The 1994 Scenic Issue of four stamps features the four seasons with each stamp showing a different scene in a different season. In a country like New Zealand, surrounded by oceans, it is often hard to define exactly when one season changes into another. I've known beautiful sunny weather in June and July which is said to be winter then starting the fire on Christmas Day in the middle of summer.
This is an interesting theme combined with an unusual design format to create what I think is one of the better scenic stamp issues.
This is an interesting theme combined with an unusual design format to create what I think is one of the better scenic stamp issues.
45c - Winter, Mt Cook & Mt Cook Lily.
Mount Cook (Aorangi) towers to nearly 3,800 metres, highest in the chain of mountains we call the Southern Alps. The first known ascent was on 25 December 1894, when New Zealanders Tom Fyfe, John Michael (Jack) Clarke and George Graham successfully reached the summit via the Hooker Valley and the north ridge. Probably the most famous of the many climbers of Mount Cook is Sir Edmund Hillary, world renowned as the first conqueror of Mount Everest. On the western side of the lower Hooker Valley, 16 kilometres south of Mount Cook itself, visitors can find the Mount Cook Centre for full information on the walking, tramping and climbing opportunities available.
Mount Cook (Aorangi) towers to nearly 3,800 metres, highest in the chain of mountains we call the Southern Alps. The first known ascent was on 25 December 1894, when New Zealanders Tom Fyfe, John Michael (Jack) Clarke and George Graham successfully reached the summit via the Hooker Valley and the north ridge. Probably the most famous of the many climbers of Mount Cook is Sir Edmund Hillary, world renowned as the first conqueror of Mount Everest. On the western side of the lower Hooker Valley, 16 kilometres south of Mount Cook itself, visitors can find the Mount Cook Centre for full information on the walking, tramping and climbing opportunities available.
While not exactly a winter flower, Mt Cook Lily adds an almost incongruous touch to the ruggedness of the alpine climes it inhabits. It is not, as the name suggests, a lily, but of the buttercup family (Ranunculus lyallii) and is a prolific producer of blossom, carpeting large areas of otherwise inhospitable terrain.
70c - Spring, Lake Hawea & Kowhai.
Three hundred and forty five metres above sea level and occupying the site of an ancient glacier between ridges in the Southern Alps lies Lake Hawea. It is approximately 25 square kilometres in area and has the popular holiday settlement of Hawea at its south-western corner. Fishing is good here with brown trout and salmon the most popular quarry. Deer, goats and game birds are also to be found near the lake.
Three hundred and forty five metres above sea level and occupying the site of an ancient glacier between ridges in the Southern Alps lies Lake Hawea. It is approximately 25 square kilometres in area and has the popular holiday settlement of Hawea at its south-western corner. Fishing is good here with brown trout and salmon the most popular quarry. Deer, goats and game birds are also to be found near the lake.
The Kowhai, one of the few native trees which loses its leaves in winter presents us with a dazzling display of golden flowers just prior to the new spring leaf growth. Native birds such as tuis and woodpigeons are attracted during this period, their calls adding to the display.
$1.50 - Summer, Opononi & Pohutukawa.
A short distance from the heads and the open sea, the charming township of Opononi nestles on the southern shoreline of Hokianga Harbour. At one time it was the site of the harbour's thriving port facilities but is now better known as a farming locality and a holiday beach resort with safe bathing and good sea fishing. The area has a distinctly individual character, a personality of its own.
A short distance from the heads and the open sea, the charming township of Opononi nestles on the southern shoreline of Hokianga Harbour. At one time it was the site of the harbour's thriving port facilities but is now better known as a farming locality and a holiday beach resort with safe bathing and good sea fishing. The area has a distinctly individual character, a personality of its own.
Known as the New Zealand Christmas Tress, the profusion of brilliant Pohutukawa blossoms brings appropriate reds and oranges to our Southern Hemisphere summer Christmas period each year.
$1.80 - Autumn, Lake Pukaki & Puriri.
High in the Southern Alps you can find Lake Pukaki. In Maori, Pukaki means 'head of the creek'. The Tasman River, which feeds into Lake Pukaki can hardly be called a creek as four massive glaciers supply the river and the lake is the heart of the Upper Waitaki Hydro Power Development Scheme. Lake Pukaki provides a fabulous view of Mount Cook mirrored in its placid waters.
High in the Southern Alps you can find Lake Pukaki. In Maori, Pukaki means 'head of the creek'. The Tasman River, which feeds into Lake Pukaki can hardly be called a creek as four massive glaciers supply the river and the lake is the heart of the Upper Waitaki Hydro Power Development Scheme. Lake Pukaki provides a fabulous view of Mount Cook mirrored in its placid waters.
The deep pink of the flowers and the bright red fruit of the Puriri contrasts with the dark green shiny foliage well into autumn.
1994 - Four Seasons FDC.
As well as displaying the stamps of the four seasons, the flowers of the Pohutukawa,
Puriri, Mt Cook Lily and Kowhai are shown on this cover.
No it is not a printing or design error.
When I first began to study this issue I quickly noticed many stamps were show some kind of colour shift. Then I noticed there seem to be no 'correct' ones. It was only then that I realised that the large capital letter near the top was each design was actually meant to have a shadow.
Technical information:-
Date of Issue:
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27 April 1994
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|---|---|
Designer:
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Rick Youmans, Wellington, NZ
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Printer:
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Southern Colour Print, New Zealand
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Stamp Size:
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45mm x 20mm
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Sheet Size:
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100 stamps per sheet
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Process:
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Lithography
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| Perforation Gauge: |
12
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Paper Type:
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Harrison and Sons, red phosphor coated, unwatermarked
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Some of the images in this post were used with permission from the illustrated catalogue of StampsNZ
You can visit their web site and On-line Catalogue at, http://stampsnz.com/
Information for this post came from.
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