Happy New Year
Dehradun
January 2020 Vol. XIII Issue No. 145
Readers are requested to send
reports of philatelic activities in their area for publication. Short write ups
by the readers about their journals, societies, publications and philatelic requirements
can be sent for inclusion in this bulletin to the editor: j.jyoti9@gmail.com
Note- This bulletin is only for circulation among a limited
group of philatelists without any commercial purpose. The bulletin will be sent
to the readers only on request. Those who wish to receive it regularly please
reply giving the name of your city / country with the subject SUBSCRIBE RAINBOW
Dear Reader,
I am pleased to
release January 2020 issue of Rainbow Stamp News. With this issue Rainbow
completes 12 Years of publication. A big 'Thank You' to all esteemed Contributors
and Readers of Rainbow who made it successful by adding colors in every issue
over the yearsl. Rainbow added a feather in its cap by winning a Silver medal
in literature class at recently concluded National Stamp Show INPEX 2019,
Mumbai. Now the thirteenth year of Rainbow starts….Many many thanks to all its
well wishers who send messages of appreciation time to time…I express my
gratitude to all of them.
Heartiest
Congratulations to PCI and all members
of INPEX 2019 organizing committee on organizing a successful National Stamp
Show at Mumbai. It was well managed and well organized that every visitor had a
great time at the exhibition. It was big platform to meet philatelists from
different parts of the country . There were stalls from different places where
people purchased items of their interest. Those who visited had a great time
and those who could not visit missed the show very much . Let’s look forward to
more such shows in future .
This is all for
this month ! More in next issue.
Wishing you a very
Happy and Prosperous New Year !
Happy Collecting !
Contents
§ From the Desk of Naresh Agrawal
§ Recent Indian Issues
§ In The News
§ Book Review
§ Doon Philatelic Diary
§ Beginners’ Section
§ Specialized Section
§ Rose Philately
§ New Issues from Other Countries
§ Philatelic Clubs and Society Blogs & Websites on Philately
§ Current Philatelic Magazines & Newsletters
INPEX-2019 : A GREAT SUCCESS :
CONGRATULATIONS PCI
Very Very Happy New Year to all the readers !!
INPEX
2019 was undoubtedly a well organized and successful show. My heartiest congratulations
to the whole team of PCI which worked hard to make this event an unforgettable one. About 1000
frames were on display with almost 860
allocated to competitive
class. Quality of exhibits were
undoubtedly far better than the previous exhibitions held at the same venue in
the last few years. Certainly a treat to watch the show. I would say the people
who failed to attend it, have missed a
lot.
In
the air-conditioned halls, the atmosphere for all the days was warm and full of warmth of friendliness,
brotherhood, philatelic glamour and every one ready to deliver. Well placed
frames, properly numbered, good in quality, gave clear vision of the sheets and
the philatelic stuffs, properly secured and safe guarded, ample space to move,
sufficiently lighted and convenient to view; certainly enhanced the joy of
watching.
Sufficient
number of dealer booths had sufficient and different varieties to cater every
range and class of stamp collector and philatelist. Availability of high
quality philatelic accessories, collectables and postal and philatelic material
helped philatelists. Refreshment section
too served well. Sufficient number of awards, beautiful medallions of highest
quality, special prizes were given away.
Well, all in all the exhibition was a great
success with almost no open criticism. The spirit of philately was well shown
by the visitor and well as participants. Most of the visitors seemed satisfy
with the show. But one thing which I noticed in particular that some of the
participants mainly of thematic class seemed
dissatisfied with the jury decisions and the awards given. Though they did not complain
violently regarding this but I could
sense their disappointment and grievance. It was gathered that the juror strictly followed FIP rules and guidelines this time which resulted in lowering of the
marks and so the awards.
Being
a thematic philatelist, I could cherish the viewing of as many as 78 nos.
exhibits showing quality and class of new and well researched subjects with new
variety of appropriate materials. Some of the exhibits were truly wonderful and
was not only delight to watch but certainly provided a lot to learn also. I
thank PCI to entertain selection of such quality exhibits. Exhibits of other
classes were also wonderful.
Well,
with all the positives this exhibition had, the slight disappointment of some
of the participants was the only unpleasant concern. They seemed dissatisfied
with jurors decision not because the marks given to them but the marks given in comparison to the other
exhibits of similar class and nature. It was felt that some of the exhibits
were leniently marked where as some very strictly.
This
is true that Jury cannot satisfy everyone for various reasons and the one major
point is that most of the exhibitors are
not well versed with the FIAP and FIP rules and guidelines for judgment. Also
the concepts of various
criterion/aspects for judgment are not clearly known to most of the exhibitors.
For example Treatment, Development , Importance
which carries almost one third of the marks are not either known or
clear and this is where the exhibitor loses marks but he fails to understand
where exactly his marks are deducted. Exhibitors are normally good in their
subject and philatelic knowledge, even they take care of completeness and
certainly add some variety and so called rarities too in their exhibit but placement
and balancing is a skill where they
lack. Sometimes to add variety, in appropriate material are used which in fact,
lowers the marks. Even if an
exhibitor is given the mark sheet , I don’t think he will be able to understand
the reasons properly and what to do to
improve the exhibit. It is understood
that jurors' job is not easy rather very difficult. Variety of exhibits, topics
and subjects; variety of material placed
over the frames at different heights,
lack in proper presentations and text narration both philatelic and
thematic, limited availability of time
etc..
Based
on my presence in the show during jury critique session
in thematic section and after
looking in to the above discussed problems faced by jury and other reasons, I
would independently without any
prejudice like to give some of my findings, observations and suggestions in this regard :
1.
Though
PCI had deployed as many as 13 jurors (12 PCI accredited and 1 from DOP) with
one consultant of jury but shortage of jury was felt. One must not forget that there were 860 frames with practically
one or 1.5 day ( limited Hours) with the
jury for valuation. Very limited time for evaluation of such huge number of exhibits.
2.
The
specific jury who judged a particular exhibit
was not available to discuss and explain the queries raised. Yes, one of
the most experienced juror of thematic class was certainly attending the
queries but that did not seem sufficient
and satisfactory due to lack of time given on each exhibit during the session.
3.
