2262. 🇱🇸 Lesotho’s First New Issues In 7 Years Feature Tourism & Insects.

 

New issues.

🇱🇸 Postal service of Lesotho -

31 January - Tourism in Lesotho - 4 stamps and 1 miniature sheet containing the single stamp. Designed by Kabelo Maja and lithographed by Cartor and perforated 13. Rating:- ****.

31 January 2023 - Insects and spiders of Lesotho - 1 miniature sheet containing 6 different stamps. Designed by Kabelo Maja and lithographed by Cartor and perforated 14. Rating:- ****.

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka Post -

 

26 August 2023 - 150th anniversary of the Great Debate of Panadura - 1 stamp. Lithographed. Rating:- ****.

🇬🇧 Royal Mail -

2 October 2023 - The indispensable Norvic Stamp Blog draws our attention to the news that the 1st Class Domestic postage rate will rise from £1.10p to £1.25p because of “increasing cost pressures, the challenging economic environment and the lack of reform of the Universal Service Obligation (USO) despite the significant structural decline in letter volumes”. The 2nd Class rate will remain at 75p and the 1st Large rate will be £1.95p with the 1st Large signed being £3.45p, Special Delivery 100g rising from £6.85p to £7.35p and the 500g rising from £7.75p to £8.15p. 

The 1st Class Domestic rate will therefore be exactly 300 times greater than was the basic penny postage introduced by Rowland Hill in 1840. If postage rates had merely increased by inflation compared with 1840 then the 1d postage rate, designed to make the post accessible to all, would now cost 54.3p so clearly inflation is only a small part of the rise over the decades of the price of sending a letter in Britain, even if one accepted that the 2nd Class rate was the basic postage rate (but deliveries are much slower and less frequent compared with 1840).

31 December 2023 - 

Norvic has also reported that Post and Go stamps will cease at the end of 2023 and machines will be received from post offices. Hence another philatelic era will come to an end. This is a pity since the availability of the machines is a great help when there is a long queue in a post office made up of people who mainly have business to conduct which has nothing to do with sending a letter. One of the reasons given by Royal Mail is “the fact that there have been no new Post and Go issues for several years” - well, if Royal Mail does not issue any new Post and Go stamps it’s hardly surprising there haven’t been any, how banal can these Royal Mail managers be? Royal mail also stated that, “the change of monarch would require new issues to be reintroduced” (if they need some new designs incorporating the King’s Head, I would be happy to oblige - a decent job can be done on an iPad in about five minutes). 

Royal Mail appears to be in a deep hole and the moment is approaching when the government is going to have to take action over its failure to meet its delivery targets. The end could be in sight.

1303. 🇲🇸 Montserrat Commemorates St Patrick's Day Celebrations.

🇲🇸 The postal service of Montserrat has issued 2 miniature sheets to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the public celebration of St Patrick's Day on the island which was settled by Irish immigrants. This is a colourful and interesting set. Rating:- *****.

🇬🇾 The Guyana Post Office Corporation will issue a miniature sheet containing a single stamp on 22 October 2018 to commemorate the 175th anniversary of Georgetown, the capital of Guyana. Rating- ****.

  A miniature sheet containing 4 identical stamps will also be released to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Guyana and Brazil. Rating:- ****.

🇺🇸  The US-based philatelic agency, IGPC, continues to flood the new issue market with numerous products most of which have little relevance in subject to the country's name which is printed on the items:- 

🇬🇾 Guyana - 8 September 2018 - Chinese new year Year of The Pig - 1 miniature sheet containing a single stamp. Rating:- 0.

🇦🇬 Antigua And Barbuda - 

  2018 - Chinese new year Year of The Pig - 1 miniature sheet containing a single stamp. Rating:- 0.

  2018 - The Magnificent Frigate bird - 2 miniature sheets, 1 containing 4 different stamps and the other containing a single stamp. Rating:- *.

  2018 - Bees and pollinating insects - 2 miniature sheets, 1 containing 5 different stamps and the other containing a single stamp. Rating:- 0.

🇬🇲 The Gambia - 

  10 October 2018 - 50th anniversary of the first manned lunar landing - 2 miniature sheets, 1 containing 3 different stamps and the other containing a single stamp. Rating:- 0.

  3 October 2018 - French victory in FIFA World Cup Finals. For details see Blog 1291.

  October 2018 - Large animals - for more details see Blog 1291.

  October 2018 - The Green monkey - 2 miniature sheets, 1 containing 3 different stamps and 1 containing a single stamp. Rating:- **.

  October 2018 - Wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex - 1 miniature sheet containing 5 stamps (2 x 1, 2 x 1 and 1 x 1).

  October 2018 - Chinese new year - 2 miniature sheets, 1 containing 4 identical stamps and 1 containing a single stamp. Rating:- 0.

  10 October 2018 - Dolphins - 2 miniature sheets, 1 containing 4 different stamps and 1 containing a single stamp. Rating:- 0.

