On 2 February 2015, Åland Post Stamps launched a six-year stamp series featuring Åland sailing ships. The new series covers the golden age of Åland sailing ship history from the mid-1800s until World War II. The first two stamps feature the schooner Lemland and the barquentine Leo, both characteristic of the mid-1800s. These are shown on the two maxi cards displayed above which were given to me by my dear friend Ella.
This was when Åland peasants first acquired the right to import steel and build their own vessels. The so called peasant sailing started and, from having transported only their own goods, the peasants could now transport even the goods of others.
Launched in Åland in 1856, the form of the hull of the schooner Lemland was simply a development of rustic fishing boats of the time. The schooner was typically used for transporting timber across the Baltic Sea and the North Sea and is believed to be one of the pioneers of North Sea shipping in the 1860s. Lemland wrecked in the North Sea in 1876.
Built in Finland in 1870 for Åland parties, the barquentine Leo had a more international design of both rig and hull. For almost 30 years, the vessel was used to carry wood and iron between ports in Scandinavia and Great Britain/France.