Most
of the jurors were not available during the session and even those who were
present were having their difference in opinion regarding valuation and display
when discussed separately on frame. Here, I
strongly feel that the jury who adjudged the particular exhibit should attend
the queries pertaining to that exhibit. Otherwise, it will certainly be
difficult to convince and satisfy the exhibitor as observations and opinion may vary .
4.
PCI
certainly has a good team of jurors out of which a good number of jurors have
sufficient International exposure but
only in their specific field. Hence, their capability and competence can not be
doubted. Yes, exposure at International level as an exhibitor also helps one to
understand the judging criteria quite nicely.
5.
As
an exhibitor in several international and world shows, I personally felt that some where jury failed to genuinely evaluate some of the
thematic exhibits as may be some good
and rare items remained unnoticed,
or were not properly shown or placed by exhibitor, or the development, treatment and
importance were not well understood by the jury. Though I don’t have any doubt
on juror’s integrity or competence yet errors are bound to happen.
6.
Though
I understand juror has sufficient versatile knowledge
and an eagle’s eye even then there is always big lack of time with them and
there are distractions also. But one
must agree to this aspect that at this level least errors are expected. Further,
at this level, a juror from other field valuating a thematic exhibit (even
having International exposure as juror)
cannot do true justice to the exhibit.
While
looking in to above observations, some
of my suggestions would be :
1.
Specialization
in particular field/class is required to
adjudge exhibits following FIP rules and guidelines even at National Level with
such quality / standard of exhibiting. Hence, there is strong need to induct more juror and to rigorously train the existing
ones. Regular classes, seminars, workshops are required to be held for
juror. Exhibitions are of course one of
the best platform for juror training. Some
of the exhibits along with exhibitors should be invited during such training session.
Exhibitor can certainly put more light to the
exhibit that would help juror to better understand the exhibit from the point
of valuation.
2.
Though
there is shortage of time, yet we expect Juror
to spend ample time on each exhibit during evaluation, to be able to
cautiously judge on each parameter. Sparing more time
and good time management for jury is important. Yes,
organizers have to look in to this aspect.
3.
There is need to bring more transparency. Bifurcation of marks, if given along with the total marks in the award list
would help to study and discuss other exhibits there only. This would
help exhibitors also
to understand their weaknesses and to improve
their exhibits for upcoming exhibitions. This would further help juror to
attend and explain the queries raised by the exhibitor and to make him
understand the reasons for such marking & and to guide him where to improve
and change the exhibit.
4.
In
this show, I felt that juror were
unknowingly /inadvertently influenced by some of the very good exhibits
(which were highly awarded also) and
probably that set the bench mark for the scoring. Which I believe should
not be. I understand there is some maximum extent fixed for every element of criterion fixed for giving marks. For example, if 15 nos.
varieties of material is displayed and spread over the frame
in different numbers, that should be considered adequate. Yes, the
nature and quantity of variety of material, of course matters.
5. The critique session should be long enough so that sufficient time is given to exhibitor and to have proper discussion. Believe me, every comment by jury during this session set a strong guide line for exhibitor for bettering his exhibit.
5. The critique session should be long enough so that sufficient time is given to exhibitor and to have proper discussion. Believe me, every comment by jury during this session set a strong guide line for exhibitor for bettering his exhibit.
Finally, I would conclude that, the exhibition was a grand success. Disappointment of some of the participants is bound to happen and is a usual affair but as discussed above, there should be constant efforts to improve the judging system and also to bring more transparency.
Strict marking or lenient marking is not the concern but uniformity in judgment should be depicted.
I congratulate all the award winners and thank PCI for organizing such a grand show so successfully. Wishing all the best to the whole team of PCI for all its future endeavors.
Recent Indian Issues
22 November 2019 : MM Kuzhiveli- Rs 5
26 November 2019 : 250th
Rajya Sabha Session- Rs 5
29 November 2019 Char Dham Uttarakhand – 4 stamps + MS
14 December 2019 : The Force Multiplier – Rs 5
19 December 2019 Embroideries of India- 4 Rs 20, 3 x
Rs15, 5 x Rs10
26 December 2019 : Directorate of Revenue Intelligence
– Rs 5
Recent
Special Covers
6 Januaty 2020 : Madurai S. Somasundaram Birth
Centenary Celebration Srirangam
In The News
Our regular colunists
of Rainbow Mr Abhai Mishra and Mr Naresh Agrawal and our magazine Rainbow Stamp
News won awards at National Stamp Show
INPEX 2019 . Heartiest congratulation to the Team Rainbow and thanks to our
esteemed Readers !!
Honour for Team Rainbow
Abhai Mishra - Large Vermeil + Sp Prize - WW-2 PRISONER CAMPS IN INDIA ( Postal History)
Naresh Agrawal – Large Silver Thematics : Postman and Mail Delivery
Jeevan Jyoti – Silver + Silver Bronze – Rainbow Stamp News ( Lit. Class) , Tourism (Thematics)
Mr Naresh Agrawal known for his well read column 'From The Desk of Naresh Agrawal' of Rainbow won a Large Silver Medal for exhibit 'Postman and Mail Delivery'.
Mr Abhai Mishra, regular columnist of Doon Philatelic
Diary won Large Vermeil with special award Jal Cooper Memorial
Award (EIPS) for his exhibit WW-2
PRISONER CAMPS IN INDIA at INPEX 2019.
Mr Naresh Agrawal known for his well read column 'From The Desk of Naresh Agrawal' of Rainbow won a Large Silver Medal for exhibit 'Postman and Mail Delivery'.
Rainbow Stamp News - Silver in Lit. Class
National Stamp Show
Philatelic Congress of India, with active support of INDIA POST and
Philatelic Societies Organised National
Stamp Show with a Specialized Section on Mahatma Gandhi's 150 years from 18-22
December 2019 at Mumbai.
The exhibition was
held at World Trade Centre, Cuffe Parade, Mumbai during 18 to 22 December 2019
Heartiest Congratulations Team
INPEX 2019 and all PCI Members !!
Thanks to whole Team of INPEX 2019 for the successful show !!
During National Philatelic Exhibition
INPEX-2019, Jainism Philately Group (JPG) honoured 95 years old India's senior
most Philatelist Shri Dhirubhai Mehta with Life Time Achievement Award in the field
of Philately.
