Dear Reader,

The year 2003 will be an exciting philatel-ic year for POST Greenland with a grandsupply of new and beautiful designs fromour Greenlandic artists. Just to mention afew exciting themes - our beautiful shipsare illustrated and engraved by MartinMörck and the Greenlandic sledge dogs areillustrated by Naja Abelsen and engravedby Lasse Sjöblom. We continue the seriesof joint issues, this time with PostDanmark, by marking the 100th anniversaryof the Danish Literary GreenlandExpedition.

This year POST Greenland will participatein a series of exhibitions and we will try tobe represented at as many exhibitions aspossible. We are happy to meet our current

and new customers around the world andwe are delighted at the increasing populari-ty of Greenland stamps.

Our website www.stamps.gl enjoys acontinuously increasing number of visitors.The number of electronic enquiries viaemail is also constantly growing. We regardthis as a positive growth and as such POSTGreenland plans to update the website inthe near future, to make it more dynamicand user friendly for all our visitors.

POST Greenland is closely monitoringthe development in all relevant fields forimprovement in the quality of our stamps.As a result, in 2003 we will introduce othertypes of paper for our stamps. These typesof paper are adjusted to the printing me-thods, which are used on our stamps.

Abroad many people connect the winterin Greenland with bitter cold and a lot of iceand snow. Indeed, we do have plenty ofthese things, however, an overwhelmingplain of snow upon snow is also hidden ina mountain plateau, often bathed in brightsunshine – it is a must to experience thisfascinating and magnificent natural land-scape at least once in a lifetime.

Enjoy your reading.

Yours sincerely,

Søren RosePhilatelic Manager

Hello, my name is Frederik. I am 12 yearsold and have been living in a town calledTasiilaq on the East coast of Greenland for18 months now. Last Summer I moved from"Ringkøbing" in Denmark with my parentsand my two sisters (age 14 and 3).

I began collecting stamps when I was 5years old. My uncle from Germany hadgiven me his old stamp collection, becausehe could see that I found it exciting to lookat the stamps with him.

In the beginning I mainly collected stampswith funny designs like dinosaurs, animalsand ships, but as time progressed I gra-dually switched to collecting Danish andGreenland stamps.

When I was 10 years old, I became amember of "Ringkøbing Stamp Club". For along time I was the only child and thesecond youngest collector was approxi-mately 50 years old. Everybody was verysympathetic and nice and I always tookhome a bag with lots of stamps. I alwayslooked forward to Thursday evenings, whenit was time to go to the stamp club. Soon Ihad collected approx. 25,000 stamps and Ialways had something to do, whenever I gotbored. Then I would go through the bags Ihad received and I found it very exciting tofind some stamps that were missing frommy collection. The most exciting thing,however, was to be around the other collec-

tors and exchanging stamps.In the club I learned how to sort my col-

lection and that it would be wise not tospread the collection over too large an area.Therefore I began to concentrate on Danishstamps. These were also the stamps Ipacked for our 3-year stay in Greenland.

The funny thing is I moved in just acrossthe road from the Greenland PhilatelicBureau. At this very moment I have a clearview of the Philatelic Bureau with"Sømandsfjeldet" (The Sailor’s Mountain)behind it. I am a member of the philatelynow and I collect Greenland stamps withgreat joy. I have always thought the designson the Greenland stamps to be very beauti-ful and often they tell something about thecountry.

Tasiilaq has approx. 1800 inhabitants andit is the largest town on the entire Eastcoast. The school has 450 pupils and hasrecently been renovated. Unfortunately notmany people collect stamps in this town.

There are plenty of things to do here inGreenland other than collecting stamps.During the winter I often go skiing, becausethere is a ski lift 5 minutes from my house.I have been dog sledding quite a lot acrossthe fiord and up the mountains from lake tolake. The nature around here is incrediblybeautiful both during the summertime andthe wintertime. It is very exciting to go dog

sledding; but it is even more fun to drive asnow mobile. The speed is more appealingto me.

I love to go fishing in a stream, whichruns through the town and falls into thefiord. I have also tried to go fishing on theocean, where I among other things caught acatfish that weighed 17 kilograms. I alsoplay soccer and like to visit the Internet caféwe have established at the school.

Last summer I hiked for 8 hours with twoof my friends from Denmark, my sister andour father across the Island of Ammassalikto a school camp at the "Sermilik fiord" nearIkatteq. Here you can watch enormous ice-bergs floating by and look out onto the icecap. It is very beautiful. The trip was verystrenuous; but as luck would have it whenwe arrived, we found a lot of Donald Duckcomics. It is very cosy to be at the schoolcamp and flop down after a long hiking trip.

Once in a while I get to go along on seal-ing trips on the ocean. On one of the trips Isaw some whales. It was ‘cool’ to see suchenormous animals and be that close tothem.

