Sunday, October 9, 2011

Stamp of the Day: Vallmokapslar (poppy fruits)

Sweden does have gorgeous stamps.  In the US, stamps have to be so politically perfect, fit the general population and absolutely fit the political climate.  In Sweden, there is a different sense of what is beautiful, like these poppy fruits.  These are from three species of poppies, two are common agricultural weeds, and the third is, you guessed it, opium poppy, commonly grown as an ornamental, advertently or inadvertently, but still part of the unofficial Swedish flora.  Lovely stamp, don't you think?  BREV means letter, which for practical purposes is the same as first class stamps in the US. (For the botanically inclined, Papaver is the Latin name for poppies.)

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