President of PCI Smt Damyanti Pittie was honoured by Bihar Philatelic
Society during PCI Regional meeting
Praggya Kothari
won the National Grand Prix Award.
Medal with excellent design and finest quality presented to
the award winners
Special Cancellationf for
INPEX 2019 was provided by India Post on all five days.
INPEX 2019 Stamp Poster
Competition winner from Sir J. J.
School of Art.
- 1st Prize Winner - Swapnali Vijay Panchal
- 2nd Prize Winner - Jyotsna Ashok Budhkar
- 3rd Prize Winner - Sachin Rokade
The
exhibition was well organized with active support from India Post . All the
members of the organizing committee worked hard to make the show successful.
The medal awarded in the show was of high quality with the names of the winner
engraved on it. Overall arrangement at the show was good. The participants
should have been provided I-Cards. All the
exhibitors who were present at the award ceremony were awarded at the stage.
This was a good step by the organizers. Usually medal winners upto vermeil medal are
awarded at the stage and rest of the participants are requested to collect
their award and certificate after the function.
The exhibition was
inaugurated by Mrs. Rajshree Birla Smt. Swathy Pande, PMG (Mumbai) and Mr.
Dhirubhai Mehta, President Philatelic Society of India, were the chief guests.
On the inaugural day following books
were released.
1.
"Encyclopaedia of Early Indian Cancellations and Postmarks 1852-1900"
by Mr. Kishore Chandak & Mr. P.G. Bhargave
2. "Indian Stamp
Booklets" by Mr. Madhukar Deogawanka
3. "Gems of
India" 1st Edition - Published by Philatelic Congress of India
On second day a set of 12 stamps and First Day
Cover on Embroideries of India were released by Smt. Swathy Pande, PMG
(Mumbai). INPEX 2019 Souvenir and "Ikanni Tales –
A Study of the One Anna
Lithographed Label of 1854-55" by Mr. Gautam Rohatgi were also released .
During the exhibition
following seminars were also organized.
1. Indian Mails by
Express and Airmail by Transpacific Route 1940-41 by Mr. Max Smith
2. The 1948 Air-India
International Postage Stamp Issue. A unique event in world philately by Mr.
Piyush Khaitan
3. Some of my
Favourite Indian States Items by Mr. Sandeep Jaiswal
4. India 1854 Two
Annas Stamps Printed on ONE ANA Watermark by Mr. Markand Dave
5. Exhibiting Social
& Postal History of a Town. Cawnpore: A Case Study by Mr. Aditya Asthana
5+ and
5- makes a big difference.....
INPEX
2019 Thematic Class a detailed analysis of Award List –
- Jeevan Jyoti
INPEX
2019, The National Stamp Show recently concluded at Mumbai. The exhibition was
very good and well managed by the organizers. The exhibits in all the classes
were quite excellent. Thematic class had the largest participation with
74 exhibitors. Most of the exhibits in this class were of high standard.
So the competition was very tough. I also had an opportunity to visit the show
as a participant as well as a philatelic journalist. I had certain observations
which I wish to mention here both positive and negative .
As
a Thematic philatelist my concentration was on Thematic Class though I saw
exhibits in all the classes. 5+ and 5- in an exhibitor’s marksheet makes a big
difference .....it can encourage you and it can discourage you.....upto the
level that you can withdraw yourself from participation forever.....
1. It was my observation that some of the results in the Thematic Class were
not satisfactory. Jury had a very little time to see and evaluate all Thematic
exhibits thoroughly so it seemed that average marking was
done on simple basis of items clearly visible on top 8 sheets of the frame
irrespective of the fact what is the story line and what is in the bottom
eight sheets of the exhibit.
2. The exhibits with sharp and clear difference in presentation, philatelic
material, explanation, thematic flow, philatelic knowledge, Treatment, Rarities
got the same marks some times higher marks than those which had the better quality
exhibit in every respect.
3. The same exhibit discussed
by five different jury members had no coordination in the opinion. Their
opinion was contradictory.
4. On discussion over some
particular exhibits as to why this exhibit is under evaluated Jury members
could not give a satisfactory answer except the same repeated words….some pages
with too much stamps..some pages too empty, more text could be added etc,
philatelic text and thematic text not
shown properly… alignment is uneven….
They could not find out technical mistakes as no doubt the exhibits were quite
good.
5. It cannot be denied that
certain exhibits were over evaluated even there were clearly visible mistakes , still
those were awarded a higher medal ! In thematic and Aerophilately
classes it was quite apparent !
6. The results were announced quite
late on second last day of the show . So the time allotted for critique session
was very short and queries by the exhibitors remain unanswered.As jury members
were not available. There was a need of discussion with reference to the
detailed marks (Bifurcation of the total marks) obtained by the exhibitor .
7. Only few jury members were
there who talked logically and explained their view..on the exhibit.
8. If there are 70 % exhibits
deserving 10 out of 10 and 30 % deserving 7 out of 10,it does not mean the
remaining 30 % should get 3 out of 10 because other exhibits are par excellent
in comparison to remaining exhibits. Each and every exhibit deserves its
actual evaluation by standardized parameters
irrespective of the fact what is the standard of other exhibits…Because
medals are awarded on the basis of total evaluation of the exhibit and not
rated as 1st 2nd and 3rd !or in comparison
with the other .
9.
There
was difference of opinion among jury members for the same exhibit. Their opinion
contradicted . So the exhibitor was confused whom to follow….If you are lucky
you will get a jury member to evaluate your exhibit matching to your exhibit
.....( means you have written and displayed items according to him ). If you are unlucky you are
going to get a jury member who is against your style of display !!... You are
bound to get a lower medal !!
10. There is need to appoint
more experienced jury members and special experts in thematic class to judge the exhibits thoroughly at
this level !
11. We do understand the different
constraints a jury has like very limited
time but a uniformity in valuation
is bound to be depicted. We must accept one fact that jury’s verdict is very
important for development of philately as both viewers as well as the exhibitor
are affected.
12. Despite all the
shortcomings which we noticed we respect the judgment of Jury whatever it
is….After all they are all experienced and expert in their respective field.