I am happy to be able to experienceGreenland and to explore the fantasticnature around here, but I also miss havingmore friends to share my interests with. It isa challenge to be in a classroom, wherethey speak a completely different language.

3

rederik-is a Philatelist

4

Report from"Frimærker i Forum 2002"("Stamps in Forum 2002" in Copenhagen)

"Frimærker i Forum 2002", the largest stamp and trading exhibitonin Northern Europe was arranged by DanmarksFrimærkehandlerforening, Danmarks Filatelist Forbund, PostDanmark, Postverk Føroya and POST Greenland. We bring you ourreport from this exhibition in Copenhagen.

By Lars Anker-Møller, Head of Sales in POSTGreenland, Filatelia

The last business transaction has beencarried out and the sales booths are emptyonce more. The only ones remaining are thedifferent postal services and traders, whohurriedly pack their articles away. It is timeto take stock for "Frimærker i Forum 2002".

Our expectations had not been very high,since the recent exhibitions have shown adecreasing interest in visiting stamp exhibi-tions. The management of "Frimærker iForum" had prepared for such consequen-ces and wisely - as an old saying goes – cutone’s coat according to one’s clothes withthe lowest budget seen for many a year. So,it was with excitement that we stood by on8 November at 10 a.m., as Erling Daugaard,president of the exhibition, gave a warmwelcome to everybody. Subsequently thePostal Orchestra of Copenhagen played infront of a "forcemeat shaped" crowd of visi-tors, who impatiently awaited the openingin order to acquire the very latest stamps.

"Frimærker i Forum 2002", took placeduring the period from 8 to 10 November.The theme of the exhibition was the mari-time environment. POST Greenland exhibi-ted three lectures behind our sales booth:Ole Ventegodt vividly narrated the naviga-tion of the Greenlander ships, Birte Haagenheld a slide show lecture on sealing inGreenland and Asger Fredslund told about

his exciting time with the Sirius Patrol. Nextto our sales booth Oline was making allkinds of beautiful figures in steatite, whilechatting with the large number of visitorswho wanted to know about her beautifulartwork. Consequently, the visitors hadplenty to look at and listen to. I have toadmit that I did not have time to listen toany of the lectures, since the crowd at oursales booth was so large that at times wehad to have four people serving the custo-mers; nevertheless a lot of people had toqueue for up to 45 minutes before it got tobe their turn. That is why I would very muchlike to say thank you to all the visitors atPOST Greenland’s sales booth for your pa-tience and good spirits.

Especially, the first mini sheets issued byPOST Greenland in March 2002 were muchsought after during the entire exhibition,both in the mint and in the cancelled ver-sion. The demand on these mini sheetswith the designs depicting the Greenlandicdrum and the wooden mask was so greatthat we had to bring back home orders fromseveral visitors.

Furthermore seeing so many of ourcustomers receiving our new GreenlandYear Pack and the Christmas Stamps sowell was a great joy. The latter were issuedin the traditional whole sheets with gum onthe back as well as self-adhesive stamps inthe popular Greenland Christmas StampBooklet. Finally, we ought to mention that

our joint issue with Post Danmark andPostverk Føroya, which incidentally carriedthe theme "The International Council forthe Exploration of the Sea", ICES, apparent-ly has appealed to the collectors. So, a vastnumber of ICES souvenir sheets and ICESsouvenir folders were handed over thecounter during the three days of the exhibi-tion.

More than 8,000 people visited"Frimærker i Forum 2002"; not an enormousnumber, but in return every participatingpostal service at the exhibition gave reportsof record-breaking business. This meansthat next year presumably will bring aneven larger number of participating postalservices.

Many visitors at POST Greenland’s salesbooth chose to accept our offer of takingout a subscription on Greenland YearPacks. I would like to take this opportunityto welcome all the new subscribers to POSTGreenland.

Now that the last light has been turned offin Forum, the preparations for this year’sexhibition have begun, at which time I lookforward to seeing everybody at "Frimærker iForum" once more.

POST Greenland’s competition during"Frimærker i Forum 2002"In connection with "Frimærker i Forum2002" we arranged a competition in whichyou had to answer three questions aboutGreenland. The prize was a beautifulmodel of a kayak made of sealskin andwood. The lucky winner was Ole Hansenfrom Copenhagen, aged 61 and a securitymanager. After the draw I caught Ole onhis mobile phone while he was in an ele-vator on his way to the car park under adepartment store in the town of Ballerupin Denmark, where the rest of our conver-sation took place while the bag of e.g.Christmas brew was placed on the floor.

Ole is indeed a worthy winner as his com-ments below clearly state:

"I began collecting stamps while I was still inschool, which must have been sometime during theearly 50’s. Most of the boys in my classroom did it,so we were exchanging stamps like mad. My firststamp I think was a red one of King Frederik IX ofDenmark. This stamp is probably not availabletoday.

