Explorers

Sir Henry Morton Stanley, GCB (1841-1904), was a British journalist and explorer famous for his exploration of central Africa and his search for missionary and explorer David Livingstone. Upon finding Livingstone, Stanley allegedly uttered the now-famous greeting, "Dr. Livingstone, I presume?" Here is an image of a stamp featuring a portrait of Stanley, engraved and printed by the State Printing Office of Belgium, Malines, and issued for use in Belgian Congo on June 20, 1928 as one of a set of 15 similar stamps commemorating the 50th anniversary of Stanley's exploration of the Congo region, Scott No. 115, plus a photograph of Stanley wearing a pith helmet, taken in 1872.

- nethryk

Fridtjof Nansen (1861-1930) was a Norwegian explorer, scientist, diplomat, humanitarian and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. Here is an image of a stamp featuring a portrait of Nansen, designed and engraved by Czeslaw Slania, and issued by Monaco on May 26, 1988 to commemorate the centenary of Nansen's expedition making the first crossing of Greenland, Scott No. 1637, plus a photograph of Fridtjof Nansen which was probably the model for this stamp's design.

- nethryk

Marcel Treich-Laplène (1860-1890) was the first European explorer of Ivory Coast and its first colonial administrator. Here is an image of a stamp featuring a portrait of Treich-Laplène and a map of Ivory Coast, designed and engraved by René Cottet, and issued for use in French West Africa on December 1, 1952, Scott No. 58, plus an image of an engraved portrait of the French explorer from Louis Gustave Binger, Du Niger au Golfe de Guinée, 1892, which was probably a model for this stamp's design.

- nethryk

Jean François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse (1741-1788?) was a French Navy officer and explorer whose expedition vanished in Oceania. Here is an image of a stamp featuring a portrait of Lapérouse, depictions of his ships, Astrolabe and Boussole, and a map of his last voyage, designed and engraved by René Quillivic, and issued for use in New Caledonia on February 10, 1988 to commemorate the bicentenary of the Lapérouse expedition's disappearance, Scott No. 571, plus an image of a painted portrait of the explorer. Note: the Salomon Association is an organization which has conducted several excavations of the wrecks of Lapérouse's ships on Vanikoro reefs.

- nethryk

Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen (1872-1928) was a Norwegian explorer of the polar regions. Amundsen led the Antarctic expedition (1910-12) which was the first to reach the South Pole. In 1926, he was the first expedition leader to be recognized without dispute as having reached the North Pole. Amundsen disappeared with five crew on June 18, 1928 while flying on a rescue mission in the Arctic. Here are images of two stamps issued in honor of the explorer, plus a photo of Roald Amundsen.

- nethryk

Roald Amundsen dressed in fur skins, c. 1912.


Amundsen and ice-covered ship in the Arctic, airmail stamp designed by Hungarian artist Sándor Légrády (1906-1987), printed by photogravure, and issued by Hungary on May 15, 1948, Scott No. C60. Bonus: Polar bear.


Amundsen and Antarctic scene, designed and engraved by Michel Monvoisin, and issued by Monaco on December 2, 1972, Scott No. 853. Bonus: Penguins.

Pierre Paul François Camille Savorgnan de Brazza (1852-1905), was an Italian-born French explorer who opened up for France the right bank of the Congo River, eventually leading to French colonies in central Africa. Brazzaville, which is now the capital of the Republic of the Congo, was named after him. Here is an image of a stamp featuring a portrait of Brazza and depicting native porters, designed by French illustrator Jules Douy, printed by photogravure (Vaugirard, Paris), and issued for use in French Equatorial Africa on May 3, 1937, Scott No. 48, plus an image of a photograph of Pierre Savorgnen de Brazza by Nadar.