This is just our observation which may be wrong in view of others . But
in future judges must have the answer to the exhibitor not only as to why the particular
exhibit is under evaluated but also why the particular exhibit is over
evaluated………..
Heartiest congratulations
to all the participants and thanks to all jury members who tried their best to
evaluate the exhibits !
INPEX 2019 – WAS IT JUDGED
PROPERLY?
- Mohanachandran Nair
The National Philatelic Exhibition, held at Mumbai, concluded on the
22nd of December 2019 without much criticism. In my opinion, the exhibition was
well organized, and all exhibits were displayed at one stretch (P.S. Please
remember that, in the previous exhibition, some exhibits were removed after two
days and replaced with other exhibits due to shortage of frames).More than 1000
frames were arranged of which 860 frames were used exclusively for competitive
class.
As a philatelic journalist,I wish to point out my observations about the
valuation of exhibits done by jurors at INPEX.There were 13 Main Jurors and 3
Apprentice Jurors. One Juror from the team, was from the Department of posts.
Even though it was a large team, the results were announced at 6.00 pm only on
21.12.2019. The critique session was arranged from 2 to 3 pm on
22.12.2019.However, It is regretful to note that a few jurors were not
available at the exhibit area during this session.
In my opinion most of the awards were devalued by the jury.The reason
stated for this was that, FIP rules were implemented during the judging
process. I wish to point out two examples of exhibits that had a chance for
higher award categories:
1. Frame Number 5306 to 5310, an exhibit under Thematic philately-
“Birds of the Pheasant Family”.
2. An exhibit under Aerophilately, titled “Rocket Mail of India”.
With regards to my own exhibit under the same class of Aerophilately,
“Development and Operations of Indian Airmails (1911-1950)” I received a Large
silver with 75 marks only. During the critique session, I consulted with 2-3
jurors regarding the scoring, however they all had a similar feedback that the
presentation wasn’t up to the mark.In some pages I had shown only one
philatelic material (cover) and the others were images of maps and photos, they
commented although this can be allowed in aerophilately. However, I’m aware
that the maximum permissible score for presentation is 5 points only. Hence, I
enquired about the other aspects: Development, Subject Knowledge, Philatelic
Knowledge, Rarity etc. to which, they did not have an answer. Further they
asked me to consult a senior juror, who was unfortunately not present for the
session.
Awards are not only a recognition but also an inspiration to do more. A
few exhibitors, at the venue,were highly discouraged and were discussing
amongst each other to avoid participating in such competitive exhibitions in
future. As I re-call, this isn’t the first time such memoirs have
occurred.
In this regard, I sincerely request the jurors to spend ample time on
each exhibit during evaluation, to be able to cautiously judge on each
parameter. It is also a request to inform the bifurcation of marks as per the
multiple parameters of evaluation, to all participants, rather than just the
total score. This would help contestants understand their weaknesses and
improve their frames for upcoming exhibitions.
Editor ,
Ananthapuri Stamp Bulletin
First
stamp in the world with a LED !!
Portuguese
Post Office, CTT has issued a set of stamps this with perhaps one of the most unique features
to date. Within each ‘guiding star’ is a minute LED light which can be
activated via a mobile phone that has NFC (Near Field Communication)
technology.
According to Raúl Moreira, CTT’s Philately
Director, ‘CTT is famous for finding absolute novelties in its postage stamp
designs. For 2019 Christmas they presented the first LED light in a stamp which
is not only a first for Portugal, but a first in the world of philately.’
The
stamps of this issue correspond to each of the well-known wise men (Magi). The
men featured are, The Venerable Bede (whose most famous work, the
Ecclesiastical History of the English People gained
him the title ‘The Father of English History.’
The three wise men who attended the birth of
Christ are also depicted. Belchior, who is often known as Melchoir
(was a 70-year-old man with white hair and a beard), Gaspar (a young,
robust man came from a distant mountainous region by the Caspian Sea), and
Balthazar (who was from the Persian Gulf, and who had a closely cropped beard
and considered a young man at forty years of age.)’
On
the issue page, expert Paulo Mendes Pinto states that ‘Gold was a symbol of
royalty, incense a symbol of divinity, and myrrh represented passion.
These were all offerings of Magi to the Messiah, whose birth was indicated by a
star; a symbol of royalty. “The symbolic centre is, of course, the Light. It is
the star that guides these Magi; it is the star that will mark the birthplace
of the One who will bring the Light to the world.’
This
new issue consists of three stamps with a face value of € 0.53, € 0.86 and €
0.91.
Forthcoming
Stamp Exhibitions
CANBERRA
STAMPSHOW 2020
Canberra
Stamp show 2020 (21st National Philatelic Convention) will be held at the
Hellenic Club of Canberra, Matilda Street, Phillip, (Woden), ACT 2606,
Australia from 13-15 March 2020.
Mr.Madhukar Jhingan is coordinating the
participation from India to Canberra Stampshow 2020 and will personally carry
all exhibits to Canberra and back after obtaining all necessary Government
permissions in India.
Commissioner
for NEW ZEALAND 2020 Philatelic Exhibition (FIAP)
NZ2020
37th Asian International Stamp Exhibition is organized by NZ2020 Stamp
Exhibition Incorporated under the auspices of the New Zealand Philatelic
Federation Incorporated.
NZ2020
will be held at the Ellerslie Event Centre, Auckland, New Zealand and will open
on 19 March 2020 and close on 22 March 2020, a total of 4 days.
NZ2020
is a General Asian International Stamp Exhibition. Participation in the
Competitive Classes is open to all collectors who are members of the societies
affiliated to member federations of FIAP.
For
details contact : Mr. Ajay Kumar Mittal Email: ajaymittal1957@gmail.com
Phone: (M) +91 9811032311
Phone: (M) +91 9811032311
For details contact : Mr. Surendra A. Kotadia
Email: surendrakotadia@gmail.com
Phone: + 91 22 2202 4130 / 2202 4131/ 2284 3244
Fax : + 91 22 2284 3275 Mob : + 91 98199 03789
AEROPEX 2019 a Specialised National
Philatelic Exhibition was held at Drill Hall, Torrens Parade Ground,
Victoria Drive, Adelaide 5000, Australia from Dec 6 to 8, 2019 to
commemorate the Centenary of the epic England to Australia flight of Sir Ross
& Keith Smith in 1919.
