Can I interest you in postal vehicles, old and new? EUROPA 2013 Postal Vehicles allowed post offices around Europe an opportunity to show off their cars & trucks. Scattered among the large number of modern vans (more than I thought was possible to publish), were gems like the UK’s classic Morris Minor and Switzerland’s 1921 3 wheel Tribelhorn. Some countries, like Spain & Denmark, took the opportunity to display their modern electric bikes & mini cars.
Poster from Musée de La Poste
My favourite stamp was less vehicle and more dromedary. Kazakhstan proudly promoted an important slice their history with Nikolai Khludov’s painting The Messenger.
Kazakhstan’s Camel Messenger
Germany’s early electric van also ranks on the top of the heap. The Hansa would be a blast to roar around the city in. Not sure if that’s part of the winning criteria, but that’s my reason and I’m sticking to my decision.
Hansa Lloyd’s Electric Postman Van 1911
Who won? Finland won juried with their 1933 Volvo LV-70.
Finland’s Volvo LV-70 (1933)
Turkey won the online, popular vote with their collection of vehicles. They are a powerhouse in the online voting competition, winning 6 times over the years. Once again, my favourites weren’t even in the running. That’s ok. This was a fun year to chase down.
Turkey’s collage of modern & new
If you are interested in postal vehicles and happen to be in Paris, Le Musée de La Poste has a number of exhibits devoted to this topic. Friends recently visited and brought back a few goodies for me, along with these photos and the poster above.
Musée de La Poste photos
They loved the museum and, despite not being stamp collectors, thoroughly enjoyed their visit. Check them out Museum of La Poste (museedelaposte.fr).
EUROPA 2013 is perfect companion piece for the EUROPA 2020 Ancient Postal Routes collection. Between the two themes, viewers get a glimpse into the long history of mail delivery. 2020 is still my favourite competition, but this one certainly hits the top 5 from all these years:
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If you have any information on any of the vehicles below, leave a comment. Enjoy the vehicles.
Catpaw
A
Åland
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, sheet of 10
offset lithography
Toyota Auris Hybrid
Designer: Kjell Söderlund ABOUT | Studio Söderlund (studiosoderlund.fi)
Photographer Söderlund has designed 13 stamp sets for Åland, including a number of EUROPA stamps.
Albania
2 stamp in booklet format
offset lithography
Designer: Laert Kraja
Release date: October 4, 2013
Andorra (France)
1 stamp, sheet of 20
Designer: Enric Cardús
Cardús also designed Andorra’s 2020 EUROPA – Ancient Postal Routes stamp
Release date: May 17, 2013
Andorra (Spain)
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, sheet
offset
Release date: April 23, 2013
Armenia
1 stamp, souvenir sheet of 4, sheet of 10, FDC, cancel
Designer: Vahan Baptist Վահագն Մկրտչյան
Release date: August 14, 2013
Austria
1 stamp, souvenir sheet
offset
Sheet shows two electric vehicles used by Austria, the first from 1913 & the second a modern 2013 van
Designer: Silvia Moucka
Moucka has designed around 20 stamps for Austria’s post office.
Release date: May 6, 2013
Azerbaijan
2 stamps, 1 stamp on souvenir sheet, mini sheet, 2 sheets of 10 (also available as imperf), booklet
Designer: Khasay Mirzoyev
Mirzoyev specialises in watercolours and has designed dozens of stamps for Azerbaijan.
Release date: February 25, 2013
Azores
2 stamps on souvenir sheet
Designer: Atelier Design&etc
Atelier Design&etc designs stamps both Portugal and Azores
Release date: May 9, 2013
B
Belarus
2 stamps, 1 mini sheets, 2 sheets of 10
Peugeot Partner & MAZ-437143-340
Designer: Ivan Lukin
Release date: April 29, 2013
Belgium
2 stamps, souvenir sheet, 2 cancels
offset lithography
Designer: Toni Mulder
Release date: February 11, 2013
Bosnia-Herzegovina (Croatia) FBiH
2 stamps, sheet of 10, sheet of 4
offset
Van & moped
Release date: April 5, 2013
Bosnia-Herzegovina (Srpska) RS
2 stamps, souvenir sheet, 2 sheets of 8, FDC, cancel
If you can identify these two classic vehicles, I’d appreciate it. I can’t quite make out the inscription.
