2002 theme was 'The Circus, famous clowns' featuring Joseph Grimaldi (1778-1837) the most celebrated of English clowns, born in London, son of an Italian father and English mother; Swiss clown 'Grock' Karl Adrien Wettach (1880-1959); 'Coco the clown' Nicholai Polakovs OBE (1900-1974) probably most famous clown in British history, originally a Jewish Latvian and Jean Hubert Charles Cairoli (1910-1980) born in Milan of French parents
Europa stamps have been issued annually since 1956. First sets representing the founding 6 members of the ECSC, European Coal and Steel Community, then by the European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations (CEPT) in 1959, (first stamps issued in 1960) and by PostEurop since 1993. Initially in 1956 a total of 13 stamps were issued with a common design from 6 different countries. A common theme of Peace and Welfare through agriculture and industry was used for 1957. The common design reappeared in 1958 and continued until 1973. From 1974 the designs reflect a common theme. The common design idea replaced the common theme in 1984, which was the CEPT 25th Anniversary (1959-84) and shows a symbolic bridge, said to represent Liaison, Exchange and Communication. With the split of posts and telecoms providers in most countries, CEPT is no longer responsible, but the postal authorities under the guidance of PostEurop continue the Europa tradition. From 1993 all the stamps have "Europa" inserted into the design in small print.
Finland Post issued this pretty stamp and Cover to commemorate and celebrate the “Circus and its famous clowns” on 15.4.2002. Thank you Merja for this lovely FDC.

Provincial Birds of Finland 15.1.2003

Pia gave me this FDC with the three lovely bird stamps on it which were issued in Finland on 15.01.2003. The birds on the stamps, reading from left to right are described below.

Common Cuckoo. The Common Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) (formerly European Cuckoo) is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes, which also includes the roadrunners, the anis and the coucals. This species is a widespread summer migrant to Europe and Asia, and winters in Africa. It is a brood parasite, which lays its eggs in the nests of other bird species, particularly of Dunnocks, Meadow Pipits, and Eurasian Reed Warblers. Why a stupid human being is often compared to these pretty birds is beyond my comprehension.

Skylark. The Skylark (Alauda arvensis) is a small passerine bird species. This lark breeds across most of Europe and Asia and in the mountains of North Africa. It is mainly resident in the west of its range, but eastern populations are more migratory, moving further south in winter. Even in the milder west of its range, many birds move to lowlands and the coast in winter. Asian birds appear as vagrants in Alaska; this bird has also been introduced in Hawaii, western North America, eastern Australia and New Zealand.

Siberian Jay. The Siberian Jay Perisoreus infaustus, is a jay found in north Eurasia. The species has a wide range (estimated global Extent of Occurrence 10,000,000km²) and a large global population (estimated 680,000-1,400,000 in Europe). It is one of three members of the genus Perisoreus, the others being the Sichuan Jay, P. internigrans, restricted to the mountains of eastern Tibet and northwestern Sichuan, and the Gray Jay, P. canadensis, restricted to the boreal forest and western montane regions of North America. All three species

700th birthday of St. Bridget 6.6.2003

St. Brigit of Sweden (1303-1373) was born 700 years ago. Therefore a Euro 0.65 stamp, depicting a wooden sculpture of St. Brigit of Sweden, was issued on 6.6.2003 to honor the founder of the Brigittine Order. The sculpture is a detail from the altar screen in the Naantali Convent Church. The altar screen, Heavenly Coronation of the Virgin Mary, is from the 15th century. Pia gave me this FDC.

Bridget of Sweden or Birgitta Birgersdotter (1303 – 23 July 1373; also Birgitta of Vadstena, Saint Birgitta, Saint Bridget (or Brigid) of Sweden, or in Swedish den heliga Birgitta [literally the Holy Birgitta]) was a mystic and saint, and founder of the Bridgettine Order after the death of her husband of twenty years. She was also the mother of a saint —Saint Catherine of Vadstena. She is one of the six patron saints of Europe, together with Saint Benedict of Nursia, Saints Cyril and Methodius, Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Teresia Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein).

The Fighting Capercaillies- Ferdinand von Wright 3.3.2003

The Euro 0.90 self-adhesive stamp depicts the famous painting, Taistelevat metsot 1886 or The Fighting Capercailles, by Ferdinand von Wright (1822-1906) and was issued on 3.3.2003 along with the cover. This work, greatly admired by the Finns, is in the collections of the Ateneum Art Museum.

