May 21 is St Helena Day!
May 21 is St Helena Day!
St Helena island, located smack dab in the middle of the South Atlantic ocean, is one of the most remote spots on the earth. It is 47 sq. miles and home to 4,000 people. It is best known as Napoleon’s last home after his exile from France.
For this day, I’ve picked a stamp from my own collection.
Badge of the Colony – cleft rock error.
From the King George V and Badge of St. Helena series
Issued by St. Helena in 1923
Designer: Thomas R. Bruce
Thomas R. Bruce acted as St Helena’s postmaster and stamp designer (among many other jobs) from 1898 until 1923 when he resigned. He emigrated to the US for about a year before returning to St Helena and resumed postmaster duties in 1924, finally retiring in 1929. In 1912, Bruce was asked to design a new set of stamps for a King George V series. It wasn’t released until 1921 and remained in use until KGV’s death. According to Thomas R. Bruce – Life of a Saint by Ian Bruce, Bruce never received any payment for his design work, as it was assumed to be part of his postmaster duties. 
Three plate flaws have been identified: torn flag, cleft in rock, broken mast. If you look carefully at the large rock formation in the background, you will notice a small break on the right side, near the top. This flaw is referred to as a cleft rock. This stamp popped up in an unremarkable small lot I picked up at an auction. I spotted the flaw by accident while examining the engraving work. And yes, I became quite excited. It’s one of the few error stamps I have kept. I normally swap errors for some cool airmails, but this was one of those exceptional finds.
Most historical accounts state that the island was discovered 524 years ago on 21st May 1502 by the Galician navigator João da Nova (sometimes, incorrectly, written ‘João da Nova Castella’), sailing in the service of the King of Portugal. Anchoring in what is now James Bay, it is said that he named it ‘Santa Helena’ after St Helena of Constantinople, whose Saint’s Day falls on 21st May. However, there are a number of problems with this story. For a start, da Nova would have been a Catholic, and they celebrate St Helena’s Saints Day on 18th August, not 21st May. Protestants celebrate Saint Helena on 21st May, but they hadn’t even been invented in 1502…
St Helena Day Explained
Of course we have more SODs for you to enjoy on this St Helena Day: