By Even Brande This year marks the 100th anniversary of Norway’s Polar stamps, as well as Roald Amundsen’s ambitious attempt to reach the North Pole using flying boats. These stamps were among the first my father introduced me to when he passed down his collection to me as a child. He fondly referred to them […]
I had been away from philately for a long time when during COVID the combination of several co-incidents led me back to the hobby that I love. As a youth, acquisition of stamps was primarily from tearing stamps off of mail we received as well as that from kind family members who also collected for […]
Nordisk Filateli has in recent years raised the bar on philatelic publications under the very capable leadership of Jonas Hällström. Along with 5 annual issues of their high-quality magazine, they are also a frequent book publisher. Out this year is “Norwegian Classics” by Georg Størmer. Norwegian Classics features 100 rare, precious and beautiful philatelic objects […]
NORDIA 2024 took place from May 31 to June 2 at SkjærdgÃ¥rdshallen in Langesund, Bamble municipality, Telemark county, Norway. It was my first time attending NORDIA and a great excuse to visit my homeland of Norway. Last year NORDIA was hosted in Iceland. This is the first NORDIA hosted in Norway since 2019. Hosted by […]
In 2025 we will be observing the 100th anniversary of Norway’s Polarbear and Airplane stamps. These were some of the earliest stamps I recall my dad introducing me to when he gave me his stamp collection in the mid-1970s. He referred to these as being his favorites (incidentally being released the same year he was […]
I have collected vinyl records about as long as I have collected stamps. That is, since about 1973, when I was six years old. Though back then, I didn’t really think of records as something you collected, I just wanted them so I could listen to music. I got my first own vinyl record, “With […]
Earlier this year I presented to our local Scandiavian Collectors Club Colorado Chapter on Postal Service and Communication in Nazi-Occupied Norway 1940-1945. This was a presentation I figured would resonate with collectors interested in Norwegian stamps, postal history, and history in general. I was overwhelmed by the response this presentation received and was subsequently invited […]
This month we are observing the 75th Anniversary of NATO. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization was officially organized on April 4, 1949. NATO was formed after World War II as an “alliance of mutual assistance” as the potential threat of the Cold War emerged. The 12 founding member countries included the United States, Canada, Portugal, […]
As of this writing it has been 30 year since Norway hosted the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway, officially known as the XVII Olympic Winter Games. It was the first Olympic Games to switch to the new 2-year alternating schedule for summer and winter Olympics. Previously, summer and winter Olympics had always been held […]
One would naturally assume that Nordic ski marathons and philately have very little in common. Yet, my recent visit to Estonia, Finland, and Norway proved otherwise. In 2015 I signed up for Worldloppet. Worldloppet is a worldwide Nordic ski marathon series. The premise is pretty simple: Finish 10 ski marathons in 10 different countries on […]