AEROPEX 2019 AWARDS - Indian Winners
GOLD MEDAL +
SPECIAL JURY AWARD
Ramu Srinivasa: Rocket
Mails of India
GOLD MEDAL
Markand Dave: 1929 Air
Mail Stamps of India
LARGE VERMEIL
MEDAL
Piyush Khaitan: Karachi
Madras Flight of Tata Sons 1932
Pradip Jain: England India
Australia Ross Smith & Beyond
VERMEIL MEDAL
Piyush Khaitan: 1948 Air
India International Stamp Issue
Madhukar Jhingan: Indian
Aerogrammes
Vijay Seth: Centenary of
Indian Airmails, Literature
LARGE SILVER
MEDAL + SPECIAL AWARD
Savita Jhingan: From
India to Space
LARGE SILVER
MEDAL
Markand Dave: 1929 Air
Mail Stamps of India, Literature
Deepti Sudharsan:
Evolution of Flight, Youth
Source
: Stamps of India
EXPHIMO ’20
1 Frame Team Competition 30 May- 1 June 2020
Theme – Technology
IBRA 2021
News From Philatelic Societies
Jainism
Philatelic Group honoured it's Founder Chairman Sudhir Jain in Mumbai Meet
During 4th Jainism
Philately Group (JPG) National Meet recently held at Mumbai, it's Founder
National Chairman Shri Sudhir Jain has been warmly honoured by all the office
bearers for successfully leading the Group for last eight years since it's
formation.
On the stage of National
Stamp Show INPEX-2019 during JPG National Meet, Vice Chairman Dr. Pradip Jain
(Balod, CG) & Shri Pramod Kumar Jain (Pondicherry), General Secretary Shri
Dipak Modi (Jalna) & Shri Mithalal Jain (Pune), INPEX Treasurer Shri
Surendra Kotadia (Mumbai), INPEX Jt. Secretary Shri Kapil Gogri (Mumbai), JPG
Mumbai Chapter head Smt. Meena Mutha etc. honour Shri Sudhir Jain by garlanding
and presenting turban, bouquet, coconut, shawl, memento etc. Smt. Rashmi Jain,
wife of Shri Sudhir Jain had also been honoured.
World famous senior
Philatelist Shri Dhirubhai Mehta was chief guest of this Meet and large number
of Philatelists form all over India were present on this occasion.
COVERPEX 2020 ( Philatelic exhibition of covers related to philately)
(10-12 January 2020) organized by South
India Philatelists Association
Sikkim Philatelic society
Sikkim Philatelist wins
Bronze in INPEX-2019
Roshan
Prasad from Singtam, Sikkim won a bronze medal in Literature class at
INPEX-2019 (National Philatelic Exhibition) at World Trade Centre, Mumbai .
Prasad had participated in the Literature class of
the exhibition with his book “The Stamp Collectors’ Dictionary”.
The book was published by The Department of Posts, Sikkim Division last
February during SIKKIMPEX-2019. Roshan is known for his Cricket
collections. He started writing this cricket dictionary in 2011, when he felt
that there are so many words in Stamp Collection that new collectors should
know and also there are many words which are still unknown to many senior
collectors as well. He completed the book in 2016 in Dubai, UAE with
over 450 words and abbreviations that are in common use among Stamp Collectors.
-Sital Sristiyog, Sikkim
Himachal
Pradesh Philatelic Society
Major (Dr) Ritu Kalra,
philatelist from Shimla won Large Silver Medal in Arophilately Class, Bronze Medal in Lit
Class and 65 Points in One frame
category at INPEX 2019. She is the first philatelist from Himachal Pradesh to
have won awards at National Philatelic Exhibition .
Special Covers on Karnataka Vol II 2015-2018
By Sushil Mehra
Special Covers on Karnataka Vol II 2015-2018 By
Sushil Mehra : Published by Karnataka Postal Circle : Pages 125 : Hard Bound :
Price Rs 350 : Available at Bangalore GPO
' Special Covers on Karnataka Vol II ' Book compiled by by noted philatelist of Bangalore Shri Sushil Mehra is a wonderful book for collectors of Special Covers. The book has been published by Karnataka Postal Circle. Now collection of Special Covers has become favourite interest of many philatelists. Today in stamp exhibitions there is a special class for display of Special Covers. The book features all special covers issued from the period 2015-2018 including supplements of 1960-2014. It is beautifully designed with high class printing quality. It is an essential book for all stamp lovers as well as for Philatelic and school libraries. I recommend this book as a reference book to all philatelists, specially the Thematic collectors . Thematic collectors will find several themes of their interest in this book ! The Glossary given in the book is quite useful for ready reference of any special cover issued by Karnataka during the period 2015-2018.
Shri Sushil Mehra may be contacted at email : gaureshmehra@gmail.com
Doon Philatelic Diary
Uttarakhand Postal Circle has released a special cover honouring the incredible achievements of Aparna Kumar, IPS, IG Indo-Tibetan Border Police of Dehradun sector, on the occasion of International Mountain Day – 11th December 2019. Aparna is the first civil servant and police officer from India to complete the arduous Seven Summits challenge (scaling the highest peaks of seven continents) between 2014 and 2019.
- Vinay Gupta, Dehradun
Beginners’ Section
First
U.S. Chinese New Year Stamp
America’s first Chinese New Year stamp, issued on this day in 1992.
On December 30, 1992, the USPS issued its first Chinese New Year stamp,
honoring the start of the Year of the Rooster.
The issue of this stamp was in part inspired by repeated requests for stamps to
honor additional holidays – New Year’s, Easter, the Fourth of July, and
Thanksgiving. There had also been calls for stamps honoring the signs of the
Zodiac. And there had been several groups calling for stamps to recognize the
contributions of Asian Americans, while the USPS wanted to explore topics to
appeal to younger Asian American collectors.
Fleetwood First Day Cover.
The stamp was designed by a first-time stamp designer, Clarence Lee, who used an airbrush to produce the artwork. The last stamp issued that year, it went on sale on December 30, 1992, and proved extremely popular. Many post offices sold out of their stocks in days and the stamp was in high demand in Asia.
