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| Volodymyr Zelensky displaying the stamp (Source: internet) |
We all are familiar with the proverb - ‘The pen is mightier than the sword.’ This popular adage states that simple writing with a writing instrument can be more powerful than the sharp blade of a deadly sword. Time may have altered the said proverb, albeit with little difference, - ‘Philately is more powerful than fire power.’
Here is a story, based on internet research, which is intended to cover the philately side of Moskva, now sunken Russian guided missile cruiser and no political intention or overtone whatsoever. Additional information/input/correction etc are welcomed.
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In one of the issues of Time magazine of 1990, they had justified the above mentioned proverb by quoting that the Prime Minister of Poland was a journalist, the President of Czechoslovakia was a playwrighter, the President of Hungary was a language translator etc. The list has grown longer by adding Volodymyr Zelensky as President of Ukraine who was a television comedian and has recently appeared as a new avatar in the popular world of Philately (the hobby of collecting and studying about postage stamps and allied materials).
As TV actor in the series 'Servant of the people' (2015-2019), Zelensky had played the role of President of Ukraine and later he assumed the post of real President of Ukraine on 20 May 2019!
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Vladimir Putin, the Russian President on the morning of 24 Feb 2022 launched a 'Special military operation' in Donbas, Ukraine. The Russian Navy deployed its guided missile cruiser Moskva from Sevastopol Naval base of Crimean peninsula. Sevastopol is a crucial base for Russian navy. On the very first day of the Russia-Ukraine war, at about 6 pm of local time, Moskva, which was supported by patrol vessel Vasily Bykov, began bombarding Snake (Zmiinyi) Island in the Black Sea, south of Odessa.
But what happened behind the billowing smoke of the battlefield of Snake Island, was a historic moment, etched permanently in the domain of philately. Russians of Moskva ordered the Ukrainian soldiers to surrender. One of the Ukraine soldiers, identified later as Roman Grybov, yelled in Russian 'Russky voyenny korabl, idi na khuy' which translates 'Russian warship, go f**k yourself' by raising his middle finger. That obscene hand gesture by the Ukrainian soldier became talk of the town err talk of the world. That moment was frozen in time, forever.
The audio recording of the conversation where Russians ordered Ukrainians to surrender and their reply with cuss word spread through the internet like wildfire in no time. The English translation of the conversation was like this:
Unidentified Russian person from Moskva “This is a Russian warship. I propose you lay down your weapons and surrender to avoid bloodshed and unnecessary victims. Otherwise you will be bombed.”
Reply from Grybov “Russian warship, go f**k yourself.”
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| Picture source Internet |
After heavy shelling Russians took control of the island. There were 13 Ukrainian servicemen at Snake Island who were captured by the Russians. Grybov was captured by the Russians along with other defenders of Snake Island. He and other 12 captured soldiers were later freed from captivity on 28 Mar 2022, under prisoner exchange program. On return, he was accorded the welcome of a national hero.
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| Welcoming a hero (Source: internet) |
He was honored with a medal by his home region of Cherkasy.
At the backdrop of ongoing war with superior Russian warfare capabilities, Ukraine Post (Ukrposhta) on 01 Mar 2022 announced a stamp design competition. The theme was ‘30th anniversary of the modern Ukrainian stamp'. Participants were required to upload their designs and voting by citizens would commence by 08 Mar 2022.
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| The finalists (Source: internet) |
There were more than 500 entries for the design of the stamp. Public voting through social media selected 20 designs for the stamp. Ultimately there were three finalists. A design with depiction of an Ukrainian soldier (Grybov) holding an assault rifle in one hand and middle finger raised on the right hand, looking at Moskva was the final winner.
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| The stamp (Source: internet) |
Nobody imagined at that point of time that the mighty Moskva which appeared in the backdrop, would soon find its final resting place at the bottom of Black Sea.
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| National flag of Ukraine (Source: internet) |
The yellow foreground and blue ocean at the back, reflected the colors of the national flag of Ukraine. The theme was 'Ukrainian defiance in face of Russian aggression'.
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| Announcement of result of competition (Source: internet) |
The result of the stamp design competition was announced on 12 Mar 2022 by Emine Dzhaparova, First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ukraine. The artist of the winning design was Boris Groh from Lviv. The date of emission of the stamp was 12 Apr 2022. It is no wonder that both Roman Grybov and Boris Groh were present during the stamp release ceremony.
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| Designer of the stamp (Source: internet) |
The stamp was engraved by Integrated Printing Plant Ukraina For Securities. So far only one million pieces of the stamp could be printed.
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| A powerful display (Source: internet) |
According to Igor Smelyansky, General Director, Ukrposhta -
“We wanted to print more but the bombing last night in Kyiv affected the work of the factory and we did not manage to print the necessary quantity.”
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| First Day Cover (Source: internet) |
The stamp is available in two denominations. The one for sending letters within Ukraine has a face value of 23 Ukrainian Hryvnia UAH (0.77 USD).
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| The mini sheet - Horizontal design (Source: internet) |
The other denomination is 44 UAH (1.83 USD), for international mails.
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| The mini sheet - Vertical design (Source: internet) |
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| Bunch of First Day Covers with different cancellation (Source: internet) |
Probably this is a first First Day Cover of the world where along with visuals, an audio graph of wartime has been depicted. Incidentally, two types of cancellation have been noted on the First Day Covers.