Ferdinand von Wright (March 19, 1822 — July 31, 1906) was a Finnish painter. He is known especially for his paintings of birds and landscapes, but was also a portrait painter.

Von Wright's parents, Henrik Magnus von Wright and Maria Elisabet Tuderus, owned the Haminalahti manor in Kuopio. His brothers Magnus and Wilhelm were also painters.

In 1838, Ferdinand traveled to Sweden to assist his brother Wilhelm in his illustration work, and worked as his brother's substitute as an illustrator at the Royal Swedish Academy of Arts. During 1842 he studied for some time at the academy, and then returned to Finland in 1844. He lived a secluded but productive life in a cottage he built near his family's home. In 1885, he was granted an artist's pension by the government. Despite suffering paralysis beginning in 1884, Ferdinand continued to produce artistic works until his death. It was during this time that he produced his work The Fighting Capercaillies, one of Finland's most famous paintings. Thank you Pia for this lovely FDC.

2003 Men's Ice Hockey Championships 3.3.2003

This FDC was issued on 3.3.2003 to commemorate The 2003 Men's Ice Hockey Championships were held between April 26 and May 11, 2003 in Helsinki, Tampere and Turku, Finland. It was the 67th annual event, and was run by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). The Lion was the mascot chosen for these games, and features on the pretty 0.65 Euro stamp on the FDC. Sixteen countries participated in the Championships. 

Pia gave me this fine FDC.

Luonnotar - Kalevala Art 26.3.2004

The Kalevala begins with a poem describing the birth of the world, based on an ancient international myth. Luonnotar was the Spirit of Nature, Mother of the Seas, who existed before creation, floating alone in the universe before the worlds were made "in a solitude of ether". Descending to earth she swam in its primordial ocean for 700 years. Then a storm blows up and in torment, she calls to the god Ukko for help. Out of the Void, a duck flies, looking for a place to nest. Luonnotar takes pity and raises her knee above the waters so the duck can nest and lay her eggs. But when the eggs hatch they emit great heat and Luonnotar flinches. The eggs are flown upwards and shatter, but the fragments become the skies, the yolk sunlight, the egg white the moon, the mottled bits the stars. This was the creation myth of the Karelians who represented the ancient soul of the Finnish cultural identity. After taking part in the creation of the world, she gives birth to the aged Väinämöinen. The Great Kalevala Featured on Gallen-Kallela March Miniature Sheet The Nordic post offices issued a new miniature stamp sheet with a Nordic mythology motif in 2004. The sheet is part of the Nordic joint stamp series entitled “The North”. The second and third part of the series were issued in 2006 and 2008. The first part was issued in all the Nordic countries simultaneously on March 26, 2004, as each postal administration issued a miniature sheet featuring mythical creatures. The Finnish miniature sheet featured a sketch by Akseli Gallen-Kallela entitled Luonnotar (1925, 66 x 44.5, watercolor). The sheet consists of two €0.65 stamps. Luonnotar was one of Gallen-Kallela’s illustrations for the Great Kalevala, a project that he began in 1925. It was never completed, however, as the artist suddenly died in 1931. Luonnotar is currently part of the permanent collection at the Gallen-Kallela museum. Pekka Piippo, who also designed the First Day Cover and Cancellation to go with the miniature sheet, designed the stamp. The First Day Cancellation features a part of Gallen-Kallela’s illustration with the same motif for the Jewel Kalevala (1920-1922). All eight miniature sheets published in the Nordic countries were to be issued together as a Nordic pack. The pack was issued along with the miniature sheet and priced at 16 euros on 26.3.2004. Thank you Pia for this fabulous FDC.

150th Birth Anniversary of Albert Edelfelt 28.4.2004

I have made a mention of Albert Gustaf Aristides Edelfelt (21 July 1854 – 18 August 1905) a Swedish-speaking Finnish painter, quite a few times in my blogs. This stamp and cover was issued on 28.4.2004 to commemorate Edelfelt’s 150^th Birth Anniversary.

Albert Edelfelt was born in Porvoo, Finland. His father Carl Albert was an architect. Edelfelt admired the poet Johan Ludvig Runeberg, who was a friend of the family. The company of Runeberg had a lasting impact on Edelfelt, who from time to time turned to scenes from Finnish history in his paintings. Edelfelt went on to illustrate Runeberg's epic poem The Tales of Ensign Stål. He studied art in Antwerp (1873–1874), Paris (1874–1878) and Saint Petersburg (1881–1882). He married Baroness (friherinnan) Ellan de la Chapelle in 1888 and they had one child.