Designer: Bozidar Došenović i Nebojša ĐumićIzdavac
Release date: July 13, 2013
Bosnia-Herzegovina (JP BH)
2 stamps, souvenir sheet, sheet of 6, 2 FDCs, cancel
offset lithography
VW Caddy Furgon & TF Furgon
Designer: Tamer Lučarević
Release date: May 9, 2013
Bulgaria
2 stamps, souvenir sheet, 2 sheets of 4
Citroën Jumper & Citroën Berlingo
Designer: Emiliyan Stankev
Release date: April 24, 2013
C – E
Croatia
2 stamps, FDC, cancel
Designer: Dean Roksandić using photos from HT Museum Archives
Release date: May 9, 2013
Cyprus
2 stamps, 2 sheets of 8, booklet, FDC, cancel
Release date: May 2,2013
Czech Republic
1 stamp, FDC, cancel
Model IV horse drawn van, using one horse pull up to 1 tonne parcels. It was still in use, in some areas, until 1960. Check out Horse Drawn Carriages – Equine Heritage Institute (4ahorse.org) website for a fun site that explores the history of horse drawn carriages.
Designer: Karel Dvořák
Line drawing: Jaroslav Tvrdoň
Release date: May 2, 2013
Denmark
1 stamp, souvenir sheet
offset lithography recessed
el-cykel med lad – Nihola
Electric cargo bikes Electric cargo bike | Huge selection from Famous Brands | Buy online here (el-ladcykler.dk)
This was (in 2013) the newest electric mail bike. It can carry up to 130 kg of mail. The image shows a small roll out ramp postal employees can use to roll larger parcels off the bike.
Designer: Bertil Skov Jørgensen
Previous EUROPA design: 2011 Forests
Release date: March 4, 2013
Estonia
2 stamps, FDC, cancel
offset
Designer: Jaan Saar
Saar has designed 30 stamps for Eesti Post, including 3 more EUROPA sets.
Release date: May 2, 2013
F
Faroe Island
2 stamps, booklets of 8, FDC, cancel
offset
FIAT DUBLÓ MAX 2012 & Scania R420 2007
Release date: April 29, 2013
Finland
2 stamps, sheet of 10
Ford Transit Connect & Volvo LV-70 (1933)
The Finish Postal Museum has a great page on early postal route maps. If you like maps and early mail delivery, check it out. (no search term) | Search results | Finna.fi. Some of the maps date back to the mid 1700s. You can also see more vehicles at Mobilia Auto-Kylä.
Designers: Ari Lakaniemi & Susanna Rumpu
Release date: May 6, 2013
France
2 stamps, philatelic document
photogravure
1840 horse drawn mail carriage & Renaut Kangoo
Release date: May 19, 2013
G
Georgia
2 stamps, souvenir sheet, 2 sheets of 10
Designer: G. Kartvelishvili
Release date: December 22, 2013
Germany
1 stamp, sheet of 10, FDC, cancel, souvenir folder
Hansa Lloyd’s Electric Postman Van 1911
Reichspost began using a fleet of these electric vehicles in 1908 in Berlin and Leipzig. By 1911, 31 Lloyd’s were working in Berlin.
