The previous weekend was devoted to Reptilicus and stamps. Last week saw me lurching from one computer problem to the next. It was a weird week of tech support.  When the weekend rolled around, the only thing I managed to do, with any success, was sit and binge watch old B monster movies. I didn’t even want to look at computers.  Thankfully, my pain threshold for trash is shamefully high. Give me an angry monster thrashing the world and I’ll happily crunch cookies and sip tea all weekend.

The big fellow in the poster above is from a 1961 Danish movie that ranks among my all time favourites, along with THEM! and the original The Thing from Another World. Nothing says destruction like a poison spitting snaky thing. Not to be confused with dragons, Reptilicus and his kindred are patterned on Lindwurms, serpents with a strong affinity for stomping & chomping innocent citizens and lurking in large bodies of water.

What does this have to do with stamps? Nothing really. But the big serpent made me think of a 2012 Faroe Islands series featuring one of Reptilicus’ ancestors.

Magnificent beastie, isn’t it? They could be kissing cousins.  This stamp is part of a set titled Regin the Blacksmith by designer/artist Anker Eli Petersen. In this stamp the hero Sigurd is riding to defeat the great serpent Frænir. I think modern serpents are made of tougher stuff. Frænir was done in by a sword wielding man on a horse. It took a submarine, aircraft, tanks, flame throwers and a lot of screaming to defeat Reptilicus.  

Nordic lore is not an area I’ve spent a lot of time with, so I may be wrong about Frænir being a Lindwurm. But it has all the hallmarks of one. Most translations I read referred to the creature as a serpent, and a handful called it a dragon. I tend to think of it as a Lindwurm.   

The series, covering 6 different aspects of the saga, was beautifully illustrated by Petersen. He also designed the 2001Nordic Myths and Legends that explored legends about light and darkness and the 2003 Völuspá – Prophecy of the Seeress set. The Völuspá also explored aspects of Nordic myths and sagas.  Petersen returns in 2022 to design the upcoming EUROPA competition stamps. The theme this year is Myths and Folklore, a topic he has a strong affinity with.  I’m getting pretty excited now and can’t wait to see what tales he taps into for the series. 

Now I feel the urge to find out if there are any stamps with irradiated, giant ants so I can write about the movie THEM!

If you enjoyed this article, check out A few curated sta … ooh look dragons!  an exploration of how dragons and Lindwurms are depicted on stamps. And don’t miss the 2022 Faroe Islands stamps. Petersen’s Europa set is due May 16, 2022. 

This article appeared in the December #3 2021 Newsletter. You can sign up for my free newsletter by using the box on the home page, if the handy signup box has disappeared.  Subscribers are periodically treated to an article that is currently under construction.

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