|
Luxembourg Stamps
|
|
|
Luxembourg Stamps
|
These three stamps depict different owls that frequent the regions of Luxembourg -- the tawny owl, the eagle owl, and the barn owl.
The Euro currency unit was first introduced on January 1, 1999 when 11 member nations of the European Union, including Luxembourg, set the official conversion rate between their national currency and this common currency. On June 30, 2002, national currencies (Francs, Marks, etc.) will no longer be used in commerce.
One Euro is worth exactly 40.3399 Luxembourg francs. See the Euro web site for the fixed conversion rates for the currencies of all 11 participating nations.
The Council of Europe was formed in 1949 as an organization designed to rejuvenate Europe after the disaster of World War II. The European Convention of Human Rights, which protects the rights of any person living in one of the 40 member states, is one of its achievements. This stamp shows the Council of Europe headquarters building in Strasbourg, France.
Also see the stamp issued by Luxembourg in 1989 to honor the 40th anniversary of the Council of Europe and the stamp issued in 1963 to honor the 10th anniversary of the European Convention of Human Rights.
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, an alliance of western powers, was formed on April 4, 1949 when 13 countries, including Luxembourg, signed a treaty of alliance. Greece and Turkey joined in 1952, West Germany in 1955, and Spain in 1982.
Also see the NATO-related stamps issued by Luxembourg in 1959, 1967, 1969, 1983, and 1998.
The Luxembourg Federation of Amateur Photographers (FLPA) was founded in 1949 and currently supports about 40 clubs in the Grand Duchy whose members compete in photographics exhibitions at the national and international level. The FLPA organises an annual national show, a number of competitions, and other photographic exhibitions.
These two stamps were issued in support of the Europa theme "parks and natural reserves". They depict two national parks in Luxembourg -- Haute-Sûre Nature Park and Ardennes-Eifel National Park.
The region surrounding Lake Haute-Sûre in the Oesling region was declared a national park in 1996. The park supports many outdoor activities consistent with the need to protect and preserve the environment.
The Ardennes-Eifel National Park region is managed jointly with Germany since it occupies land in both Luxembourg and Germany. The park was formed in 1965. The stamp shows a covered footbridge at Weilerbach, near Echternach, that crosses the Sûre River boundary and connects the two national sections of the park.
Mutual insurance societies became popular in the mid-19th century as a form of social security in the days before modern social security programs. The Luxembourg Federation of Mutual Insurance was formed in 1924 to act as the umbrella organization for the many mutual societies in the Grand Duchy. Today, the federation comprises 57 societies with some 235,000 members.
Also see the stamp issued by Luxembourg in 1974 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Luxembourg Federation of Mutual Insurance.
The Union of Luxembourg Gymnastic Societies was formed in Esch-sur-Alzette in 1899. It changed its name to the Luxembourg Gymnastics Federation in 1998 and today it has sixty affiliated societies and over 7,000 members.
The United Nations has declared 1999 to be the International Year of Older Persons in order to focus the world on the rights, needs, and contributions of people over the age of 60 to society.
The UPU is an international organization that facilitates the exchange of mail between nations. It is a forum in which countries can discuss and work out problems that interfere with the free flow of mail among them. The UPU was formed in Berne, Switzerland in 1874 and is now an agency of the United Nations.
Also see the UPU-related stamps issued by Luxembourg in 1949 and 1974.
Prince Guillaume is the eldest son of Crown Prince Henri, the heir to the throne of Luxembourg. Guillaume, who is second in line to the throne of Luxembourg, will become the Crown Prince when his father succeeds Grand Duke Jean. Guillaume was born on November 11, 1981.
Guillaume also appeared as a 6-year-old on the Juvalux 88 souvenir sheet of 1988.
Aline Mayrisch-de Saint-Hubert was born in Luxembourg on August 22, 1874. She married engineer Emile Mayrisch in 1894 who, in 1911, was one of the main workers involved in setting up the ARBED steelworks consortium. A passionate lover of art and literature, Aline Mayrisch turned the family château at Colpach into a literary salon and meeting place for artists, writers, philosophers, and politicians. On her death in 1947, she bequeathed the château and most of her wealth to the Luxembourg Red Cross. The château became home to the Emile Mayrisch Foundation and has been used as a convalescent home by the Red Cross since 1949.
These three stamps depict cartoons highlighting modern communications systems. The subjects are communication by road, the information age, and the conquest of space.
This set of stamps, the second in a series of three that began in 1998, depicts 16th century drawings of small Luxembourg towns by Abbot Jean Bertels (1544-1607). The drawings are from a collection of 88 known as the "Grand Bertels" that are kept in the National Archives of Luxembourg.
Bertels was born in Louvain, but came to Luxembourg at the age of 16 to be a monk at Münster Abbey. He was later to become the Abbot. In 1595 he was named Abbot of the prestigious Echternach Abbey by King Philip II and he served in that capacity until his death in 1607.
Bertels took a great interest in the culture and history of his adopted country. He expressed this interest not only through art, but also literature. He is recognized as the "first historian" of Luxembourg for his 1595 book, Historia Luxemburgensis.
This set of four stamps show 16th century scenes from the following towns:
Note that Jean Bertels himself was featured on a 1985 Luxembourg stamp.
This stamp features a cartoon-like drawing of the bulbous spire of St. Michel's Church in Luxembourg City. The drawing is by Michel Demart, a Belgian artist living in Luxembourg.
The famous German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) visited Luxembourg briefly in October of 1792. At the time, he was an observer for his friend and sovereign Duke Charles-Auguste of Weimar in the campaign of the allied armies of Prussia and Austria against the French revolutionary forces. The campaign ended in a disastrous defeat and Goethe retreated to Luxembourg for a little rest and relaxation.
Goethe became enamored with the City and made dozens of drawings of the fortifications and interesting areas of the old town. He expressed his fond memories some 30 years later in his book Campagne in Frankreich (The French Campaign).
This stamp features a drawing made by Goethe during his 1792 visit. Titled "Tor zum Breitenweg im Stadtgrund", the original is kept in the Stiftung Weimarer Klassik in Weimar, Germany.
Also see the stamp issued by Luxembourg in 1977 to honor Goethe.