The
two-sided Chinese New Year sheet of 2005.
The 1992 Chinese New Year stamp marked several firsts. In addition to being the first Lunar New Year stamp, it was also the first Happy New Year stamp and the first non-high-value stamp issued in panes of 20 (rather than 50).
When the stamp was first produced, the USPS didn’t have plans to produce more Lunar New Year stamps. But based on the popularity of the Rooster stamp, they knew a series would be popular and issued a second Chinese New Year stamp on February 5, 1994.
The final stamp in the initial series was issued in 2004, honoring the year of the monkey. The following year, the USPS decided to issue a souvenir sheet picturing all 12 Chinese New Year designs. At the 2005 first-class rate of 37¢, however, the cost of the sheet would have been $4.44 for 12 stamps. The number four is an unlucky number in Asia.
The Postal Service decided to
make the sheet double-sided. The total price of the sheet of 24 then became
$8.88; eight is a lucky number in Asia. In 2006, the first-class rate became
39¢, the total for a sheet of 12 was $4.68, and the production of a
single-sided sheet was possible – as luck would have it.
Based on the popularity of these stamps, the USPS inaugurated a new Lunar New
Year series in 2008, beginning with the Year of the Rat. That series ran
through 2019. And in 2020, the third Lunar New Year Series begins with a new
Year of the Rat stamp.
Specialized Section
First Stamps of Independent India
-Col J Dutta & Dr Anjali Dutta
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom announced on 20 February 1947 that the
British Government would grant full self-government to British India by June 1948
at the latest. The British government proposed
a plan announced on 3 June 1947 that included these principles:
1.
Principle of the Partition of British India was accepted by the
British Government
The Indian Independence Act 1947 was an Act
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that partitioned British India into the two new independent dominions of India and
Pakistan. The Act received the royal assent on 18 July 1947; Pakistan came into
being on 14 August and India gained independence on 15 August 1947.
No stamp could
be issued on the actual day of independence, but a special slogan cancellation
was applied on all mail, as shown below.
The first stamp of independent India was issued
on 21 November 1947. It depicts the Indian
Flag with the patriots' slogan, ‘Jai Hind’ (Long Live India), on the top right-hand
corner and the stamp has the date 15 AUG/1947.
It was valued at three and one-half annas.
21 November 1947 Issue
Two more stamps were issued on 15 December 1947 depicting
the Ashokan Lion Capital, and a Douglas DC-4 plane. These two stamps also bear the inscription
‘Jai Hind’ and the
date 15 AUG 1947. The 1½ annas was for
inland postage and 12 annas for Air-mail rate for UK.
15
December 1947 Issues
On January 21, 1948, Jawaharlal
Nehru the Prime Minister of India and Rafi Ahmed Kidwai, Communication
Minister, sent a letter to Security Printing Press at Nasik Road calling for specimen
designs for stamps on Mahatma Gandhi. The
idea was to issue a set of three or four stamps on Gandhi's eightieth birthday (October
2, 1949) depicting memorable events in his life – such as the fast for communal
unity in 1924, the Dandi march of 1930, and the fast for communal peace in Delhi
a few days earlier.
It did
not take the Master of the India Security Press more than six days to suggest a
compact set of four – denominations 1½ annas, 3½ annas, 8 annas and 1 rupee. He proposed that the first three values be printed
in a single colour in the existing anna size, and the fourth value in two colours
in the rupee size. A line portrait of Gandhi
prepared earlier already was available at the Nasik Security Press. Two trial copies,
one in the anna and the other in the rupee size, showing Gandhiji's characteristic
pose, were submitted for consideration. Alternatively,
it was suggested that a photograph approved by the Mahatma be adopted for the proposed
stamps.
While
these preparations were afoot, however, tragedy struck. Gandhiji was assassinated on January 30. The picture changed entirely and the government
switched over to designing a "mourning" stamp. Accordingly, on February 6, the Security Press
was asked to quickly furnish designs based on an approved sketch drawn by C. Biswas,
an approved artist. Two denominations were
proposed, a 2½ anna for inland airmail and a 12 anna for airmail to the United Kingdom.
Proofs of the designs, in somber shades of grey and olive green, were sent by the
Security Press on February 17.
Jawaharlal
Nehru suggested that the word "Bapu" be included both in Hindi and Urdu. This was a welcome suggestion in view of Gandhiji's
life-long struggle to maintain peace and communal harmony. Asked on March 12 to send revised proofs, and
to include a 10-Rupee denomination in the proposed set of the mourning stamps, the
Security Press promptly submitted these on March 16, with the inclusion of Hindi
and Urdu inscriptions as desired.
Nasik Security Press February Proofs
However, the Indian Government
decided to print these stamps as a memorial, using a photogravure press, and hence
decided to employ the services of the Swiss printers, Helio Courvoisier, Sa La Chaux
De Fonds, instead of the India Security Press. The word "Bapu" was printed
on the stamp in Hindi and Urdu languages as a symbol of communal harmony. A set
of four stamps with denominations 1½ annas, 3½ annas, 12 annas and 10 rupees were
issued. One of the stamps of this set was
issued with the very high price of 10 Rs – out of
reach of the common populace in India.
The Helio Courvoisier stamps
The stamps on First Day
Cover
A set of
these new stamps over-printed "SERVICE"
was issued to the Government of India for official purposes. Only two sheets of 50 of the Rs 10/− were overprinted; one is in the Postal Museum
in Delhi, and the other was supplied to the Governor-General’s Secretariat for use
by C. Rajagopalachari, on official mail.
Only 13 of those 50 issued stamps are authoritatively
accounted for, including a block-of-four which is in the Royal Philatelic Collection,
making it the world's least used stamp. Of the hundred 10 Rs stamps that were overprinted
with "Service", a few were given to dignitaries, while most, including
an intact sheet of 50, remain at the National Archives, Postal Museums, etc. The 2006 book by Dr. Reuben Ramkissoon and Dr.
Rajagopalan reports that less than 8 copies of the Gandhi 10 Rs Service stamps reside
in private hands. These include the 1948 "Service" set which was auctioned
for 38,000 Euros in the David Feldman auction sale on 5 October 2007. In 2011 David Feldman sold an example for €144,000
and suggests that only 18 are known.