My interest in Greenland stamps began a coupleof years later after having visited "Postvæsenetssalgskontor for frimærkesamlere" (The Sales Officeof Postal Services for Stamp Collectors) – today"Post Danmark Stamps", which was situated at theGeneral Post Office in Bernstorffsgade 32 in

Copenhagen. Here you were also able to buyGreenland stamps.

Except from the "Pakke-Post" and the Americanissues with surcharge, I have collected every issuedGreenland stamp in mint. At the time I thought itcost a fortune to buy "Gustav Holm" (AFA 41)denominated at DKK 5.00 out of my own pocketmoney!

I visited Greenland in 1975 and in 1977. Twowonderful trips with experiences like:• Navigating between the icebergs on the ships"Disko" and "Kununguak" along the west coastbetween Maniitsoq and Ilulissat – a fantastic view.• A demonstration by a kayaker in Aasiaat.• The enormous glacier in Ilulissat – a beautifulsight in the midnight sun.• Visited the arctic station in Qeqertarsuaq. Ate awhale steak on "the bus" (the ship "Tudliq") on theway between Aasiaat and Qeqertarsuaq. • Caught a Minke Whale in Aasiaat, followed bydistribution of the whale.• A confirmation in Sisimiut with the parentsand the confirmants in national dress.• A handshake by the prime minister in Ilulissat– I was a spectator and maybe I stood out toomuch so that the prime minister at the time, AnkerJørgensen, thought I was one of the notabilities ofthe town.• Sat on a mailbag in a helicopter from Sisimiutto Kangerlussuaq.• When the plane from Kangerlussuaq toCopenhagen was delayed, we got to go onto the icecap, where we made some coffee from the ice on thespirit heater. While drinking the coffee two reindeerwalked by, but they quickly ran off again."

Ole finishes by saying he is extremelyhappy to have won the kayak and he looksforward to receiving it very much. Onceagain POST Greenland wishes to congratu-late Ole on winning.

5

Generally when referring to the huskythere is no particular BREED of dog inquestion. The word husky relates to theSLEDGE DOG, which nowadays is only keptin West Greenland from Kangerlussuaq(Søndre Strømfjord) to the Thule districtand in every settlement in East Greenland.In the desolate National Park in North andNortheast Greenland amongst other things,the military sledge patrol Sirius uses thedog sledge during their work of exercisingthe Danish sovereignty.

Dogs in GreenlandThe oldest traces of dogs in Greenland

stem from the oldest period in Greenland’spre-history: The Saqqaq culture. In archae-ological excavations in a present-day dog

district like the Disko Bay at Qeqertasussuknear Qasigiannguit (Christianshåb) andQajaa (in the Jakobshavn Ice Fiord), severalcanine bones have been found, which areamong the oldest known canine bones inthe Eastern Arctic. They are about 3,500years old. The bones clearly show that theSaqqaq dog resembled the present-dayGreenland sledge dog. However, we do notknow what it was used for, since there is noknowledge of any sledge remains from thatperiod; however, there are many indicationsthat it was a pack animal. Cuts in the bonesindicate that the dogs were presumablyalso consumed as food.

The dog in pre-historic timesYou can imagine that the dog and the

human were closely connected during theSaqqaq era. The Saqqaq people lived in aregion in which sealing has had immensesignificance up to the present-day, especi-ally during winter. When the Disko Bay wascovered with ice and the Ringed Seal wasmaintaining its vital breathing holes in thecompact ice – and during the polar nights,the Saqqaq man set out to hunt on the seaice along with his dog, which was skilled intracing and marking the breathing holes ofthe seal by means of its sensitive sense ofsmell. The dog tracked down the sealing

THEHUSKY

( KALAALLIT QIMMIAT )

By Emil Rosing, the managing director of theNational Museum & Archive of Greenland.

Emil Rosing was born in Tasiilaq in 1939. Educatedat teacher’s colleges in Greenland and Denmark, he tooka philosophy examination at the University ofCopenhagen in 1971. During the period 1974 to 1980he was head of the Graphic Workshop, today’s ArtSchool of Greenland. He took ethnology as a subsidiarysubject at the Institute of Eskimology in Copenhagen in1984. From 1984 to 1985 he was employed in theArctic Section at Musée de l’homme in Paris. Since1991 he has been managing director of the NationalMuseum & Archive of Greenland in Nuuk.

Illustratio

n b

y Jens R

osin

g.

01107303. 12.03.2003Mini sheet.Sledge dog puppiesDKK 36.00

01107304. 12.03.2003Mini sheet.Portait of a Sledge DogDKK 38.00

7

ground and so the hunter was able to har-poon the seal at the right time. The illustra-tion at the bottom of page 6 by Jens Rosingclearly shows how the man and the doghelped each other to sustain life.

