Norwegian Seamen Celebrated on September 15th

At the beginning of the 20th century, the Norwegian shipping industry suffered with the transition from sailing to steam ships, and with increasing conflict between owners and seafarers. To better organize themselves ship owners established their own Association in 1909, and a year later the sailors and stokers did the same. In 1933, with the addition of stewards and cooks, the Union became known as the Seafarer's Association, instead of just the “Sailors and Stokers Association”. 

Before WW2, others joined as well, including fishermen and ship's electricians. By 1960, the association had almost 50,000 members, but it was severely affected by the shipping crisis during the 1970s and 80s, that led many shipowners to transfer their ships to other countries, hiring non-Norwegians.

The situation eventually improved but never to the extent of the 1960s. Today, the Association has about 11,500 members.
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No início do século XX, a indústria de transportes marítimos da Noruega sofreu com a transição dos navios de vela para os de vapor, e com o crescente conflito entre os donos de navios e os marinheiros. Com o objectivo de se organizarem melhor, os donos de navios estabeleceram uma Associação em 1909, e um ano depois os marinheiros e fogueiros (operadores das caldeiras a vapor) fizeram a mesma coisa. Em 1933, com a inscrição dos despenseiros (responsáveis pelos serviços de alimentação e de alojamento) e dos cozinheiros, a Associação mudou o seu nome para “Associação dos Marinheiros”, demonstrando o seu âmbito mais alargado.

Antes da 2ª Guerra Mundial, outros grupos profissionais se juntaram à associação, nomeadamente, pescadores e electricistas. Em 1960, a Associação tinha quase 50.000 membros, mas foi bastante atingido pela crise do transporte marítimo das décadas de 1970 e 80. Esta crise levou muitos donos de naviso a transferirem a bandeira marítima destes da Noruega para outros países, contratando mão-de-obra estrangeira.

A situação melhorou eventualmente mas nunca voltou a ser como foi em 1960. Hoje, a Associação tem cerca de 11.500 membros.

Portugal - 2010 - First Quarter

Next stop: Portugal! The CTT issue A LOT of stamps every year, sometimes too much, but in most cases they are always beautiful. Let's have a look at the first 3 months of 2010.

22-Feb - Aqui Há Selo

The object of this series is based on a competition done each year in which people submit their works of art to be shown on a stamp. The stamp on the left is a heart-warming image of abandonment of animals, from the winner of the senior class (over 18). The stamp on the right is from the winner of the junior class (under 18) and depicts "Viriato o Lusitano", a figure of Portuguese history who fought against the Romans.

01-Mar - Bicentenário dos Nascimentos de Frédéric Chopin e Robert Schumann

The 200th Anniversary of the birth of 2 great classical musicians is celebrated with this beautiful set. Fryderyc Chopin was born in Poland and Robert Schumann was born in Germany, and both exported their music to the 4 corners of the globe.

08-Mar - Transportes Públicos Urbanos (definitive - 4th series)

In the 4th series of Metropolitan Public Transports, CTT celebrates transportation in Lisbon: Carris (the bus),  the modern Tram, Subway, Passenger Boats and the Trains of Sintra.

This set also includes a 3 self-adhesive stamps issued on March 24th.



08-Mar - 2010 Ano Internacional da Biodiversidade

A stunning set to commemorate the International Year of Biodiversity. We are presented to a number of beautiful animals: Tuna (an important inhabitant of the seas that helps to balance the eco-system), the Gulper shark (a vulnerable shark due to its slow reproduction rate), the Panda (this inhabitant of China is regarded, by many, as the symbol of the fight against the extintion of species), and, finally, shown in the 80 cent stamp and the souvenir sheet, 'Mata Atlântica', or Atlantic Forest, part of the Brazilian Amazon.

22-Mar - Pedras Preciosas na Arte Sacra em Portugal

A fine piece of art, this set presents a number of religious jewelry that exists across the nation. The maritime discoveries of the 16th century and the discovery of gold in Brazil in the 18th century further helped expand and diversify the large quantity of precious metals that exist in a number of museums and in the church in Portugal.

Iceland - 2010 - First Half

Below are the issues from the first half of 2010 for Iceland:


28-Jan - Icelandic design II - Furniture

A celebration of Icelandic furniture design, from left to right we have: the Hanger Tree (2001), a clothes hanger; the Tango Chair (1999); Dining Room Table (2005) built to accomodate a dining room chair dating back to the 1950s; and, finally, the Sofa Dimon (1999).


28-Jan - Seals I

In a celebration of Seals, Iceland brings us 2 different species found in the northern seas. First is the Harbor seal, the most common species on Icelandic waters, on whose nearshore coastal terrain they bear pups. The Harp seal is a common vagrant in Icelandic waters.


18-Mar - Icelandic Craftmanship II 

A look at some Craftsmanship from Iceland's history. (Starting from the left) The Door of Valbjófsstaoir dates back to the 13th century and is among Iceland's best known relics. Play in leaves (c. 2000) is an artwork by Sigriour Jóna Kristjansdóttir, a master in her field of arts, she is probably the only person in Iceland who knows the ancient method of spoon-carving. Finally, the Judge's Drinking Horn is a key work from the 17th century, depicting events from the Old and New Testament.


18-Mar - Norden by the Sea I

Part of the Nordic country combined set "Top of the World", Iceland illustrates herring factories along the Icelandic coasts. The first factories were erected in Siglufjorour.


18-Mar - The Renovation Trawlers

At the end of the 2nd World War, the government contracted the construction of 40 trawlers in Britain to renovate their fleet. The Ingólfur Arnarson RE 201 was built in 1947 and was the first trawler brought to Iceland, purchased by the Reykjavik Fishing company. 4 different trawlers are represented in this set. Apart from the Ingólfur: Bjarni riddari GK 1, Sólborg ÍS 260, and Harobakur EA 3.


6-May - Garden Parks II

In this beautiful set, 3 different gardens are presented to us. The Jónsgarour is the oldest garden park in the town of Ísafjorour, originally opened in 1922. Hellisgeroi is the official garden of Hafnarfjörour, situated in an area with natural lava surroundings. Skallagrímsgarour is the garden park of the town of Borgarnes, and dates back to the 1930s.


6-May - Europa 2010 - Children's books

For the 2010 Europa theme, Iceland presents us 2 books: “The Fate of the Gods“ and “Good Evening“. The first book, published in 2008, is written by Ingunn Ásdísardóttir and deals with Nordic Mythology told in a manner easy for children to understand. The 2nd book, published in 2005, is written by Áslaug Jónsdóttir and is about a small boy who is left alone at home with his teddy bear.


6-May - The World Expo 2010 in Shanghai

Under the theme "Better City, Better Life", Iceland participates in the World Expo 2010. Iceland's participation has its emphasis on the area of renewable energy.


6-May - Personalized stamps with foreign postage

Personzalized stamps in Iceland started in May 2008 and this year is a milestone because Postphil now offers personalized stamps with foreign postage.


And there we have Iceland's stamps for the first half of 2010. A country in economic turmoil with a burning volcano provides us with some outstanding stamps.