The Gandhi Stamps overprinted ‘SERVICE’
Value
|
Quantity overprinted
|
Sheets
|
1½
annas
|
15950
|
319
|
3½
annas
|
1350
|
27
|
12
annas
|
250
|
5
|
10
rupees
|
100
|
2
|
In April 2017, Stanley Gibbons
reported that a block-of-four 10 Rs overprinted ‘Service’ was sold to a private
collector in Australia for £500,000, at an auction in the UK.
Mint Strip of four Gandhi 10 Rs overprinted Service
The complete sheet of Rs 10 ovpt SERVICE
Forgeries of the stamp and
the overprint are known.
Real Overprint Fake stamp Fake Overprints
Fake overprint inverted and Specimen
References
1. Ashok
Kumar Bayanwala "1948 August 15, Gandhiji – The first Indian to be on stamps
of India" 2006.
2. Reuben
A. Ramkissoon, Rajagopalan V. Rajan (2006), A philatelic handbook on Mohandas Karamchand
Gandhi (Mahatma Gandhi),R&W Enterprises, Oak Brook
- Col Jayanta Dutta & Dr Anjali
Dutta : email :doctorjayanta2009@gmail.com
A Philatelic Tribute to Nobel Laurate
Rabindranath Tagore
A Poet, Composer and Musical Genius
-Cdr G.Sriramarao, I.N (Retd)
Rabindranath Tagore
(1861-1941) also known as Gurudev, Kabiguru and Biswakabi was a polymath, Poet,
Musician and artist from the Indian Sub-Continent. He was responsible for
reshaping Bengali Literature and Music as well as Indian Art with modernism in
the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. Author of the
profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse of Gitanjali he became the
first non-European to win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913.His songs
poetic were viewed as spiritual and mercurial. At the age of 16 he released his
first substantial poems. By 1877 he graduated to his first short stories and
dramas under his real name. He denounced British Raj and advocated independence
from Britain. As an exponent of the Bengal Renaissance, he advanced a vast
canon that comprised paintings, sketches and doodles and hundreds of texts and
about 2230 songs. His legacy also endures in the institution he founded,
Visva-Bharati University. His Novels, stories, dance dramas and Musicagore modernized,
Bengali art by spurning rigid classical forms and resisting linguistic
strictures. His novels, stories, songs, dance-dramas, and essays spoke to
topics political and personal Gitanjali Song Offerings),Gora
(Fair-Faced) and Ghare-Baire (The Home and the World) are his best-known
works, and his verse, short stories, and novels were acclaimed—or panned—for
their lyricism, colloquialism, naturalism, and unnatural contemplation
TAGORENoble Prize Medallion for Literature
A stamp issued on 7 May 1961
on Tagore
Songs (Rabindra
Sangeet)
Tagore was a prolific composer with around
2,230 songs to his credit. His songs are known as Rabindra Sangit ("Tagore
Song"), which merges fluidly into his literature, most of which—poems or
parts of novels, stories, or plays alike—were lyricized. Influenced by the Thumri
style influenced by the Hindustani Music they ran the entire gamut of human
emotion, ranging from his early dirge-like Brahmo devotional hymns to
quasi-erotic compositions. They emulated the tonal colour of classical ragas
to varying extents. Some songs mimicked a given raga's melody and rhythm
faithfully; others newly blended elements of different ragas.Yet about
nine-tenths of his work was not bhanga gaan, the body of tunes revamped
with "fresh value" from select Western, Hindustani, Bengali folk and
other regional flavours "external" to Tagore's own ancestral culture.
First Day cover issued on 7 May, 1961,with Tagore’s autograph in English
and stamp of 15 Ps
12 Annas Stamp Issued on Oct 1, 1952
India
so far has issued 8 postage stamps on Tagore including 2 Miniature Sheets
A
stamp of Rs.15 issued with the painting of Tagore titled Dak Ghar..Although
most famed for his poetry Tagore was a creative genius who played a crucial
role inthe cultural renaissanceof India and Bengal in the 19th and
early 20th century. He was a great painter too.
First
Day Cover issued on Dak Ghar on 13 Oct 1954, where Jawaharlal Nehru commented ‘
Among the many the many things, good and bad, that the modern world has produced,
surely the postal system, which covers the world is one of its most beneficent
activities’.
20 p Stamp issued on Visva Bharati Golden Jubilee
Special Cover issued on Gandhi Jayanti day 2-10-2002
A stamp of Rs.1 issued with the
beautiful painting of Rabindranth Tagore in 1978.
A
Miniature sheet with two stamps depicting Rabindranath Tagore, of the value of
Rs.5 each. The stamp depicts Tagore’s writing one of his most famous poem, where
the mind is without fear…….(given below), back ground shows Upasana Ghar at
Santiniketan. Tagore performing in his ‘ Valmiki pratibha’ and a painting by
him.
The superlative poem, titled “Where the Mind is without Fear”,
talks about the boundless power of human knowledge, valour of standing by the
truth, and the essence of true freedom.
First
Day Cover with Miniature Sheet
First Day
Cover issued on 7 May 2011 with two stamps
Maxi Card issued in New Delhi
First day cancelled Maxi card 7-5-2011
Gurudev
Rabindanath Tagore First Day Cover for issue of Rs.2 stamp
A
special cover issued with beautiful cancellation of Tagore on 1-2-2011
A
special cover issued in Patna
A
special cover issued in Calcutta on 31 December 2010 at World Thinkers and
Poet’s Meet
In Memory of Dr Satyendra Agrawal….
Rose
Philately
Roses Forever !
The US Postal Service introduces Garden
Corsage, a new 2-ounce stamp to be issued on 4th April 2020 similar
in design to the Contemporary Boutonniere 1-ounce rate stamp. It can
accommodate the weight of heavy invitations as well as mailings such as small
gifts that require extra postage. The stamp features a photograph of a corsage
containing a spray of peach roses and a pink ranunculus, accented with
deep-pink heather and seeded eucalyptus. A cream-colored lace ribbon entwines
the flowers. The corsage was arranged by floral designer Carol Caggiano and
photographed by Renée Comet. Art director Ethel Kessler designed the stamp.