The dog in historic timesWe know from the earliest contacts with

travellers and whalers from Europe that theGreenlanders used dogs as draught ani-mals in front of a sledge. It is documentedas early as in "Perlustrationer" by HansEgede, which portrays the life in WestGreenland during the 18th century and lateron in the beginning of the 19th century, e.g.the meeting of John Ross with the people ofthe Thule district.

The husky was born to "live and die in aharness", as the sealer Elmar Drastrupexpressed in the 1930’s after having residedfor many years as a sealer in NortheastGreenland. The husky has been trainedthroughout many generations to functionas a draught animal for heavy transporta-tion on long journeys, where it is capable ofdragging several times its own weight hourafter hour, even day after day. There arecountless accounts of its value on expedi-tions, sealing trips and tourist trips. Thehusky was not exactly born to be a racingdog – it is a hardy worker, with a body struc-ture that has not changed notably forthousands of years. We know that Scottishand other European whalers and travellersfrom Newfoundland brought along dogs ontheir cruises, especially to NorthGreenland, where the sledge dog is athome. It is inevitable that a certain amountof crossbreeding took place. The typicalsigns of a husky are the upright and propor-tionally small ears. One wonders if the dogswith the "bent" ears could be repercussionsof the crossbreeding and what about thelonghaired Meqqujuut?

"Dog and Sledge"The sledge dog and sledding make up an

important part of Greenland’s culture, which

is seen from abroad as characteristic ofGreenland. Concurrently with the growth inpopulation and the regulation of society, ithas also become necessary to draw up rulesand regulations regarding the keeping ofdogs, which are enforced by the authoritiesin the districts and on a national basis andwhich have to be observed by the dogowners. Today the number of sledge dogs inthe dog districts is estimated at 25,000 to30,000. The dogs, which are kept tied up allyear round, apart from during sledge rides,demand efficient care and attention if theyare to be a source of pleasure. Consequently,it is very demanding to keep a dog team. Totake part in sledding activities, it is to thisday necessary to observe certain principlesand cultural features.

Care and attention of puppies is impor-tant. It is possible to achieve a uniform andsatisfactory team by selecting the right mat-ing partners for the bitches. Screening ofpuppies may be necessary. In order to ob-tain robust, good-looking dogs with staminait is also necessary that feeding is carried outwith great care

Breeding and training demands know-ledge, time and patience. E.g. it is necessaryto have a well-developed communicationwith one’s dogs in order to be able to controlthem, especially in dangerous situations.

Naming is a chapter in itself, which can beboth varied and funny, but it is also very

important in the communication with thedogs.

Signals e.g. for speed have always beenindividual and private. They are constructedand used by the most skilled and experien-ced sledge drivers.

The equipment is very traditional, butnowadays it is obviously made of new mate-rials. There are variations, especially in thedesign of the sledge throughout the threedog sledding regions made up of Thule,East Greenland and West Greenland. Thedifferences are conditional on the nature ofground, the extent and character of the iceand the cultural traditions. The sledge fun-damentally consists of two runners, joinedby crossbeams and two stanchions. Theshape is ancient. The oldest known sledgeremains is a small sledge dragged by ropesfrom the Dorset era approx. 600 years B.C.(2,600 years before now). The dog sledgesof today descend from the people of theThule culture, who arrived in Greenlandapprox. 1200 years A.D.

The harness, which can be described asthe "clothing" of the dog, is very important.It has to be individually adjusted to theparticular dog that is going to wear it. Inthat way its body is taken care of during thehard work it has to perform. The traces,which lead from the sledge to the dog, needto be of a certain length and easy to detach,in order to be able to disentangle the dogsat any given time. The harness system wasconstructed for the dogs to run in the for-mation of a fan, which has always beenused in Greenland.

The dog whip, which to this day is madeof a wooden stick with a thin strap of seal-skin, is primarily used as a tool to guide andcontrol the dogs, if they do not obey thecontrol language that they have been trai-ned in by the sealer.

Equipment for the sledgeOf course the actual equipment for the

sledge and the sledge ride can vary from

owner to owner and according to the objec-tive of the ride. Sledding is connected withthose regions where you find compact iceduring the winter and, when winter ap-proaches, both people and dogs lookforward to go sledding during the comingwinter season. Throughout centuries thepeople have used the possibility of sled-ding during the winter for sealing and fis-hing, for transportation from place to place,for visiting trips between towns and settle-ments and for pleasure trips for family andfriends in their spare time.

Sledge racingOn 9 March 1949, the first organized sledge

race was arranged in the now abandonedcoal mining settlement Qullissat in theDisko Bay with 19 participating sledgesfrom the surrounding settlements in Vajgat.The route was 40 kilometres long and thefastest driver took 2 hours and 11 minutes.Today most North Greenlandic towns havesledding clubs and every year during earlyspring they arrange both local sledding

races and the Greenland Championships.At the same time the clubs accomplish amajor and commendable piece of work inmaintaining the sledding culture, in whichthey pay great attention to maintenanceand improved nurturance of the Greenlandsledge dog. The many sledge races duringthe winter are to this day extremely popularand provide great joy for both the localsand the tourists.

