1110. 🇸🇭 New Issues From St. Helena Feature Local Walks And Christmas.

  🇸🇭 The postal service of St. Helena has issued 4 stamps and 1 miniature sheet on the subject of "Post box walks". As usual, with issues sold through the philatelic agency, CASCO, I can not yet find any details of the issue aimed at collectors to encourage them to buy the stamps (unlike the quite excellent Pobjoy Stamps/Creative Direction which provides superb publicity about the upcoming issues of its client postal administrations including those of St. Helena's two dependencies - Tristan Da Cunha and Ascension) and therefore, at this stage, do not know the date of issue of this interesting set nor indeed any other details of the stamps. Rating:- ****.

  There has also been a set of 4 stamps which commemorate Christmas 2017 put out by the postal service of St. Helena. The very attractive stamps depict colourful flowers and would look very bright and cheerful on the Christmas mail sent from St. Helena. Again, I have not yet seen any information about the issue provided to collectors and therefore I do not know the date of issue or any other details of the stamps. Rating:- ****.

  These are the first stamps to have been released by the St Helena postal service since last year's Christmas stamps which were issued on 1 November 2016.

  🇧🇹 Bhutan Post issued a sheetlet containing 8 stamps and 1 miniature sheet on 26 October 2017 which depicts various orchids which are found in Bhutan. As usual, this is another lovely issue from Bhutan Post. Rating:- *****.

1109. 🇮🇳 India Post Features Dance On Joint Issue With Russia.

  🇮🇳 India Post issued a miniature sheet containing 2 stamps on 26 October 2017 featuring dancers as a joint issue with the postal service of Russia. This is one of the more attractive issues from India Post issued during 2017. Rating:- *****.

  🇹🇷 The postal service of The Turkish Republic Of Northern Cyprus issued a pair of stamps on 5 October 2017 on the subject of "The Masters of Tradition" (traditional trades). The set was designed by GK Sonmezer and lithographed by the State Printing House, Lefkosa. An interesting little set. Rating:- ****.

  🇬🇧 In Blog 1102 I detailed the new Royal Mail Post And Go stamps which took place on 20 October 2017 and mainly involved the release of the usual "Poppy" Post and Go stamps in time for Remembrance Day. The resulting new stamps are depicted below:-

  New 'Machin Head' stamps:-

  Kiosk A006. Added inscription:- "HMS Trincomalee 19th Oct 1817". Dispensed from 20 October. During the first hour of sale the kiosk dispensed stamps with an incorrect inscription which read "HMS Trincomalee 12th Oct 1817".

  New 'Union Jack' stamps:-

  20 October 2017 - Added inscription "Trafalgar Day" - 

  Kiosk A002

  Kiosk A007

  New 'Poppy' stamps:-

  24 October 2017 - NCR kiosk (various post offices) with new code MAILR17YL:-

  20 October 2017 - IAR kiosks (various museums) with code MA15:-

  A001 The Postal Museum

  A002 The Museum of the Royal Navy

  A003 The Fleet Air Arm Museum

  A004 The Royal Navy Submarine Museum

  A006 HMS Trincomalee 

  A007 Royal Navy Explosions Museum

  A011 The Royal Corps of Signals Museum

  M001 BFPO Headquarters RAF Northolt

 🇪🇸 Finally, nothing to do with The Commonwealth, but it's worth noting here as there are likely to be philatelic consequences that Catalonia made a unilateral Declaration of Independence on 27 October 2017 and made itself a Republic apart from The Kingdom of Spain of which it was previously an autonomous region. It will be interesting to see what happens next from both the political and philatelic points of view.

1107. 🇬🇧🇨🇦 More Christmas Items From Royal Mail; More Ice Hockey Items From Canada Post.

 🇬🇧 In Blogs 1098 and 1101 I mentioned and depicted the Royal Mail 2018 Christmas stamps and sheetlets which will be issued on 7 November 2017. There are also other items which complete this issue - a miniature sheet (sold for £9.36p), a 12 x 2nd counter booklet containing 6 x 2nd "religious" and 6 x 2nd "secular" stamps (costing £6.72p) and a 12 x 1st counter booklet containing 6 x 1st "religious" stamps and 6 x 1st "secular" stamps (sold for £7.80p).

  I particularly like the Madonna and Child paintings stamps and find the miniature sheet to be very appealing though the price of £9.36p is less so. Rating:- ***.

 🇨🇦 On 24 October 2917 Canada Post issued a set of stamps to commemorate the Centenary of the Toronto Maple Leafs ice hockey team by releasing a self-adhesive stamp sold in booklets of 10, a different stamp sold in coils and a $5 miniature sheet with a textured surface to imitate the embroidered logo displayed on a Toronto Maple Leafs shirt. The issue was designed by Lionel Gadoury and David Hurds (Context Creative). I like this set particularly the attractive miniature sheet. Rating:- *****.

1106. 🇹🇿 Tanzania Commemorates The Aga Khan's Diamond Jubilee.

  🇹🇿 Post Tanzania issued a se-tenant strip of 5 stamps and 2 miniature sheets on 11 October 2017 to commemorate the Diamond Jubilee of The Aga Khan and his contributions to health and educational developments in Tanzania. The issue was lithographed by Oriental Press Bahrain. Rating:- ****.

  🇮🇳 India Post released a smart single stamp on 23 October 2017 to commemorate the Centenary of  the 3 Kumaon (Rifles) Regiment. An interesting and colourful stamp. Rating:- ****.

  🇯🇪 Jersey Post will issue Post and Go stamps on 23 November 2017 as part of its Christmas output. The "Jersey Crest" strips of 6 different stamps will receive additional inscriptions - "Paix et jouiae" and the image of an angel and the Jersey Flag stamps will have the additional inscription "Peace & Joy" again with an angel image. The stamps will be dispensed from the kiosk JE02 in the Broad Street post office and will also have added inscription "Broad Street". These stamps will be dispensed until 3 January 2018. Rating:- 0.

  🇻🇨 I have found a couple of interesting new items on the IGPC website. The sheetlet of 4 stamps depicting geckos said to have been issued by St Vincent And The Grenadines on 28 September 2017 was apparently accompanied by a miniature sheet containing 3 more stamps which depict the Gold Dust Day gecko which, as mentioned in Blog 1096, is not found in the Caribbean area at all but, thousands of miles away, in Madagascar! Rating:- 0.

  🇲🇸 Meanwhile, the IGPC website also has the illustrations depicted below which state that the "Bats" sheetlet of 4 stamps and accompanying miniature sheet which are said to have been issued by the Montserrat postal service on 24 May 2017 (see Blog 1047) have been "withdrawn by Government". I can not yet find any information anywhere to explain why these items have been withdrawn for sale. Interesting indeed.

  🇵🇰 In Blog 1103 I mentioned the issue from Pakistan Post which commemorates the Birth Bicentenary of Sir Syed Ahmed Khan which was released on 17 October 2017. I now include an illustration of the single stamp and also the miniature sheet which interestingly depicts previous issues from Pakistan which commemorated this notable Pakistani figure. The issue was designed by Adil Salahuddin and lithographed by National Printing Security Co. Karachi and perforated 13. Rating:- ****.