New issues
from other Countries
Croatia
2 January 2020 : Croatian Presidency of the Council of the
European Union
France
6 January 2020 Lille World
Capital of design
Jersey
3 January
2019 : Lunar New Year – Year of the Rat
Korea
2 December
2019 : Lunar New Year – Year of the Rat
27 December
2019 : Science and Technology
Macao
20 December 2019 : "20th Anniversary of Macao's Return to
the Homeland"
USA
11 January
2020 : Lunar New Year : Year of the Rat
18 January
2020 : Big Bend Texas
18 January
2020 : Grand Island Ice Caves
23 January
2020 : Made of Hearts Love
Republic of China (Taiwan)
10 January 2019 : Taiwan Scenery
Continuing the series of Taiwan Scenery postage stamps
depicting Taitung County, Tainan City, Matsu, Taichung City, Penghu County,
Yilan County and Hualien County begun in 2016, Chunghwa Post is offering a
further set of four stamps featuring outstanding places of interest in Pingtung
County. The stamps are described below:
1.
Dapeng Bay Bridge (NT＄6): This
cable-stayed bridge crosses the only outlet to the sea from Dapeng Bay. To meet
the development of yachting in the lagoon, the bridge has one section that can
be raised. This is its special point of interest.
2.
Kenting National Park (NT＄6):
Located at the southern tip of Taiwan and surrounded by the sea on three sides,
Kenting National Park, a famous tourist spot and the first National Park in the
country, is one of the few such parks to include both land and sea.
3. Little
Liuqiu Flower Vase Rock (NT＄8): Situated on the north of Liuqiu Island, also called Little
Liuqiu, and shaped like a flower vase, Flower Vase Rock is part of a coral
reef. Its fame comes from its proximity to the main harbor of the island.
4.
Hengchun Old Town (NT＄15): Hengchun Old Town, a well-preserved Qing dynasty town, is a
national monument. It has four gates, of which the restored south gate still
retains its gate tower and gateway.
New Postmarks / Stationery
On February 16th
2020 in 72622 NUERTINGEN a pictorial postmark, Special cover,personalized stamp
and a stationery(postcard) will be availble. All philatelic items are
featuring the Turtle dove (Streptopelia turtur).The Turtle dove is the BIRD OF
THE YEAR in Germany for the year 2020. Details for requests under www.vdb-nuertingen.de/aktuell .
Acknowledgement
-
Ananthapuri Stamp Bulletin January 2020 issue edited by Mohanchandran Nair
- Judaica
Thematic Society (UK) January 2019
Newsletter edited by Gary Goodman
- Deccan
Philatelist Vol 19 No 2 2019 edited by
Col Jayanta Dutta
-The Hyderabad Philatelist November 2019 issue edited
by Prakash Agrawal
-The Hyderabad
Hobby Magazine November 2019 issue
edited by Prakash Agrawal
- Journal of
the Army Philatelic Society Vol.17 No.3 & 4 edited by Col. Jayanta Dutta
Blogs &
Websites
Philatelic
Clubs & Societies
Ananthapuri
Philatelic Association, Thiruvanthapuram
Chandigarh
Philatelic Club
Deccan
Philatelic Society – Pune, Maharashtra
The Hyderabad
Philatelic and Hobbies Society
Ludhiana
Philatelic Club
Numismatic & Philatelic Association of Vellore
Fort
http://numismaticphilavellore.site40.net/index.htm
Philatelic
Society of Rajasthan, Jaipur
Rajkot
Philatelic Society – Rajkot, Gujarat
Gujarat
Philatelic Association - Ahmedabad
The Army
Philatelic Society, Pune
RAINBOW STAMP CLUB
This is a blog of e-Stamp Club www.rainbowstampclub.blogspot.com . The idea of
this blog is to extend philatelic fraternity in all corners of the world.
Readers may write about themselves with their collecting interests and share
new ideas with other philatelists. New
Post on recent issues, news on stamp activities and Contribution by members are
published every day on this blog. Readers may also express their views on any
philatelic matter which will be published under Club News at Rainbow Stamp Cub
Blog. Philatelic Clubs and Societies may also send brief write ups. Readers may
send reports on new issues, special covers, cancellations & philatelic
activities of their area for inclusion in this Blog. - Editor
Current
Philatelic Magazines – Newsletters
VADOPHIL, Editor - Prashant Pandya &TimirShah and published by Baroda Philatelic Society,
Vadodara. Website -http://www.vadophil.org/
ITS Stamp News - Quarterly - Editor: Suraj Jaitly
Publisher: Indian Thematic Society website - http://itsstampnews.blogspot.com/
Ananthpuri Stamp Bulletin - Monthly e -stamp
bulletin of Anathapuri Philatelic Association, Thiruvanthapuram
Journal of the Army Philatelic Society : Editor – Col Jayanta Dutta
India
Post – Quarterly Journal of the India Study
Circle publishes original articles submitted by members of ISC.
Deccan
Philatelist from Deccan Philatelic Socity, Pune. edited by Col
Jayanta Dutta
The Hyderabad Philatelist from Hyderabad Philatelic
and Hobbies Society Editor – Prakash
Agrawal
SIPA Bulletin issued by South India Philatelists’
Association
|
Address for
communication :
Jeevan
Jyoti, c / o Mr. Ajay Srivastav,
Wildlife Institute of India, Chandrabani, Dehradun – 248002. India
Last date for receiving write ups – 25th of every
month. Kindly send images in jpg compressed format & text in MS Word
only. If you like this issue please forward it to your
friends and help in promoting philately.
A Request to Readers & Contributors
–
·
Please do not send the text in scan form or PDF. Send
your write ups in MS Word only.
·
Please do not send forwarded messages for promotional
section if you want to give any information for promotion please write
personally with brief write up. As this newsletter is not used for any
commercial purpose in any manner.
Attention – Please
do not send text or image for publication in PDF.
Any material
from this newsletter may be reproduced only with the written permission from
the editor.
Happy Collecting ……….
Rainbow Stamp News is edited and published
monthly by Jeevan Jyoti from Dehradun ( Uttarakhand ) India for free
circulation among philatelists.