Edelfelt was one of the first Finnish artists to achieve international fame. He enjoyed considerable success in Paris and was one of the founders of the Realist art movement in Finland. He influenced several younger Finnish painters and helped fellow Finnish artists such as Akseli Gallen-Kallela (refer to my post dated 21.11.2011) to make their breakthrough in Paris.

Albert Edelfelt, the first Finnish artist to rise to international fame was born on 21.7.1854, precisely 150 years ago. In honour of the jubilee year, The Ateneum Art Museum is putting up the most extensive exhibition on Edelfelt’s art ever seen, bringing together all his most significant works. Edelfelt is known first and foremost as the pioneer and forerunner of Finnish art. He cleared the path for other young Finnish artists by establishing international connections and exporting Finnish art abroad. Just as his masters wished, Edelfelt captured dramatic scenes from Finnish history on his canvas and was also a highly talented portrayer of his own time. His portraits captured the beauty of several society ladies as well as many of the most notable people of the time, such as Louis Pasteur and Nikolai II. Edefelt’s skills both as an artist and a negotiator provided him with substantial power and he was even able to negotiate a separate unit for Finland in the Paris World Fair in 1900, despite all the resistance from Russia. All in all Edelfelt became well acquainted with Paris during his post-graduate years and his breakthrough in that Mecca of Art cleared the path for other young Finnish artists as well. Pia gave me this FDC.

The Finnish Almanac 14.1.2005

The first Finnish almanac appeared in 1705. In the beginning, almanacs contained information about the annual cycle, church holy days, and name days, as well as information on market days and simple astronomical facts, but starting already in 1749 they ran numerous articles aimed at enlightening the rural populace in its labours and subsistence activities. These writings provided guidance in the areas of agriculture, cattle husbandry, commerce, forestry and health-care. In addition, they gave information on civic matters such as local government and the educational system. The Economic Society of Finland largely carried out the editing of these articles, but later a number of organizations and movements published almanacs for their own target readership groups. Such organizations included the Friends of Temperance, the Society for Popular Enlightenment, and the Social Democratic Party Commission. By the early 20th century, almanacs contained a large array of information aimed at helping the ordinary Finn participate fully in modern life, including lists of standard metric weights and measures, worldwide solar and lunar eclipses for the coming year, European heads of state, government bureaus and departments, a calendar of official hunting and fishing seasons, postal regulations, instructions and prices, railway ticket prices, official government documents and their prices, various national statistics, articles on current socio-political topics, humorous and satirical essays, educational articles on cooking, farming and hygiene, poems, and numerous advertisements for everything from insurance to bicycles, margarine, newspaper subscriptions and sewing machines, and even electrical and hot-air treatments by private medical practitioners to cure every possible disorder. Pia gave me this FDC which was issued on 14.1.2005.

Icebreakers of Finland 7.8.2005

An icebreaker is a special-purpose ship or boat designed to move and navigate through ice-covered waters. For a ship to be considered an icebreaker, it requires three traits most normal ships lack: a strengthened hull, an ice-clearing shape, and the power to push through ice-covered waters. Finland depends heavily on her icebreakers to keep the sea lines of communications open. It is well known that seas around the Finnish coast are frozen even in normal winters at that latitude. No wonder they are so good at winter sports.

On 7 September 2005 The Icebreakers stamp booklet featuring Finnish icebreakers Urho, Otso, Fennica and Botnica was issued. The ships represent the last three generations of Finnish icebreakers. Each stamp shows the name and building year of the icebreaker, and also the name and building year of the sister ship. The four stamps of the booklet illustrate the 24-hour operation of the Icebreakers - the top stamp on the left depicts morning, the one below it depicts daytime ops, the picture on the top right indicates evening and the one below it nighttime ops. The oldest of the vessels in the stamp booklet, 30 years this year, is the icebreaker Urho. Otso was built in 1986. The ship is more modern in terms of technology and in particular more cost effective than Urho. Fennica, built in 1993, is the first multipurpose icebreaker in Finland. In the winter the multipurpose icebreakers sail in domestic icebreaking duties. In the summer they have offshore duties in the service of international oil and gas industry. The newest of the ships depicted on the stamps is Botnica. It was built in 1998 with advanced multipurpose icebreaker technology.