Designer: Günter Gamroth
Release date: May 2, 2013
Gibraltar
4 stamps, 4 sheets of 10, FDC, cancel, presentation pack
Mail cart, 1914 Rover Motor Cycle Combination DU 5660, 1928 Electromobile 1-ton battery-electric van YX 7649 & 1911 Dennis mailvan used on London contract services LE 304
Designer: Stephen Perera
Illustration / Photography: John Batchelor MBE
Release date: June 20, 2013
Greece
2 stamps, booklet
offset lithography
Postal vehicles old and new
Release date: May 9, 2013
Greenland
2 stamps, booklet, sheets of 9, 2 postcards
Dogsled, van & truck
Designer: Christian Fleischer Rex
Release date: January 14, 2013
Guernsey
6 stamps, FDC, cancel, souvenir sheet, presentation pack, 6 sheets of 10
Offset Lithography
- Guernsey, Diahatsu Van
- La Poste, Citroen 2CV
- Royal Mail, Morris 6cwt O-Type Van
- Deutsche Bundespost, VW Beetle Van
- Posten AB, Kalmar Tjorven (DAF)
- US Mail, Studebaker Zip Van
When I received the Guernsey Post brief for the Europa Postman’s Van issue my initial thought was how I could inject some artistic appeal to the subject. In this case it helped that this was a ‘Europa’ issue, so we could represent the countries and their different vehicles with the environments in which they would appear. Robin Carter 2013
Designer: Robin Carter
Release date: May 8, 2013
H to K
Hungary
2 stamps on souvenir sheet, FDC, cancel
1914 Csonka parcel delivery van & Ford postman’s van
Designer: Zsolt Vidák
Release date: May 3, 2013
Iceland
2 stamps, 2 booklets of 10
offset lithography
Release date: May 2, 2013
Ireland
2 stamps
offset lithography
Release date: May 2, 2013
Isle of Man
1 stamp, sheet of 10, FDC, cancel
Newly independent Postal Authority begins operating July 1973.
This stamp was part of a larger set of 6 stamps titled Newspaper Headlines. Only one stamp was part of the EUROPA competition.
Release date: August 6, 2013
Italy
2 stamps
Photogravure
Moto Guzzi Galletto (1950) and modern Piaggio scooter & Old van (1910) and Ducati Free Duck electric quadricycle
Moto Guzzi Galletto Concept Electrifies The Iconic Scooter (rideapart.com)
Moto Guzzi Galletto, Two-wheeled Revolution – Rome Central Magazine
An electric quadricycle the Italian Ducati Energia Free the Duck (hydrogen-motors.com)
Release date: May 9, 2013
Jersey
2 stamps, 2 sheets of 10
These 2 stamps are part of a set of four & the vans & trucks are the only ones considered part of the Europa collection.
Designer: C. Coplett
Release date: March 19, 2013
Kazakhstan
1 stamp, sheet of 10, tête-bêche sheet of 10
offset
Jasaul (messenger) by Nikolai Khludov (1916)
This is a fabulous piece of Kazakhstan history. The topic of this stamp is a painting by Nikolai Khludov (1850−1935) titled “The Messenger” (1916). Khludov created a number of artworks devoted to the lifestyles of Kazakhs, often focusing on everyday events and people, such as the messenger above.
Khludov, Nikolai Gavrilovich (Хлудов, Николай Гаврилович) – VNese.wiki has a brief, well written article on Khludov. Written in Vietnamese so use Google Translate
Kazakh camels – Central-asia.guide
Designer: Baigonova A., Ibrayshin K., Moldabekova, A. Mar
Kazpost
Release date: April 22, 2013
Kosovo
2 stamps, souvenir sheet, FDC
Designer: T. Kelmendi & Y. Sadiku
Release date: May 2, 2013
L
Latvia
2 stamps, FDC, cancel, 2 sheets
Designer: Ludis Danilāns
Release date: April 15, 2013
Liechtenstein
1 stamp, 2 FDCs, cancel, sheet of 20, maxi card
Vehicle wheels
The upper and lower yellow wheel section belongs to a carriage wheel; after this comes the blue wheel of a bicycle, while the middle section is formed by a vehicle wheel depicted in different shades of red. The three types of wheel are not separate, producing instead – according to the young artist – a single entity intended to show that the post has been a continuing presence across the generations.