01100303. 12.03.2003Sledge dog puppiesDKK 4.50

01100304. 12.03.2003Portrait of a sledge dog slædehund DKK 4.75

01100305. 12.03.2003Sledge dog at workDKK 6,00

Date of issue: 12 March 2003 · Printing Method: Steel engraving · Paper: HS4, yellow fluorescentEngraving: Lasse Sjöblom · Artist: Naja Abelsen · Format: G – horizontal

Outside measurements: 39.52 x 28.84 mm · 40 stamps per sheet

01303012. 12.03.2003Souvenir folderSledge dogsDKK 30.50

01301211. 12.03.2003Stamp booklet no. 11Sledge dogs DKK 61.00

of the Year 20029

It turned out to be somewhat of a thrillerthis year; there was not a clear favouriteamong the stamps and the suspense onwhich stamp was to be elected as "Stampof the Year 2002" went on till the very end.

Now, however, the votes have beencounted. In total we received 2472 votesfrom our readers and collectors all overthe world, and G-293 won the competitionwith a total of 336 votes, equivalent to13.6%. It is one of our popular ship stam-ps, "Nordlyset", denomination DKK 2.00,printed in steel engraving and in G-hori-zontal format. It was illustrated and en-graved by Martin Mörck, whom we know asthe artist behind several of the stamps byPOST Greenland. Martin was also respon-sible for the printing of last year’s winningstamp, the Christmas stamp by BuutiPedersen, as well as the illustration andprinting of all the stamps in our ship seriesand the ICES stamps from our latest issue,the definitive series, the very popularSirius stamp from 2000, the snow owlstamps and the orchid series and last butnot least the printing of the "Europa"stamp 1999 illustrated by Buuti Pedersen.As a result, the voters have elected a worthywinner and POST Greenland congratulatesMartin on the election of one of his beau-

tiful ship stamps as "Greenland Stamp ofthe Year 2002".

The first runner-up was G-289 "SnowSculpture", one of the two "Norden" stamps2002 with the denomination DKK 31.00.The stamp is printed from a photographtaken by POST Greenland's GeneralManager Per Svendsen during the NuukSnow Festival 2001, printed by MortenStürup. This stamp received 299 votes,equivalent to 12.1% of all votes received.

Third place went to G-297, denominati-on DKK 11.00, with a total of 237 votes,

equivalent to 9.1%, which was the"Europa" stamp of 2002 drawn in KunukPlatoú’s characteristic and artistic style.

We are proud to have last year’s "Stampof the Year" winner, the artist BuutiPedersen draw the lucky winner among allthe received votes. Buuti Pedersen is arespected illustrator and painter, who hasresided in Tasiilaq – the hometown ofPOST Greenland, Filatelia - since 1995 withher family. Besides being the artist behindthe winning stamp of last year, as well asthe second runner-up the same year, Buutihas also illustrated the Christmas stampsof 1995, the highly praised "Europa" stampof 1999 and the stamp "Greenland Year2000". Buuti is also very active doing picto-rial as well as sculpture art and her art isrepresented at the Leiden Museum ofAnthropology in the Netherlands, theDanish Embassy in Riyadh in Saudi Arabiaand "Katuaq", Greenland’s Cultural Centrein Nuuk, to name but a few.

The winner of the beautiful sealskin Thewinner of the beautiful sealskin-coveredcushions is:

Ebbe Dietrichsen from Copenhagen inDenmark.

After the draw we telephoned the win-ner, and it was a very happy and surprised

Greenland StampPOST Greenland has repeated this successful competition and, for the fourth consecutive year, invited collectors of Greenland stamps,

readers of Greenland Collector and any one interested to vote for the stamp of the year from amongst all 15 stamps, issued by POSTGreenland in 2002. Every single vote participated in the draw for the main prize of two beautifully crafted East Greenlandic sealskin-covered cushions, designed and hand-crafted by a local seamstress. Furthermore we had a draw for 10 "consolation prizes" in the shapeof the beautiful books "Stamps Tell the Story of Greenland".

The votes were distributed as follows:

G No. Number of votes in% Title Position

G-288 56 2,3 "Norden" 2002 - "Stone and Man" 15

G-289 299 12,1 "Norden" 2002 - "Snow Sculpture" 2

G-290 167 6,8 Cultural Heritage III - Drum 6

G-291 214 8,7 Cultural Heritage III - Mask 4

G-292 100 4,0 Additional Value Stamp - "Paarisa" 12

G-293 336 13,6 Ship Stamp - "Nordlyset" 1

G-294 100 4,0 Ship Stamp - "Hvidbjørnen" 12

G-295 136 5,5 Ship Stamp - "Stærkodder" 9

G-296 159 6,4 Ship Stamp - "Haabet" 7

G-297 237 9,6 "Europa" Stamp 2002 - Circus 3

G-298 92 3,7 Definitive series 2002 14

G-299 102 4,1 ICES 100 years - Greenland Shark 11

G-300 118 4,8 ICES 100 years - Redfish 10

G-301 171 6,9 Christmas stamp - 1 / 02 5

G-302 148 6,0 Christmas stamp - 2 / 02 8

Invalid 37 1,5

Total 2472

10

60-year old Ebbe Dietrichsen, who wasinformed that he was the winner of thedraw for the beautiful sealskin-coveredcushions, which were the first prize in thecompetition of the election of theGreenland stamp of the year 2002.