Graphic designers Ari Lakaniemi and Susanna Rumpu designed the Icebreakers stamp booklet. The stamps are based on photographs by Matti Lehto (scale models), jarmo Vehkakoski and jouni Klinga (background pictures). The price of the Icebreakers booklet is 2.60 euro. The stamp booklet contains 1st class non-denominated gummed stamps. Sointu sent me this booklet of four stamps on this pretty FDC.

Akseli Gallen-Kallela: posters 1.3.2006

Three 2nd class self-adhesive coil stamps. Picture motifs: ”Bil Bol” (1907), ”Erottaja 2” (1906), ”Concert Finnois” (1900).

Coil stamps with Akseli Gallen-Kallela motif were issued on 1.3.2006. This nice cover was gien to me by Pia.

The 2nd class non-denominated coil stamps represent the graphic art of Gallen-Kallela. They show the posters Bil-Bol (1907), Erottaja 2 (1906) and Concert Finnois (1900). The works belong to the collections of Gallen-Kallela Museum. The stamps are designed by Tapani Aartomaa.

Bil-Bol (1907) is a classic of Finnish poster art. Yrjö Weilin, the owner of the Bilaktiebolaget car dealer, commissioned the advertising poster from Gallen-Kallela for the Stockholm car exhibition.

Gallen-Kallela created Erottaja 2 for the symbolist Hugo Simberg's (1873–1917) Helsinki art exhibition poster in 1907. The poster was named after the address of the Gallery showing Simberg's etchings. Gallen-Kallela was Simberg's supportive private teacher in the 1890's.

The international breakthrough of Finnish art and Gallen-Kallela occurred in the Paris World's Fair in 1900. Gallen-Kallela led the work for building the Finnish pavilion, designed the furniture and textiles of the Iris room, and painted the frescos with Kalevala motifs on the centre cupola. A series of concerts presenting Finnish music was organised in connection with the World's Fair. Gallen-Kallela designed the Concert Finnois poster as an advertisement of the concerts.

Akseli Gallen-Kallela expressed his unique creativity displaying curiosity and with immense versatility. He was a painter, a forerunner of Finnish graphics and applied arts, but also e.g. a textile artist, sculptor and illustrator. His huge output includes paintings, graphics, and frescos, and also medals, flags, uniforms, and architecture.

Rose Blossom 18.3.2009

A rose is a woody perennial of the genus Rosa, within the family Rosaceae. There are over 100 species. They form a group of erect shrubs, and climbing or trailing plants, with stems that are often armed with sharp prickles. Flowers are large and showy, in colours ranging from white through yellows and reds. Most species are native to Asia, with smaller numbers native to Europe, North America, and northwest Africa. Species, cultivars and hybrids are all widely grown for their beauty and fragrance. Rose plants range in size from compact, miniature roses, to climbers that can reach 7 meters in height. Different species hybridize easily, and this has been used in the development of the wide range of garden roses. The name rose comes from French, itself from Latin rosa, which was perhaps borrowed from Oscan, from Greek), related to Old Persian, Avestan , Sogdian , Parthian , Armenian.

This lovely stamp and cover issued by Finland was given to me by Merja.

Winter Egg by Faberge

Faberge eggs are the most famous decorated Easter eggs. In 1883 the Russian Czar, Alexander, commissioned Faberge to make a special Easter gift for his wife, the Empress Marie.
This special Faberge eggs so delighted the Czarina that the Czar promptly ordered the Faberge firm to design further eggs to be delivered every Easter. In later years Nicholas II, Alexander's son,continued the custom. Fifty-sevenFaberge eggs were made in all.

The Winter Egg brought "big money" in modern times as well. In 1949, it was sold for a mere $4,760; but in 1994, it was acquired anonymously at public auction by an American businessman for the record price of $5.5 million dollars. During Christie's Auction on April 19 2002, Faberge scrambled the senses when its "Winter Egg" sold for $9.58 million, breaking the previous record for aFaberge egg at $3 million. "The intrinsic value of the egg is comparatively quite low," says Von Habsburg. "The Winter Egg consists of two blocks of rock crystal – a couple of thousand dollars – a bit of platinum and some three thousand minute rose cut diamonds – another couple of thousand dollars. So all in all, if you break this egg up, what is it worth? Four or five thousand dollars. What are you paying for? The vision and genius of Faberge !" This really exceptional First Day Cover with the Faberge eggs mini sheet is a treasured (for me) gift from My Dear Friend Merja. It was issued on 28.10.2005. It may be mentioned here that the Total print of this sheet was only 200 000 copies, in addition there were 2,500 numbered deluxe copies with real gold and silver embossing used.