Millennium Stamp
Encyclopedia
A Millennium stamp is a postage stamp
issued by a postal administration commemorating a millennium
associated with that country's history but several countries issued stamps for the beginning of the 3rd millennium
in same cases depicting some of their country's achievements over the preceding years.
released a series of eight stamps depicting some of the flora and fauna of the island nation, being concepts by four artists, Joe Nasau, Jane Borg, Muni Deo Raj and fourteen-year-old Myron Williams.
issued a series of stamps that were classified into 12 groups (known as "tales") including Entertainment, Science & Technology and Sport, with one group released in each month during the year. The set issued in September 1999 called The Farmers’ Tale contained a 19p stamp that doubled as Royal Mail’s contribution to that year’s Europa postage stamp
issue, which was on the theme of Parks and Reserves.
One of the most notable postage stamps in the collection was one commemorating the life of Queen
frontman (and avid stamp collector) Freddie Mercury
. It caused controversy for the appearance of Roger Taylor
in the background at the drums, as it is an understood rule that the only living people allowed to appear on British stamps could be members of the British Royal Family
.
Other stamps featured: English football hero Bobby Moore
; a picture of the structure of DNA
; and a fossil of Archaeopteryx
, the first known bird.
The pack called "Entertainers' Tale" was - 19p : Freddie Mercury
(photo, Mercury's Magic/P Blake); 26p : Bobby Moore
(artwork, World Cup/M White); 44p : Dalek (photo, Doctor Who/Lord Snowdon) and 64p : Charlie Chaplin
(artwork, Chaplin's Genius/Ralph Steadman).
These stamps commemorated a selection of projects throughout the UK which had received funding from the Millennium Commission
. The stamps were released in 12 monthly sub-collections with 4 stamps apiece, making a total of 48 stamps. So, in 1999 and 2000, some 96 millennium stamps.
The stamps featured such projects as the Eden Project
, the Tate Modern
art gallery, the National Space Centre
and the Scottish Seabird Centre
.
, was celebrated in 1988 when An Post
issued a 28-pence stamp available both as individual stamps and in a stamp booklet. The Dublin Millennium booklet was the first to contain commemorative stamps; until then all Irish stamp booklets had only contained definitive stamp
s.
, Nelson Mandela
, Thomas Edison
and Ludwig van Beethoven
and some significant events in Irish history like, Flight of the Earls
, Land League
and Irish Independence
.
issued a miniature sheet of four stamps, showing a Laotian landscape, and, on the selvage
, fireworks bursting high in the sky.
- which was 'first to the millennium', issued a miniature sheet. The stamps (2) are circular.
Postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...
issued by a postal administration commemorating a millennium
Millennium
A millennium is a period of time equal to one thousand years —from the Latin phrase , thousand, and , year—often but not necessarily related numerically to a particular dating system....
associated with that country's history but several countries issued stamps for the beginning of the 3rd millennium
3rd millennium
In contemporary history, the third millennium is a period of time that commenced on January 1, 2001, and will end on December 31, 3000, of the Gregorian calendar. This is the third period of one thousand years in the Anno Domini...
in same cases depicting some of their country's achievements over the preceding years.
Canada
Canada Post released 68 specially designed stamps as a series of 17 Millennium souvenir sheets, each depicting four different stamps, starting December 17, 1999 through to March 17, 2000. It is not clear, at the present date, whether these issues were justified by any rational policy - or, perhaps, may have been primarily to raise cash from collectors - seventeen four-stamp sets in about thirteen weeks.Fiji
FijiFiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
released a series of eight stamps depicting some of the flora and fauna of the island nation, being concepts by four artists, Joe Nasau, Jane Borg, Muni Deo Raj and fourteen-year-old Myron Williams.
Great Britain
1999
In 1999 Royal MailRoyal Mail
Royal Mail is the government-owned postal service in the United Kingdom. Royal Mail Holdings plc owns Royal Mail Group Limited, which in turn operates the brands Royal Mail and Parcelforce Worldwide...
issued a series of stamps that were classified into 12 groups (known as "tales") including Entertainment, Science & Technology and Sport, with one group released in each month during the year. The set issued in September 1999 called The Farmers’ Tale contained a 19p stamp that doubled as Royal Mail’s contribution to that year’s Europa postage stamp
Europa postage stamp
Europa stamps have been issued annually since 1956. First sets representing the founding 6 members of the ECSC, European Coal and Steel Community, then by the European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations in 1959, and by PostEurop since 1993...
issue, which was on the theme of Parks and Reserves.
One of the most notable postage stamps in the collection was one commemorating the life of Queen
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...
frontman (and avid stamp collector) Freddie Mercury
Freddie Mercury
Freddie Mercury was a British musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist of the rock band Queen. As a performer, he was known for his flamboyant stage persona and powerful vocals over a four-octave range...
. It caused controversy for the appearance of Roger Taylor
Roger Meddows-Taylor
Roger Meddows Taylor , known as Roger Taylor, is a British musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He is best known as the drummer, backing vocalist and occasional lead vocalist of British rock band Queen. As a drummer he is known for his "big" unique sound and is considered one of...
in the background at the drums, as it is an understood rule that the only living people allowed to appear on British stamps could be members of the British Royal Family
British Royal Family
The British Royal Family is the group of close relatives of the monarch of the United Kingdom. The term is also commonly applied to the same group of people as the relations of the monarch in her or his role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, thus sometimes at variance with...
.