  10 October 2018 - The African wild ass - 1 miniature sheet containing 4 different stamps. Rating:- **.

🇬🇩 Grenada - 

  10 October 2018 - Waterfalls of Grenada - 2 miniature sheets, 1 containing 3 different stamps and 1 containing a single stamp. Rating:- **.

  10 October 2018 - Tropical fruit - 2 miniature sheets, 1 containing 4 different stamps and 1 containing 2 stamps. Rating:- 0.

  10 October 2018 - Donkeys and horses - 1 miniature sheet containing 3 different stamps. Rating:- 0.

  10 October 2018 - Fish of The Caribbean area - 2 miniature sheets, 1 containing 4 different stamps and 1 containing a single stamp. Rating:- 0.

  17 October 2018 - Chinese New Year - 2 miniature sheets, one containing 4 different stamps and 1 containing a single stamp. Rating:- 0.

  17 October 2018 - 50th anniversary of the first manned lunar landing - for details see Blog 1301.

  17 October 2018 - Birth of Prince Louis of Cambridge - 1 miniature sheet containing 4 different stamps. Rating:- 0.

🇬🇩  Grenada Carriacou And Petite Martinique - 17 October 2018 - Chinese new year Year of The Pig - 2 miniature sheets, 1 containing 4 identical stamps and 1 containing a single stamp. Rating:- 0.

645. French Ship Lands At Mauritius.

  Mauritius Post and La Poste released a joint issue on 25 September 2015 to commemorate the tercentenary of the first French landing on the island. The stamp was designed by Frank Bonnet and depicts the ship, Le Chasseur, which was commanded by Guillaume Dufresne d'Arsel, off the coast of Mauritius on 20 September 1715. The Dutch had been in the island since 1598 and given it its name but had departed in 1710.

  In the distance, as the ship approaches Mauritius, the design features the Rempart Mountain and white tailed tropic birds fly around the ship. For vexillologists, the ship is said to be flying the then French merchant flag as ensign. This was used until 24 October 1790 when a new ensign was introduced which was a white field with a revolutionary Tricolour placed at the canton (upper left quarter).

  The French took over Mauritius in force and introduced the sugar cane industry to the island along with the introduction of thousands of slaves to provide labour. The island remained a French possession for almost 100 years until the British captured the island in 1810 during the Napoleonic Wars.

  Rating:- *****.

  As mentioned in Blog 623, there are 2 upcoming new issues from Australia Post which are on the subject of "Bicycles" (date of issue 13 October 2015) and the role of animals in wartime (27 October 2015).

  The Bicycles issue, which does not seem to be very interesting to me, was designed by Sean Pethick and lithographed by McKellar Renown. The issue is made up of 4 gummed stamps (total face value $6), 3 self-adhesive stamps (2 x 70c from $14 booklets of 20 x 70c and 1 x $2.75 value from $13.75 sheetlets of 5 x $2.75) and a $14.95 "Prestige booklet" (total cost of 1 of each of the above is $48.75).

  I like the Centenary of animals in war set much more. This was designed by Lisa Christensen and lithographed by McKellar Renown. The issue is made up of 5 x 70c gummed stamps (total face value $3.50c), 1 miniature sheet ($3.50c) and 5 self-adhesive stamps (from $7 booklets of 10 x 70c stamps). The total cost of 1 of everything of this issue is therefore a rather more modest $14 - I shall add it to my collection.

  Bicycle set rating:- *

  Animals at war set rating:- *****.

$13.75 booklet.

Cover of $14 booklet.

Cover of $14.95 "Prestige Booklet"

  Royal Mail's Post And Go stamps give collectors many opportunities to have a grumble about them, especially about what is perceived to be grossly excessive numbers of issues being placed on the market. But it's hard to complain about the designs of the pictorial Post And Go issues which have appeared over the last few years. This year's Christmas issue is now shown on the Internet and is on the subject of "Winter Fur and Feathers" (though more fur than feathers) and the four designs depict beautifully 3 British species of mammal and 1 bird.

  The 3 mammals are the Hare in winter coat, the Fox and the Red Squirrel while the featured bird is the Redwing - all are pictured in snowy scenery. These are lovely designs and will look very attractive on envelopes sent containing Christmas cards - I think I shall apply them to my Christmas post in preference to the ordinary Christmas stamps which will be released by Royal Mail. The Winter Fur and Feathers stamps will be issued on 16 November 2015, being dispensed from NMR kiosks situated in post offices and in packs from the Philatelic Bureau. They will also be sold from the IAR kiosk at the British Postal Museum and Archives (BPMA) from 16 November 2016. Hence the 4 designs actually provide us with 12 new stamps/labels though as a single site product with limited sales period I prefer to call the BPMA products "Museum souvenirs" rather than postage stamps so I shall only buy the post office-vended NMR items plus the Philatelic Bureau pack which will save me a little money. Still these items are a great pleasure and I look forward to seeing them in my collection. rating:-*****.