Alexander Nevsky Cathedral

The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral is an orthodox cathedral in the Tallinn Old Town, Estonia. It was built to a design by Mikhail Preobrazhensky in a typical Russian Revival style between 1894 and 1900, during the period when the country was part of the Russian Empire. The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral is Tallinn's largest and grandest orthodox cupola cathedral. It is dedicated to Saint Alexander Nevsky who in 1242 won the Battle of the Ice on Lake Peipus, in the territorial waters of present-day Estonia. The late Russian patriarch, Alexis II, started his priestly ministry in the church. The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral crowns the hill of Toompea where the Estonian folk hero Kalevipoeg is said to have been buried according to a legend. (There are many such legendary burial places of him in Estonia.) The cathedral was built during the period of late 19th century Russification and was so disliked by many Estonians as a symbol of oppression that the Estonian authorities scheduled the cathedral for demolition in 1924, but the decision was never implemented due to lack of funds and the building's massive construction. As the USSR was officially non-religious, many churches including this cathedral were left to decline. The church has been meticulously restored since Estonia regained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.

Ella sent me this card.

Lighthouse in Sweden

A lighthouse with turbulent seas somewhere on the Swedish coast. Kati sent me this card. If this is what the lighthouse keeper and his wife have to face, you can well imagine what we sailor boys had to face at sea in rough weather. They say that a sailor has a girl in every port. That’s just because in every port there are some kind hearted sweet young things who feel sorry for these simple minded sailor boys who had just come back from the sea, and were yearning for some sympathy and good company!

Olavinlinna

Olavinlinna, literally St. Olaf's Castle, which is a 15th century three-tower castle located in Savonlinna, Finland. It is the northernmost medieval stone fortress still standing. The fortress was founded by Erik Axelsson Tott in 1475 under the name Sankt Olofsborg in an effort to profit from the political turmoil following Ivan III's conquest of the Novgorod Republic. It was sited in Savonia so as to lay claim to the Russian side of the border established by the Treaty of Nöteborg. Olavinlinna has three towers. It was the first Swedish castle provided with a set of thickset circular towers that could withstand cannon fire. It is not by accident that a network of lakes and waterways forms the setting for the castle, for these would seriously impede a prospective Russian offensive. Olofsborg withstood several sieges by the Russians during the First and Second Russian-Swedish wars. A brisk trade developed under the umbrella of the castle towards the end of the 16th century, giving birth to the town of Savonlinna, which was chartered in 1639. Nearer home, in the State of Rajasthan are many forts which were similarly located, like the one in Udaipur. Even then they knew that, Prevention was better than cure!

On 28 July 1714 the garrison capitulated to the invading Russians, and it took them only two days to take the castle in 1743, in the events leading up to the Treaty of Abo which awarded the entire region to Empress Elizabeth of Russia. Merja sent me this pretty card.

Churches

Merja gave me these two maxi cards. In the central part of Cyprus, in the mountains of the Troodos range, some of the most important monuments of the history of Byzantine painting have survived. These are the painted churches which have to this day preserved brilliant examples of various trends of Byzantine and post-Byzantine monumental art, from the 11th to the 19th century. Ten of these churches have so far been granted World Cultural Heritage status by UNESCO.

The Church of Archangel Michael (card above) is situated in a central area of the Troodos mountain range, in the valley of Marathasa, in the village of Pedoulas. In 1985 it was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List which includes nine other painted Byzantine churches of the Troodos range. According to the dedicatory inscription above the north entrance, the church was built and decorated with frescoes in 1474, with the donation of priest Vasilios Chamados. The priest, accompanied by his wife and two daughters, is depicted above the dedicatory inscription, offering Archangel Michael a model of the church. This church belongs to the typical single-aisled, timber-roof type of the Troodos region. The narthex, which extends to its south and west side, was used as a loft due to the small size of the church. The loft was used by the women, while only men entered the main church.

The card below shows The 12th century Church of Panagia tou Araka, a UNESCO World Heritage site, stands just outside the village of Lagoudera and boasts some of the finest frescoes of the late Comnenian style (1192) prevailing throughout Greece, the Balkans and Russia. Together with the churches of Asinou and Agios Nikolaos tis Stegis, it is considered to be one of the most important Byzantine churches on the island. Visitors should ask for the priest, who can be found on the premises next to the church, to escort them to the church.

