1466. 🇰🇮 Kiribati Commemorates 40th Anniversary Of Independence.

🇰🇮 The postal service of Kiribati issued a set of 4 stamps and 1 miniature sheet on 1 July 2019 to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the country’s achievement of Independence. The designs by Derek Miller from artwork by Nick Shewring feature seabirds. The issue was lithographed by Southern Colour Print and is perforated 14. A significant anniversary for a tiny country and an attractive issue. Rating:- *****.

🇨🇾 The postal service of Cyprus has announced  the release  of 2 new issues:-

9 July 2019 - Euromed Postal, Traditional costumes - 1 stamp issued in sheetlets of 8. Rating:- *****.

9 July 2019 - Athletic Associations of Cyprus - 1 sheetlet containing 6 different stamps. Rating:- ****.

1465. 🇧🇿 Belize-Taiwan Joint Issue.

🇧🇿 Two of the things which make my heart sink when I discover information about Commonwealth new stamp issues are that a batch of frequently difficult-to-track down (and often expensive) surcharges has been released and are strictly for local sale and not for sale to collectors (see below) and the other is news that Taiwan is involved in a joint issue with the postal service of one of the little band of Commonwealth countries with whom it has diplomatic relations. Not that I have anything against Taiwan but when such an issue is released it is usually unobtainable for several years and then - if you are lucky - you, rather randomly, find a dealer who has it for sale and then have to pounce and buy it while you can. In Blog 1447 I mentioned that I had finally tracked down the St Kitts issue of 2014 five years after it had been issued and currently hanging over our heads is the reported Eswatini issue of 2018 of which I have never seen an illustration and certainly it has not yet found its way to a dealer’s stock as far as I am aware.

  And now we have a new challenge. There have been reports of a joint Belize-Taiwan issue having  been issued, date unknown, The issue commemorates the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the 2 countries. It appears to be made up of 3 stamps, one of which, a 25c value, depicts the flags of Belize and Taiwan, and one of the others depicts 2 birds, one of which is a toucan. It may be that there is also an accompanying miniature sheet containing 2 of the stamps.

  The stamps were launched at a reception on 20 June 2019 attended by Belize government ministers including the Postmaster General and Dr Chia Lung-Lin, Taiwan’s Minister of Communications and a memorandum of understanding on co-operation was signed between the Belize Postal Service and  Chunghwa Post to improve the technology used in Belize post offices.

  The available illustrations are not very satisfactory and pay more attention, not surprisingly, to the politicians who attended the reception than to the stamps themselves but an impression of the issue is given by the following illustrations.

🇮🇪 The 4 different stamps included in the ‘National’ stamp booklet issued by An Post, the postal service of Ireland, are depicted below. The issue is detailed in Blog 1463. As mentioned by Gene/DJCMH in a comment in the same Blog the stamps in the booklet are self-adhesive unlike their original versions. A worthwhile purchase I think.

🇼🇸 Steven Zirinsky has reported that the postal service of Samoa issued a set of 5 surcharges on stamps previously released from 2002 to 2005 in 2018. Below are depicted the stamps which were used to produce the new values:- 50s on 90s 2005 Legends issue, 50s on 70s 2004 Flowers of the Tropics issue, $2 on $1.20 2002 Ginger flowers issue, $3 on 80s 2004 Flowers of the Tropics issue and $5 on $4 2004 Flowers of the Tropics issue.

  Steven Zirinsky reports that these stamps were released in April 2018 which results in the need to remove the name of Samoa from the list of ‘countries’ which did not issue stamps during 2018.

1464. 🇧🇳 Brunei Darussalam Depicts National Costume On New ASEAN Stamp.

 🇧🇳 The postal service of Brunei Darussalam has kindly supplied me with a picture of a sheet of the upcoming ‘ASEAN Post’ National Costume stamp mentioned in Blog 1463 and due for issue on 8 August 2019. An attractive and remarkably inexpensive issue. Rating:- *****.

  🇲🇾 Pos Malaysia will issue packs of personalised stamps, similar to Australia Post’s Collectors packs, from 23 July 2019 on the subject of the 80th anniversary of Marvel Comics which reflect a lot of American culture and nothing to do with Malaysian culture. The packs will contain 3 sheets, 2 of which contain 5 different stamps each of which depict a Marvel Comics character, and the third contains a single stamp. An item strictly for comic enthusiasts. Rating:- 0.

🇬🇧 As any serious collector of modern British Stamps will know there is one indispensable internet site for expert, detailed, up-to-date information about the philatelic output of Royal Mail and that is Ian Billings’ Norvic Philatelic Blog. His coverage of new Machin Head definitives and their varieties is second to none and to know just what has and hasn’t happened on the Royal Mail new issue front a very regular visit to the Norvic site is of the greatest importance.

