Convent of Christ in Tomar | Portugal

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The Convent of Christ is a former Roman Catholic monastery in Tomar, Portugal. Originally a 12th-century Templar stronghold, when the order was dissolved in the 14th century the Portuguese branch was turned into the Knights of the Order of Christ.

The Convent and Castle complex is a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1983.

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Abbey Library of Saint Gall | Switzerland

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The Abbey of Saint Gall is a Roman Catholic religious complex in the Swiss city of St. Gallen. 

The library at the Abbey is one of the richest medieval libraries in the world.

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Armenian Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary | Ukraine

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The Armenian Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary in Lviv, Ukraine is located in the city's Old Town. The origins of this church dates back to the 14th century. 

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Bayreuth Festival Theatre | Germany

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The Margravial Opera House, built between 1745 and 1750 is an opera house in Bayreuth, Germany. As you can see A masterpiece of Baroque theatre architecture. The theatre is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

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Herrenchiemsee Island and palace | Germany

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Herreninsel or Herrenchiemsee is an island in Bavaria's largest lake, the Chiemsee. It is the biggest of three main islands of which the other two are Fraueninsel and "Krautinsel". The island is inhabited by about only 30 people.

Herreninsel is famous for the extravagant Herrenchiemsee palace of Ludwig II of Bavaria, the ‘fairytale king’ (he also built Neuschwanstein castle). The castle was only inhabited by the king for ten nights before he died of drowning at just 40. 

Thx Dustin!

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Fireworks over Douglas, capital of Isle of Man

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Douglas is the capital and largest town of the Isle of Man, with a population of about 29,000 people.

On the right you see part of the interior of the Gaiety Theatre & Opera House. The memorial stone is in honor of Sir William Hillary. He led the movement to form The National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck in 1824.

 

Stamps

Part of a set of 10 stamps to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the birth of Manx designer Archibald Knox. He was an internationally renowned artist and designer. 

Wishing you all a happy 2015!

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Imam Ali Mosque | حرم الإمام علي in Najaf, Iraq

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The city of Najaf is located 161 km south of Baghdad. It is a site of great religious significance to Muslims being home of the sacred shrine of Imam Ali, cousin and son-in-law of Prophet Mohamed.

It was in nearby Kufa in 661 that Imam Ali, the son-in-law and cousin of the Prophet Mohamed, was badly wounded by an assassin and, as he lay dying, instructed his followers to strap his body to the back of a camel and, where the camel stopped, to dig his grave. On this spot grew up the shrine city of Najaf, a place of pilgrimage for the Shia.

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Issued in 2012 as part of a set of four stamps picturing falcons.

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Città del Vaticano | Vatican City

 

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Vatican City is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome. 

Joseph Ratzinger, born April 1927, was elected to the papacy on April 19, 2005, upon the death of Pope John Paul II.  In February 2013, at age 85, Pope Benedict XVI announced that he would be resigning on February 28, 2013—becoming the first pope in 600 years to step down from his post.

 

Stamp

Vatican City State has issued four stamps with the image of an angel raising the pavilion (“umbraculum”) of the Apostolic Camera, the work of Italian artist Daniela Longo. The use of these stamps as postage is only available during the Sede Vacante, ending with the election of the new Pope.

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Church of St Nicholas in Kakopetria, Cyprus

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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.

The church of Ayios Nikolaos tis Stegis is situated in a central area of the Troodos mountain range, about two kilometers southwest of the village of Kakopetria. Agios Nikolaos tis Stegis is the only surviving katholicon (monastery church) of an 11th century Byzantine monastery in Cyprus. The church itself is dated to the 11th century. In 1985 it was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List which includes nine other painted Byzantine churches of the Troodos range.

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From a set of two ATM labels (2010) with topic moufflon. The Cyprus moufflon is a kind of wild sheep and is found only in Cyprus.

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Mosaics from Cyprus

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Paphos is a coastal city in the southwest of Cyprus. It is famous for the remains of the Roman governor's palace, where extensive, fine mosaics are a major tourist attraction.

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(left) The Refugee Fund Tax Stamp. Every letter, postcard and parcel has to have an additional refugee postage stamp on it in order for it to enter the sending process. The proceeds of the refugee stamps go to the refugee fund, i.e. for the Greek Cypriots who became refugees from their homes in the north of Cyprus after the invasion in 1974.