Ebbe has collected Greenland stampsfor over 30 years, and has many memoriesfrom the time when he as a ship’s boy andlater as ordinary seaman with the fleet ofthe KGH (the Royal Greenland Trade) sai-led food to Greenland and returned toDenmark with cryolite.

Once again we would like to congratula-te Ebbe on winning the beautiful prize.

The 10 consolation prizes went to:

1. Kurt Svendsen, 2830 Virum, Denmark

2. Alis Lykke Kibsgaard, 2765 Smørum, Denmark

3. John Knutsen, 8485 Dverberg, Norway

4. Ove Thiesen, 4773 Stensved, Denmark

5. Jørgen Vibæk, 4600 Køge, Denmark

6. Flemming Hvid, 7323 Give, Denmark

7. Jan B. Dahl, 0687 Oslo, Norway

8. Liselotte Krøyer, 5700 Svendborg, Denmark

9. Rune Lindberg, 654 60 Karlstad, Sweden

10. Sonja Prideaux, 123 58 Farsta, Sweden

The main prize and the consolation prizes havebeen dispatched to the winners.

POST Greenland is delighted by themany positive responses from ourreaders and collectors, who have

taken part in the election of the mostbeautiful Greenland stamp of the year2002. We would like to congratulateall the winners and thank every one

for their great support.

We now look forward to arranging thecompetition to elect the

"Greenland Stamp of the Year2003".

11

On 12 March 2003 the startingsignal sounds on POST Greenland’snew, grand stamp series ”Expeditionsin Greenland”.

The series, which will be issued inconjunction with other postal servicesthroughout the world, is intended as atribute by POST Greenland to themany brave people, who devoted theirlives to exploring the characteristicgeology of Greenland, the harsh andbeautiful nature as well as the uniquepre-history of the country.

A joint issue with Post Danmarkmarks the first issue in this excitingseries.

By Flemming Petersen, Vice-chairman ofDanmarks Filatelist Forbund (Denmark’sPhilatelic Federation).

In collaboration with Post Danmark,POST Greenland issues two stamps withdesigns from "The Danish LiteraryGreenland Expedition", to mark its 100thanniversary year. The motif on the stamps isa picture, which shows the famous authorand Greenland explorer, Knud Rasmussen,who participated in the expedition as trans-lator and sledge driver, as well as a panor-amic picture of the settlement on the Islandof “Aqpat” (Saunder’s Island).

The rest of the participants of the expedi-tion were as follows: the leader of the expe-dition, author and journalist Ludvig Mylius-Erichsen, translator and sledge driverJørgen Brønlund, marine painter CountHarald Moltke and sealer Gabriel Olesen(Gaba). By a coincidence Gaba had joinedthe journey to Cape York when a sealer called Simon, who was well over 50, hadbacked out at the last moment due to fami-ly matters. This took place in "Kuk", thenorthernmost settlement in the DanishNorthwest Greenland. The great hunter

"The DanishLiteraryGreenland Expedition"

"The DanishLiteraryGreenland Expedition"

Date of issue: 12. March 2003Printing method: Steel EngravingPaper: HS5, yellow flourescentArtist: Martin MörckEngraving: Martin Mörck

01303013. 12.03.2003 Expeditions in Greenland ISouvenir folder. DKK 47.25

01100306. 12.03.2003 Expeditions in Greenland I/1

Saunder's Island DKK 15.00

Format: double B - horizontal.Outside measurements: 62.16 x 23.60 mm30 stamps per sheet

01100307. 12.03.2003 Expeditions in Greenland I/2

Knud Rasmussen DKK 21.,00

Format: B - horizontal. Outside measurements: 31.08 x 23.60 mm50 stamps per sheet

"The Danish Literary Greenland Expetition"

12

Simon backed out in spite of a signed con-tract with a wage of DKK 1.00 a day as wellas a life insurance for his surviving relativesif he got very unlucky. At the same time heappointed his sister’s son Gaba to be hisreplacement, while Gaba gapingly listenedto the conversation. After a pause Gabaproclaimed that his maternal uncle hadspoken on his behalf.