Other stamps featured: English football hero Bobby Moore
Bobby Moore
Robert Frederick Chelsea "Bobby" Moore, OBE was an English footballer. He captained West Ham United for more than ten years and was captain of the England team that won the 1966 World Cup...
; a picture of the structure of DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
; and a fossil of Archaeopteryx
Archaeopteryx
Archaeopteryx , sometimes referred to by its German name Urvogel , is a genus of theropod dinosaur that is closely related to birds. The name derives from the Ancient Greek meaning "ancient", and , meaning "feather" or "wing"...
, the first known bird.
The pack called "Entertainers' Tale" was - 19p : Freddie Mercury
Freddie Mercury
Freddie Mercury was a British musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist of the rock band Queen. As a performer, he was known for his flamboyant stage persona and powerful vocals over a four-octave range...
(photo, Mercury's Magic/P Blake); 26p : Bobby Moore
Bobby Moore
Robert Frederick Chelsea "Bobby" Moore, OBE was an English footballer. He captained West Ham United for more than ten years and was captain of the England team that won the 1966 World Cup...
(artwork, World Cup/M White); 44p : Dalek (photo, Doctor Who/Lord Snowdon) and 64p : Charlie Chaplin
Charlie Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...
(artwork, Chaplin's Genius/Ralph Steadman).
2000
Millennium Commission
The Millennium Commission in the United Kingdom was set up to aid communities at the end of the 2nd millennium and the start of the 3rd millennium. It used funding raised through the UK National Lottery....
. The stamps were released in 12 monthly sub-collections with 4 stamps apiece, making a total of 48 stamps. So, in 1999 and 2000, some 96 millennium stamps.
The stamps featured such projects as the Eden Project
Eden Project
The Eden Project is a visitor attraction in Cornwall in the United Kingdom, including the world's largest greenhouse. Inside the artificial biomes are plants that are collected from all around the world....
, the Tate Modern
Tate Modern
Tate Modern is a modern art gallery located in London, England. It is Britain's national gallery of international modern art and forms part of the Tate group . It is the most-visited modern art gallery in the world, with around 4.7 million visitors per year...
art gallery, the National Space Centre
National Space Centre
The National Space Centre is one of the United Kingdom's leading visitor attractions that is devoted to space science and astronomy. It is located in the city of Leicester, England, next to the River Soar on the A6.-History:...
and the Scottish Seabird Centre
Scottish Seabird Centre
The Scottish Seabird Centre is a visitor attraction in North Berwick, East Lothian, Scotland. Opened by HRH The Prince of Wales in 2000 and funded by the Millennium Commission, the showpiece of the centre is the network of cameras which beam back live pictures from the bird colonies on islands such...
.
Dublin millennium
The millennium of Dublin, IrelandRepublic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
, was celebrated in 1988 when An Post
An Post
An Post is the State-owned provider of postal services in the Republic of Ireland. An Post provides a universal postal service to all parts of the country as a member of the Universal Postal Union...
issued a 28-pence stamp available both as individual stamps and in a stamp booklet. The Dublin Millennium booklet was the first to contain commemorative stamps; until then all Irish stamp booklets had only contained definitive stamp
Definitive stamp
A definitive stamp is a postage stamp, that is part of a regular issue of a country's stamps available for sale by the postal service for an extended period of time...
s.
Year 2000
During 1999 and 2000 a series of 24 stamps was issued depicting a selection of Irish and world famous people, such as, Grace KellyGrace Kelly
Grace Patricia Kelly was an American actress who, in April 1956, married Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, to become Princess consort of Monaco, styled as Her Serene Highness The Princess of Monaco, and commonly referred to as Princess Grace.After embarking on an acting career in 1950, at the age of...
, Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
, Thomas Edison
Thomas Edison
Thomas Alva Edison was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices that greatly influenced life around the world, including the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and a long-lasting, practical electric light bulb. In addition, he created the world’s first industrial...
and Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
and some significant events in Irish history like, Flight of the Earls
Flight of the Earls
The Flight of the Earls took place on 14 September 1607, when Hugh Ó Neill of Tír Eóghain, Rory Ó Donnell of Tír Chonaill and about ninety followers left Ireland for mainland Europe.-Background to the exile:...
, Land League
Irish National Land League
The Irish Land League was an Irish political organization of the late 19th century which sought to help poor tenant farmers. Its primary aim was to abolish landlordism in Ireland and enable tenant farmers to own the land they worked on...
and Irish Independence
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...
.
Laos
LaosLaos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
issued a miniature sheet of four stamps, showing a Laotian landscape, and, on the selvage
Selvage
The selvage or selvedge is the term for the self-finished edges of fabric. The selvages keep the fabric from unraveling or fraying. The selvages are a result of how the fabric is created...
, fireworks bursting high in the sky.
Tonga
TongaTonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...
- which was 'first to the millennium', issued a miniature sheet. The stamps (2) are circular.
See also
- History of Dublin
- Postage stamps of IrelandPostage stamps of IrelandThe postage stamps of Ireland are issued by the postal operator of the independent Irish state. Ireland was part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland when the world's first postage stamps were issued in 1840. These stamps, and all subsequent British issues, were used in Ireland until...
- Canada Post millennium stampsCanada Post millennium stampsDue to popular demand, Canada Post released the 68 specially designed stamps as a series of 17 Millennium souvenir sheets, each depicting four different stamps, starting December 17, 1999 through to March 17, 2000.-December 1999:...
External links
- http://www.queenonline.com/fm-stamp.htmlMedia reports on the QueenQueen (band)Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...
controversy] Queenonline.com