Date of Issue : 13 September 2012
Iceland Post issued a set of two stamps on 13 September featuring Lighthouses.
The Engey lighthouse
A lantern was installed in Engey Island in 1870 and lighted when postal vessels were expected. The Reykjavík Harbour Fund was in charge of the installment and maintenance. In 1902 a small lighthouse was built in Engey, replacing the lantern. In 1937 a concrete lighthouse was erected in the island and was fitted with a 500 mm lens and gaslight equipment. It was powered with electricity in 1963. The lighthouse is a quadrilateral 5,5 m high tower with a 3,5 m high Swedish lantern. Originally the lighthouse was white with a vertical red stripe in the middle of the wall but was later painted yellow.
The Kálfshamar lighthouse
In 1913 a lighthouse was built at Kálfshamarsnes in the northwest of Iceland. It consisted of a Norwegian lantern of cast iron on a concrete plate. A new lighthouse was built at Kálfshamarsnes in 1940. It was taken into use in 1942 and fitted with a 500 mm lens and gaslight equipment. In 1973 it was powered with electricity. The Kálfshamar lighthouse is a concrete quadrilateral tower 16,3 m high on a low foundation. The tower walls have inlaid vertical stripes with a crucifix moulded in the surface over the entrance. The walls are plated with light quartz and the inlaid stripes with obsidian.
Other recent stamps from Iceland…
On 3rd May 2012 Iceland Post issued following stamps .
150th Anniversary of Akureyri
Date of Issue : 3 May 2012
Akureyri is Iceland's fourth most populous municipality.Akureyri lost its township prerogatives 1836, but regained them in 1862. Farmers in Eyjafjörður established organizations to strengthen their position against the Danish merchants. They founded the KEA cooperative which played a substantial role in the growth of the town of Akureyri, supporting a number of industrial companies in the town, many of which specialized in processing agricultural products.
The Akureyri Park
The Akureyri Park is run by the town as a botanical garden and a nature park. The latter was formally opened to the public in 1912 while the botanic garden opened in 1957. The Park Society was founded in 1909 with Sigridur Sæmundsdóttir as its first president. Margrethe Schiöth contributed to the growth and development of the park for more than thirty years. The Akureyri Embellishment Society promoted the acquisition of a remarkable and unusual botanical collection owned by Jón Rögnvaldsson, a pioneer in the cultivation of plants in Iceland. Now the park contains nearly 7000 foreign species and most of the Icelandic flora.
The Hallargarður park in Reykjavík
The Hallargarður park in Reykjavík, constructed in 1953-4, was designed by Jón H. Björnsson, Iceland´s first trained landscape architect. The park is influenced by American modernism, with curves and constantly changing vistas. It was completed in summer 1954. In 1986 the park was altered and the pond and fountain replaced by shrubs and flowerbeds. There is a monument in the park of the entrepreneur Thor Jensen and his wife, Thorbjorg Jensen. In the uppermost part of the park there is a sculpture “A boy and a girl” by Ásmundur Sveinsson.
Scouting in Iceland 100th Anniversary
Date of Issue : 3 May 2012
Ingvar Ólafsson founded the first scouting patrol in Iceland in 1911 and the first scout meeting was held on July 16th of that year. Ingvar had been introduced to the scouting idea in Denmark, where he lived for a while. In 1912 the first Boy Scout district became a reality and was named Skátafélag Íslands (Iceland Scout Association), later changed into Reykjavik Scout Association led by Sigurjón Pétursson of Álafoss.
The first girl scout association was founded in July 1922 with Jakobína Magnúsdóttir as the first group leader. Gertrud Fridriksson, the first group leader of the scouts in Husavik, played a crucial part in the establishment of the association. The Girl Scout Association was founded 23rd March 1939 with a membership of 459. In 1944 the two national associations merged into the current Icelandic Boy and Girl Scout Association.
The London Olympic Games
Day of Issue: 3 May 2012