The expedition had had a very difficultbeginning. Permission had been applied forover a long period of time, but a refusal wasreceived from the Greenland TradeDepartment, who had to approve every jour-ney to Greenland. Similarly an application tothe Minister of the Interior turned out to befruitless; apparently the expedition had too

much of an air of "tourist journey" about it.Finally on 17 March 1902 a new applicationsent directly to the Minister of the Interior,Enevold Sørensen, produced a favourableoutcome. As a result, the president of theGreenland Trade Department voluntarilychose to resign.

The objective of the expedition was tojourney from Cape Farewell in the south toCape York in the north, wintering in"Jakobshavn", travel by dog sledge through"Upernavik" to Cape York, where they were tostay for 5 to 6 weeks in order to study andpaint the Eskimo tribe.

To achieve a successful expedition thebackgrounds of the expedition participantswere as follows:

Ludvig Mylius-Erichsen was a well-readjournalist and author, who as the leader of astudent journey to Iceland had met KnudRasmussen. He had not previously been toGreenland, but had had an invitation from T.V. Garde and Captain H. V. Bang, to join theexpedition of the Carlsberg Foundation hea-ding for the east coast of Greenland.However, the Greenland Trade Departmenthad denied permission.

Count Harald Moltke had visited theIsland of Disko in 1898 and there exhibitedhis fantastic abilities to paint and draw.

Knud Rasmussen was born and raised in"Jakobshavn", spoke Danish as well asGreenlandic, was a capable dog sledgedriver and especially had a happy personal-ity, with the ability to gather people roundhim. Consequently, Knud was to gathermyths and stories from the local populationfor Ludvig Mylius-Erichsen’s book"Greenland of Today".

As a medical practitioner, Doctor AlfredBertelsen was to examine the local popula-tion, but was also a valuable asset to theparticipants of the expedition on their con-tinued journey to the pagan territory ofCape York. However, Alfred Bertelsen chosenot to participate in this part of the journeyand left a small medicine cabinet for theremaining participants of the expedition.

Jørgen Brønlund, who grew up as a child-hood friend of Knud in "Jakobshavn", metthe expedition in "Kangeq" close to"Godthaab" and wanted to come along.Reverend Schultz-Lorentzen gave his per-mission to his catechist Jørgen Brønlund for1 year, who then participates in the expedi-tion as translator no. 2.

The expedition departed from Copen-hagen on 1 June 1902 on the ship"Godthaab" and they had planned to returnthe following year.

On 15 June they arrived in the town of"Godthaab", where people lined up tomodel for Harald Moltke at which they werepaid the "princely" amount of DKK 2.00 to3.00. From here the journey went north inan "umiaq" (women’s boat).

On 1 August (in "Sukkertoppen") KnudRasmussen was very close to losing his life,when he capsized in his kayak. Lying upsidedown in the cold water, Knud managed,however, to escape from the kayak andswim a little in the permanently ice coldwater. Three kayaks came to his rescue andmanaged to save him and bring him up tothe warm room, where Knud on account ofthe dramatic cooling of his body temperat-ure lost consciousness.

On 24 March 1903 they departed from thenorthernmost Danish settlement and head-ed for Cape York. Not until 9 February thefollowing year did they all return to"Tassiusak" bringing along a load of experi-ences, a mixture of accidents, illness andstrains as well as a deep respect of the localpopulation. The annual bath and delousingtook 3 days.

Six of the Eskimos from Cape York hadchosen to come along on the journey.

Consequently, for the first time a contactbetween the heathen Eskimos in the northand the northernmost Danish settlementswas established, this in spite of the factthat the hunting areas with easily recogniz-able sledding tracks had earlier on almostcrossed.

The outcome of the expedition turned

out somewhat different than expected:During the stay in Cape York Ludvig

Mylius-Erichsen already planned his nextexpedition to the east coast, the well-known"Denmark Expedition", for which he himselfand Jørgen Brønlund paid with their lives.

The collected works of "Greenland ofToday" only became the book "Greenland",which describes the journey to and the stayin the Cape York territory. It was to beHarald Moltke, who finished the book andthe journey was Harald Moltke’s last trip toGreenland, since he contracted permanentphysical debilities due to illness. We maystill rejoice at the fantastic pictures anddrawings made by Harald Moltke.

Knud Rasmussen published "Myths andLegends from Greenland" in three volumesas well as a book entitled "New People".

Based on a new law in Greenland of 1905"Den Grønlandske Kirkesag" (theGreenlandic Church Congregation) wasestablished in 1906, which as one of its firsttasks, stationed missionaries in the CapeYork territory, where an isolated, heathenEskimo tribe numbering 200 individualslived as nomads in this extremely huge ter-ritory.

With the permission of the Danishgovernment, Knud Rasmussen establisheda private trading station in 1910. The terri-tory came to play a big part in the life ofKnud Rasmussen and the territory was nottaken over by the Danish State until 1937.