  I thought I ought to catch up on the 2019 definitive varieties so that I could track them down for my collection now that Norvic is no longer selling those new issues from 2019 onwards but of course I needed to refer to Norvic’s information on the new varieties to know what I should be looking for. As far as I can see the 2019 varieties which have appeared so far are:-

Counter stamps M19L MAIL - 1p, 10p, 20p, 2nd, 2nd Large, 1st, 1st Large, £1, £1.35, £1.55, £1.60, £2.30, £2.80, £3.45, £3.60, 100g Special Delivery, 

Business sheets M19L MBIL - 2nd, 2nd Large, 1st,

Booklets M19L MFIL - 2nd Large, 1st Large,  

Mixed Booklets (Marvel, Birds of Prey, D Day) M19LMCIL - 1st

Prestige Booklets (Queen Victoria), gummed M19L MPIL - 2p, 50p

 🇲🇹 MaltaPost will issue a set of 3 stamps on 9 July 2019 as part of the Sepac omnibus issue which this year is on the subject of national costumes. The stamps were designed by MaltaPost plc from photographs by Heritage Malta and lithographed by Printex and perforated 14. Rating:- ***.

1463. 🇮🇪 First Man On The Moon, Of Irish Descent, Depicted On New Irish Stamp.

🇨🇮 An Post, the postal service of the Republic Of Ireland has released details of its upcoming new issues for the next three months.

4 July 2019 - Space exploration, 50th anniversary of the first manned lunar landing - US space explorers with Irish ancestry including Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon. Designed by Detail and lithographed by Cartor and perforated 13.5. Rating:- ***.

2019 - On 15 April 2019 An Post launched an ‘Advantage card’ which is described as giving businesses ‘a world of discounts on mails and parcel products’. As part of these products 2 Booklets each of 4 stamps - national and international rates - were introduced.for a limited time period - up to 19 July - these booklets have been separated from the packs and are being sold individually presumably to oblige collectors. Rating:- ****.

11 July 2019 - Birth centenary of Iris Murdoch, novelist - Designed by Steve Simpson and lithographed by Cartor and perforated 14 x 14.5. Rating:- ***.

29 August 2019 - Ireland’s participation in the Rugby World Cup, Japan - 2 stamps and 1 miniature sheet - Designed by Zinc Design Consultants and lithographed by Cartor and perforated 13. Rating:-  ***

1 August 2019 - The Liffey swim, a painting by Jack B Yeats (1923) - 1 stamp - Designed by Workgroup and lithographed by Cartor and perforated 13.5. Rating:- ****.

8 August 2019 - Carnegie libraries in Ireland - A block of 4 se-tenant 4 stamps - Designed by Vermillion Design using illustrations by Dorothy Smith and lithographed by Cartor and perforated 13.5. Rating:- ***.

5 September 2019 - Culture Night - a se-tenant block of 4 stamps. Designed by Zinc Design and lithographed by Cartor and perforated 13. Rating:- ***.

🇧🇳 The postal service of Brunei Darussalam has confirmed to me that it did not issue any stamps during 2018 and has so far not done so during 2019 but an issue is planned for release on 8 August 2019 which is described as an ’ASEANPOST Stamp 2019 theme National costume’. I assume therefore a single stamp will be issued to accompany issues from the other postal administrations of the ASEAN countries along the lines of the Europa stamp issues to include Singapore Post, Pos Malaysia and the Myanmar postal service.

🇭🇰 Hong Kong Post will issue a set of 6 stamps, 1 miniature sheet and 6 ‘Mini-stamp sheets’ on 16 July 2016 on the subject of the local ‘Underwater world’ as opposed to the local underworld which might have been interesting.

  The attractive issue was designed by Shirman Lai and lithographed by Cartor and perforated 13.5.

  This issue marks the release of an innovation, which is not necessarily a welcome one, wherein Hong Kong Post will release blocks of 4 of each stamp all in their own miniature sheet - 6 in all containing a total of 24 stamps - and named ‘Mini-stamp sheets’ the titling of which gives me the  impression that these are sheets containing ‘mini stamps’ rather than ‘mini sheets’ but clearly they are small sheets which I assume will contain ordinary-sized stamps. I never cease to be amazed at what mental contortions those who work for philatelic departments must go through to come up with new products to try to bleed yet more money from now severely financially exsanguinated collectors. Hong Kong Post issues far too many products and the new ‘mini-stamp sheets’ will not be finding a place in my collection. Rating:- **.