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| Mini sheet 1 (Source: Internet) |
Two varieties of the mini sheet of the stamp.
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| Mini sheet 2 (Source: Internet) |
On 13 Apr 2022 (Wednesday) Zelensky posted a photograph posing with the said stamps. The caption read
“The phrase, which became a symbol of the steadfastness of Ukrainian defenders, is now on postage stamps. Use and remember that the 'Russian warship' always has only one direction.”
On 14 Apr 2022, Ukraine claimed that two Neptune (also known as R-360 Neptune) anti-ship missiles had struck Moskva. Russia stated that an incident of onboard fire has caused an explosion on the ship and all of its 500 crew members have been evacuated to safety. It sank while being towed towards the port. Whatever may be the truth, within hours of release of the stamp, Moskva, the pride of the Russian Black Sea fleet, met a watery grave.
Neptune, the anti-ship missile of Ukraine, was designed by the Luch Design Bureau of Ukraine. They had started developing since 2014 and Neptune was inducted in service in 2021. It flies at a speed of 900 km/hour (approx.) and at an altitude of 10-15 m over seawater. Neptune is the name of the ancient Roman God of sea!
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| Source: Internet |
Moskva was born as 'Slava' which in Russian language means 'Glory'. Her keel was laid down in 1976 in Shipyard 445 of the 61 Kommunara Shipbuilding Plant in Mykolaiv, Ukrainian SSR (source: Wikipedia). In the life cycle of a ship there are four milestones - keel laying, launching, commissioning and decommissioning. Laying of keel is the formal announcement of the beginning of the construction of a ship. The event is marked with great fanfare and ceremonious celebration. Slava was launched in 1979 and was commissioned in 1983. On 15 May 1995, Slava was renamed as Moskva. As Moskva, she had proven her might while deployed during military conflicts in Georgia in 2008, Crimea in 2014 and Syria in 2015 and several other engagement zones. Moskva had visited Mumbai, Indian port in May 2003. After periodic repair and maintenance in 2020, she was on duty on sea in Mar 2021, expecting to extend her service lifespan till 2040. Sinking of Moskva on 12 Apr 2022 was the largest loss in the last 40 years in global naval history. It was ironic that Slava aka Moskva was born in the Ukraine SSR and her demise was also caused in Ukraine.
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| Rush to grab a piece (One can't miss the gesture by the lady in blue dress) (Source: internet) |
Coming back to philately, on 15 Apr 2022 (Friday), a serpentine queue was observed in front of the Philatelic Bureau of Central Post Office, Kyiv, Ukraine by enthusiastic people to buy that stamp and First Day Covers. Seasoned philatelists and common people, irrespective of age and gender, rubbed shoulders with each other, in the line up, to buy the stamp.
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| Listing at ebay (Source: internet) |
Some of the stamps went in the hands of the philatelists and some to philatelic sellers. In no time, a large number of stamps found their way to online selling websites. Display for resale popped up at popular online selling sites like ebay and others with price tags of USD 50 to 400 (shipping extra). As per one of the listing in ebay, one mini sheet of lower denomination have been sold at 299 USD each. Till 16 Apr 2022, one ebay seller has sold 3093 sheets as hotcake.
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| Listing on ebay (Source: internet) |
The replica of the stamp is being printed on T-shirts and flags which too is experiencing a surge in demand.
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| Source: Internet |
Philately is a strong carrier of message, even in the middle of the war. Indeed it has more power packed within its tiny body than the firepower of a guided missile cruiser.
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| A full sheet of stamps (Source: Internet) |
At the end, it may not be out of point to quote from the classic ‘War and Peace’ (published in 1869) written by the great Russian author Leo Tolstoy:
“Rostov looked at the snowflakes fluttering above the fire, and remembered a Russian winter at his warm bright home, his fluffy fur coat, his quickly gliding sledge, his healthy body, and all the affection and care of his family. ‘And why did I come here?’ he wondered.”
PS: Understand that Ukrposhta (Ukraine Post), after tremendous worldwide response to the ‘Go f**k yourself’ stamp (that’s how the stamp has gained popularity through the virtual world), is planning to issue another stamp of similar theme. Philatelists, worldwide, may have to wait for some time for that to happen.
Webliography:
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2022/04/16/world/ukraine-russia-stamp/
https://greekreporter.com/2022/04/16/ukrainian-post-russian-warship-stamp/
https://www.jpost.com/international/article-704096
https://defencewing.blogspot.com/2022/04/russian-warship-sinks-ukraine-says-its.html
https://nypost.com/2022/03/14/ukraine-launches-stamp-honoring-snake-island-soldiers/
Disclaimer:
The information provided in the article is for general informational purposes only. All information is provided in good faith. This is only for the sharing of knowledge of Philately with philatelist fraternity. No commercial or political angle, whatsoever, is involved. No intention to infringe any type of copyright. Under no circumstances I shall have any liability for reliance on any information provided in the story.
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This was published in May'2022 issue of Ananthapuri Stamp Bulletin. Here are the scans of relevant pages:
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| Cover page |
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| Index page |
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| Page 1 of 3 |
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| Page 2 of 3 |
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| Page 3 of 3 |