Liechtenstein 2013
Designer: Mirjam Büchel, Ruggell
Release date: March 4, 2013
Lithuania
2 stamps
offset
Car Tazzari ZERO & Car Moskvitch 401
Designer: Mindaugas Gribauskas
Release date: April 27, 2013
Luxembourg
2 stamps
Designer: L. Hacken
Release date: May 2, 2013
M
Macedonia
2 stamps, souvenir sheet
Release date: April 24, 2013
Madeira
2 stamps, souvenir sheet, sheets of 10
offset
Designers: Atelier Design&etc
Release date: May 9, 2013
Malta
2 stamps, 2 sheets of 10, FDC, cancel, booklet pane
offset
Ford Transit Mark 1 & Lambretta 3-wheeler
Designer: Cedric Galea Pirotta
Release date: May 9, 2013
Moldovia
2 stamps, 2 booklets of 4, FDC, cancel
Designer: Vladimir Melnic
Release date: April 30, 2013
Monaco
1 stamp
Peugeot Venturi
Designer: Archimède & Rino Golinelli
Release date: May 10, 2013
Montenegro
1 stamp
First mail car put on the roads in 1902
Designer: Đorđije Radević
Release date: April 19, 2013
N
Netherlands
2 stamps, sheet of 10
offset
Designer: Ingmar Birza, Birza Design
Birza’s first stamp design was the 2003 Dutch Wadden set. Other stamps include 2017 Living in the North Sea and 2014 Stamp Day.
Release date: April 8, 2013
Norway
2 stamps
offset
Harley Davidson, 1932 & Ford El-Connect
Designer: Madeleine M. Karlstrøm
Karlstrøm also designed Norway’s 2012 EUROPA: Children’s Books and 2015 EUROPA: Old Toys
Release date: June 10, 2013
P – R
Poland
1 stamp, sheet of 9
offset
Release date: May 6, 2013
Portugal
2 stamps on souvenir sheet, FDC, cancel
Release date: May 9, 2022
Romania
2 stamps, sheet of 4, FDC, cancel
offset
Victor Telibasa
Release date: April 30, 2013
Russia
1 stamp, sheet of 8, FDC, cancel, folder
offset
18th/19th century pochtovaya troika
Designer: A. Povarihin
Release date: April 26, 2013
S
San Marino
2 stamps
offset
1950s post van
Release date: April 3, 2013
Serbia
2 stamps, FDC, cancel, 2 sheets of 9
postal car used on the Kosovska Mitrovica – Raska – Novi Pazar route & modern postal van
Designers: Radomir Bojanić and Jakša Vlahović
Release date: January 1, 2013
Slovenia
2 stamps
offset
Release date: March 23, 2013
Slovakia
1 stamp, booklet of 6, maxicard, FDC, cancel
offset
Škoda 125 chassis by Sobotka in Vysoké Mýto
Skoda 125 had a four-stroke, liquid-cooled four-cylinder engine containing 1944 cm3, which had a power of 30 hp.
Designer: Marián Komáček
Komáček has designed a number of vehicle stamps for Slovakia’s post office, including the 2011 Historic vehicles – Aero 30, 2014 Historic motorcycles – Manet M90, and 2015 Steam locomotive 464.001.
Release date: January 1, 2013
Spain
1 stamp, FDC, cancel
lithography
Release date: April 23, 2013
Sweden
2 stamps, souvenir sheet
lithography recessed
Designer: Gustav Mårtensson
Engraving: Piotr Naszarkowski
Release date: March 14, 2013
Switzerland
2 stamps, cancel, 2 maxicards,2 postcards
offset lithography
2 electric vehicles
1921 3 wheel Tribelhorn AG, Zurich-Altstetten used 1902 to 1919 & 2012 3 wheel Kyburz AG, Freienstein
Designer: Peter Hummel
Release date: May 7, 2013
T to V
Turkey
2 stamps, FDC, cancel
Release date: May 9, 2013
Ukraine
2 stamps, booklet of 2, sheet of 16
offset
Mockvich-400 1953 & Maz-5440 2013
Release date: April 26, 2013
United Kingdom
1 stamp, souvenir sheet
offset
Part of the British Auto Legends: Workhorses set. Morris Minor was the EUROPA entry
Morris Minor van – used by Royal Mail from 1961 to 1972
500 years of Royal Mail | (royalmailgroup.com)
Designers: Why Not Associates
Release date: August 13, 2013
Vatican
2 stamps, cancel
Release date: May 2, 2013
You can see last year’s here – Europa 2021 Endangered Wildlife stamps | Bitter Grounds Magazine
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