(right) From 2011, Cyprus Embroidery

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MAYAKOVSKAYA metro station from Russia

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Mayakovskaya is a Moscow metro station on the Zamoskvoretskaya Line. Considered to be one of the most beautiful in the system, it is a fine example of pre-World War II Stalinist Architecture and one of the most famous Metro stations in the world. The station got its name after a Soviet poet Vladimir Mayakovsky (1893-1930).

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(left) Sixth Definitives series  - Russian Kremlins: Pskov Kremlin

(right) Moscow State University Clock

The diameter of this clock is 9 meters in diameter. An accompanying barometer and thermometer are also housed with this clock, which was built in 1953.

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Macedonian orthodox churches

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(upper left) The Church of St. Panteleimon in Gorno Nerezi, is a small 12th century Byzantine church located in a monastery complex. The church and monastery are dedicated to St. Panteleimon, the patron saint of physicians.

The Church of Saint Clement of Ohrid located in Skopje is the largest Orthodox temple of the Macedonian Orthodox Church today.

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York Minster, a Gothic cathedral in York, England

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Around the year 1080 Thomas of Bayeux became Archbishop and started building a cathedral that in time grew into the Minster we have today. This vast Norman church was completed around the 1100. In 1215 Walter Gray became archbishop and he was to serve the cathedral for 40 years. It was Walter who started to transform the Norman Church in to the Minster we have today. The Minster that we know today had taken about 250 years to build.

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One of seven Christmas stamps (2011)

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Tuomiokirkko | The Cathedral from Helsinki, Finland

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The Lutheran Cathedral was built in 1830-1852 to replace an earlier church from 1727. The church is Greek cruciform in shape. There are statues of the Apostles made of zinc on the roof, and they are the biggest unique set of zinc sculptures in the world.

The church was called St. Nicholas church until the independence of Finland in 1917. Since 1959, it became a Cathedral, and is called Helsinki Cathedral or the Lutheran Cathedral.

Stamps

An odd-shaped € 0,05 and Christmas stamp 2011

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Moscow Metro station: Taganskaya | Таганская

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Vestibule of the metro station Taganskaya – Koltsevaya 1950.

Stamps

From a series of 4 stamps.  The Solovetsky Islands (Solovki) are an archipelago located in the Onega Bay of the White Sea.

Solovetsky Monastery was one of the first Russian sites to have been inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

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Cathedral of the Redeemer, Moscow

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This Cathedral, also known as Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, was dynamited and reduced to rubble on 5 December 1931, by order of Stalin's minister Kaganovich.  It was rebuilt in the periode 1996 -2000.

Stamps

(left) Europa stamp 2010.

(right) Chapel of St. Macarius.

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Новослободская | Novoslobodskaya metro station, Russia

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The most notable feature of the Novoslobodskaya metro station, on the Koltsayeva Line of the Moscow metro, is its glowing stained glass decorations set into a brass-framed arcade. This station was built in 1952. The station got its name after the nearby Novoslobodskaya street.

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70th Anniversary of Moscow Metro.

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Tilla-Qori Madrassah in Samarkand, Uzbekistan

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Samarkand is the second largest city of Uzbekistan. The history of Samarkand is about 2,500 years old and has witnessed many upheavals during the times of Alexander the Great, the Arabic Conquest, Genghis-Khan Conquest and lastly Tamerlane's. Hence, the culture of Samarkand was developed and mixed together with the Iranian, Indian, Mongolian and a bit of the Western and Eastern cultures. 

The postcard shows the inside of the Tilla-Qori Madrasah. Madrasah is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, whether secular or religious (of any religion).

Built in1660, the madrasah also encompassed the role of a mosque. As guests approach the glazed portal it will become apparent why the madrasah was called Tilla-Qori - "covered by gold".

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(top) Uzbek National Academic Drama Theatre.

(bottom) State Academic Bolshoi Theatre named after Alisher Navoi.

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Interior of the Al Fadhel Mosque in Bahrain

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“Graceful colonnade in Al Fadhel Juma Mosque,  Manama, Bahrain.

Manama is the capital and largest city of Bahrain.

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(left) A charity stamp

(middle) Arab Summit Conference 2003. One from a set of 22(!) stamps.

(right) King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.

THX Sanjay!

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St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church

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St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Tarpon Springs, Florida.

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Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming.

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