Holland, the Land of Flowers

Holland is a region located in the western part of the Netherlands. When we hear andldquo;Hollandandrdquo;, the first images that comes to mind are windmills, cheese, their national costume or klederdracht, and of course - tulips! Holland tulips have become popular all over the world due to their distinctive bulbous shape and shocking varieties of color. They are commonly grown in gardens, used as potted plants or fresh cut flowers sold in shops. Moreover, red tulips have become the symbol of passion and eroticism of young love. White tulips, on the other hand, stand for pure love while yellow ones symbolize a concern for the beloved.
While tulips are closely identified with Holland, the flowers did not originate from that province. Tulips actually came from the Ottoman Empire and only arrived in Europe in the late 1500's, introduced by a botanist Carolus Clusius to the Leiden University in the Netherlands. Not long afterwards, the flowers became such a hit in the Netherlands that one bulb, the most famous one called Semper Augustus, sold for as much as 6,000 florins (the average annual income at that time was only 150 florins). Semper Augustus was indeed very rare; it had red and white vertical stripes which can only be produced by a virus on a healthy tulip crop.
Around the time of its sale - early 17th century - the Netherlands was undergoing what historians call the andldquo;Tulip Maniaandrdquo; (incidentally, the phrase andldquo;tulip maniaandrdquo; have become a metaphor to a large economic bubble). The flowers sold for such exorbitant prices that they were even used as currency for trade. However, the market collapsed eventually, leaving the flowers worthless. Thousands of Dutch were left financially ruined in the wake of the crash, including noblemen and dignitaries. For a flower, this is indeed a very interesting history.
Tulips grow best in temperate climates, such as Holland's. The perfect weather for them is cool springs and early summers. In the Philippines though, they can be grown annually in natural conditions. The Philippine weather is not exactly suitable for tulips, but some growers make use of greenhouses to cultivate the flowers. This way, the problem with the high temperature and sometimes extreme weather conditions can be resolved. It's not Holland tulips, but if you want to get tulips here in the Philippines (and other flowers as well, such as roses), there are many flower shops that you can look into. Bjørna sent me this lovely card.

Forest Fertilising

This card shows a Forest-fertilising plane taking off from a road in Finland In 1985. Minna sent me this card.

Cyprus – Motherhood

Europa 1993 series consists of two stamps (10 and 30 c). The theme chosen by the European Postal Telecommunications Organization (CEPT) was Contemporary Art. The Cyprus Postal Services chose to present works of art on the general theme or motherhood - a choice indicative of the great concern of artists for this theme.

A bronze sculpture (originally of clay) height 25 cm by Nicos Dymiotis (1930-1990). This work was made around 1970 and some copies of it are found in private collections. Dymiotis was born in Strovolos, Nicosia. He attended the Pancyprian Gymnasium of Nicosia and studied sculpture at the Lyon National School of Arts, France (1948-1953). After his return to Cyprus he worked on busts and statues, steles and tombstones. The central theme of his sculpture is MOTHER AND CHILD a subject presented in various forms with new kinds of expression. Dymiotis' work is not confined to an external realistic description but extends to schematization with an emphasis on characters, the simplicity of form, and the rendering of the essential while at the same time it avoids narrative and emphasis on purely plastic values. Dymiotis uses a variety of materials mainly stone, marble, plaster, clay and wood. Dymiotis served as an educator from 1957 and in 1981 he was promoted to the post of Assistant Headmaster.

The card below shows an Applique (106 x 127 cm) by Christoforos Savva (1924-1968). This work was made in 1965 and is exhibited in the National Gallery of the Cyprus Ministry of Education. Chr. Savva was born in the village of Marathovounos and during the Second World War he served as a volunteer in the British Army. He studied at the Heatherly School of Fine Arts, England and later at the Studio of Andre Lhote, Paris. In 1960 he founded the gallery "Apophasi", later to become a place for theatrical and musical performances, lectures, exhibitions etc. He organized numerous exhibitions of his works. He contributed to the renovation of the Cyprus cultural life, to the introduction of modern cultural trends and has generally stimulated the interests of the Cypriot people in the arts. Savva used a great variety of materials and techniques. He used oil colours, water colours, ink and pencil. He made etchings and used mixed media to create appliques, reliefs, mosaics, sculptures with cement, metal, wire, pins etc. Merja gave me these two lovely maxi cards.