Welsh Country March-April 2017

WELSH CONNECTIONS
A Stamp of Approval
The Royal Mail puts great importance on the subject matter chosen
for its postage stamp releases. For each mini masterpiece the
images depict notable people, landmarks and events in our history,
and also pay tribute to the countries of England, Ireland, Scotland
and Wales which make up the British Isles.
For St David’s Cathedral, recognition of its status was
acknowledged in May 2008 when the Royal Mail chose to include it
as one of six spectacular religious buildings to be honoured with a
series of Cathedral themed stamps and a minisheet.
Used as the symbol of a warrior or
leader since Ancient times, the large red
dragon also represents independence
and was adopted by the Tudor ancestors
of King Henry VII as a tribute to his
Welsh supporters.
Selected to represent the crème of religious architecture, their
images were reproduced in sepia. Chosen for the 56p stamp,
St David’s Cathedral rightly deserves its place in the line up of
Britain’s finest religious buildings. The nave is the oldest surviving
part of the building and has been captured spectacularly on the
postage stamp.
Another issue launched by the Royal Mail on the 26 th February
2009 to coincide with our national saint’s day, became the fourth
in a series of Country minisheets entitled ‘Celebrating Wales’.
Comprising of two 1 st class stamps and two large size 81p stamps,
this sheet took its place alongside its predecessors of Scotland,
England and Ireland issued in 2006, 2007 and 2008 respectively.
Measuring 123mm x 70mm, the stamps are set against a scenic
backdrop of rural Wales, complete with a glimpse of Harlech
Castle - which originally appeared on the landscape stamps
of 1966 - making this the perfect tribute to a country which is
proud of its heritage, language and culture. The first of the larger
stamps was produced in landscape format and depicts a specially
commissioned image of Saint David. The minisheet includes an
One of two postmarks released with the Cathedral
Issues
example of a First Class definitive from that date, accompanied by a
stamp featuring the Welsh national flag. With two equal horizontal
stripes of white and green, the Welsh flag is both distinctive in
colour and in its choice of image. Used as the symbol of a warrior
or leader since Ancient times, the large red dragon also represents
independence and was adopted by the Tudor ancestors of King
Henry VII as a tribute to his Welsh supporters.
By 1901, it had become the official symbol of Wales and the
flag in its current form was flown at the investiture of the Prince of
Wales in 1911 to help raise its prominence.
All of these images and icons celebrate our past, but also look
forward to our future; the mix of modern and historical design
provide the perfect package to proudly honour our Welsh customs,
beliefs, landscape and heritage. U
Words & Pictures: Karen Foy
2009 Celebrating Wales Minisheet
8 Mar - Apr 17