- nethryk

NORWAY 2014
These stamps celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of the great Norwegian explorer THOR HEYERDAHL

Happy Birthday to Count Sámuel Teleki de Szék (1845-1916), a Hungarian explorer who led the first expedition to Northern Kenya. Teleki was the first European to see, and name, Lake Rudolf (Lake Turkana). Here is an image of a stamp depicting the explorer, his safari and a map of his route, designed by Hungarian artist Pál Varga, printed by lithography, and issued by Hungary on June 10, 1987 to commemorate the centenary of the expedition, Scott No. 3073, plus a photo of Sámuel Teleki in Africa which may have been a model for this stamp's design.

- nethryk

Robert Pommier (1919-1961) was a French Antarctic explorer, photographer and travel writer. Here is an image of a stamp depicting Pommier with a canine pal, designed and engraved by Pierre Béquet, and issued for use in French Southern and Antarctic Territories on January 1, 1994 to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the explorer's birth, Scott No. 198, plus a photo of Robert Pommier. Bonuses: Dog and camera.

- nethryk

]

Here is an image of another stamp honoring French explorer René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle (1643-1687), designed by Dutch-born Canadian artist Leendert Verhoeven (1920-1973), engraved by Yves Baril (vignette) and Donald J. Mitchell (lettering), printed by Canadian Bank Note Company, and issued by Canada on April 13, 1966 to commemorate the 300th anniversary of La Salle's arrival in Canada, Scott No. 446, plus an image of a portrait of the explorer.

- nethryk

I watched an old movie the other day called Aguirre, the Wrath of God.
Kind of an offbeat (weird) movie about a 16th Century Spanish
conquistador which made me think about my Spanish stamps.

What a train of thought I have; movie to stamps, sometimes
stamps to book or vice versa.

This 1961 set called Builders of the New World shows
Spanish conquistadors and an Admiral

Sebastian de Belalcazar (1479 or 1480 – 1551) Panama,Nicaragua, Ecuador, Peru, Columbia

Blas de Lezo y Olavarrieta ( 1689 – 1741)New Granada

Rodrigo de Bastidas (1460 – 1527) Panama, Columbia

Nuflo de Chavez (1518–1568) Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil

Spain

Scott 1013 - 1020

Here is another Builders of the New World set.

It's debatable whether they were builders or ruthless
conquerors who destroyed whole civilizations.

Historians nowadays are obsessed with revisionism
and should know better than to look back and judge
people and events using today's morals and behavior.


Spain 1962

Scott 1131 - 1138

Georg Balthazar von Neumayer (21 June 1826 – 24 May 1909), was a German polar explorer and scientist who was a proponent of the idea of international cooperation for meteorology and scientific observation. He worked for several years in Australia and was instrumental in founding the first international polar year in 1882-3 as well as the Antarctic year in 1901. Roald Amundsen came to study with him.




The original Antarctic station was buried in the ice, the new one sits on stilts.

Lapu-Lapu was an early 16th century ruler of Mactan, an island in the Visayas, Philippines who was responsible for the death of Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan in 1521. Lapu-Lapu is now considered a Filipino national hero for leading the first resistance to Spanish colonization. Here is an image of a stamp depicting Lapu-Lapu, engraved and printed by Bradbury, Wilkinson & Co., Ltd., and issued by Philippines on October 20, 1963, Scott No. 859, plus an image of the heroic statue of Lapu-Lapu on Mactan Island, Cebu Province.

- nethryk

Happy Birthday to Cândido Mariano da Silva Rondon (1865-1958), a Brazilian military engineering officer who is most famous for his exploration of Mato Grosso and the western Amazon basin, for his lifelong support of Brazilian indigenous populations, and for helping to build the first telegraph line across the state of Mato Grosso. Here is an image of a stamp featuring a portrait of Marechal Rondon, and depicting a telegraph, designed by Brazilian graphic artist Pojucan, printed by photogravure, and issued by Brazil on May 5, 1985 to commemorate the 120th anniversary of Rondon's birth, Scott No. 1996, plus a photo of a young Cândido Rondon in the Amazon region.

- nethryk