01106306. 12.03.2003

Souvenir sheet. DKK 36.00Expeditions in

Greenland I

Date of issue: 12. March 2003Printing method: Steel EngravingPaper: HS5, yellow flourescentArtist: Martin MörckEngraving: Martin Mörck

From our Final Sale on 30 November 2002 we announce the following stock figures:

The following stamps will be re-moved from our sales list on 31March 2003, provided they are notsold out prior to this date. Any re-maining stocks will be shredded.

01100276. 05.02.2001Nature moves in.DKK 10,00

01100284. 16.10.2001Seal. DKK 8,00

01100285. 16.10.2001Polar Bear. DKK 21,00

01100292. 05.03.2002’Paarisa’. DKK 4,50 + 0,50

News from POST Greenland

On 10 March 2003 the post office in 3955Kangaatsiaq will change its regular cancel-lation.

The exchange is due to wear and tear.Legible addressed envelopes for last andfirst day cancellation must be received byPOST Greenland, Filatelia no later thanFriday 7 March 2003.

POST Greenland will participate inthe following stamp exhibitions duringthe period from March to May 2003:

• SVENDBORG PÅ MÆRKERNE in Svendborg, Denmark from 15 to 16 March 2003

• Philatelia in Cologne, Germany from 21 to 23 March 2003

• TOF60 in Taastrup, Denmark from 29 to 30 March 2003

• Mare Balticum in Kiel, Germany from 23 to 25 May 2003

A Greenland special cancellation will be made forthe exhibitions Philatelia in Cologne and Mare Balticumin Kiel. Envelopes to be cancelled with these specialcancellations must, as always, be received by POSTGreenland, Filatelia at the latest the day before the ope-ning of the respective exhibition.

Final Sale

14

on 31 March 2003

Payment within 14 days

Payment of our invoices is to be made within 14 days from the date of the invoice.We kindly ask you to note that the registration of your pay-ment will take approx 2 weeks or more. As a result, on occasions you may receive an invoi-ce with a balance, which does not include your recent payment.

All information on prices, fees etc. are subject to printer’s errors.

01100200. 25.04.1996Humpback WhaleDKK 0.50Stock figure: 493,402

01100224. 15.08.1997Ammassalik WomanDKK 16.00Stock figure: 189,706

01100227. 05.02.1998Harbour PorpoiseDKK 2.00Stock figure: 218,389

01100248. 07.05.1999The Man from AlukDKK 7.00Stock figure: 161,055

01100273. 05.02.2001Catching in the SkerriesDKK 1.00Stock figure: 181,665

01100274. 05.02.2001Uninvited GuestsDKK 4.50Stock figure: 275,498

01100286. 16.10.2001Christmas Stamp 1/01DKK 4.50Stock figure: 202,088

01100287. 16.10,2001Christmas Stamp 2/01DKK 4.75Stock figure: 209,501

01106277. 05.02.2001AWGames 2002’ Souvenir SheetDKK 20.00Stock figure: 78,301

01301106. 16.10.2001Christmas Stamp Booklet No. 6DKK 55.50Stock figure: 27,718

Publisher : POST GreenlandService : POST Greenland, Filatelia

P.O. Box 121, 3913 Tasiilaq, GreenlandPhone +45 70 26 05 50

+299 98 11 55Fax +299 98 14 32

Email : stamps@tele.glHomepage : www.stamps.glEditors : Søren Rose, Chief Editor,

Lene Skov MeyhoffAnja Panduro Pedersen

Pertti FrandsenLayout andproduction : TELE Greenland,

Napp WilcheISSN : 1397-8632Cover photo : Søren Rose

Worth knowing…

Anja Panduro Pedersen,Sales Assistant.Danish, English, German.

Lene Skov Meyhoff,Correspondent.Danish, German, English.

Bjarne AndersenCorrespondent. Danish,German, English, French.

Kristian „Karé“ Pivat,Assistant Clerk.Greenlandic, Danish.

Andreas Fett, Sales Assistant.German, Danish, English.

Lars Anker-Møller, Head of Sales.Danish, English, German.

Please send your orders/changes to:POST Greenland, FilateliaP.O. Box 121, 3913 Tasiilaq, GREENLANDPhone: (+45) 7026 0550 and (+299) 98 11 55Fax: (+299) 98 14 32Email: stamps@tele.gl

Any change in name, address and/or subscription mustbe received by POST Greenland, Filatelia no later than 5weeks prior to an issue.

When exchanging stamps worth more thanDKK 100.00, POST Greenland, Filatelia chargesa fee of 45% of the face value. No more than 3exchanges per customer per year are allowed.The maximum annual value of exchangedstamps per customer cannot exceed DKK50.000 in nominal value. The stamps are alwaysexchanged to new stamps of the customer’schoice. The fee of 45% must always be paid incash and is, therefore, not payable using otherstamps. For further information please contactPOST Greenland, Filatelia.

NOTE: Please do not write your order on agiro transfer form as these are processedautomatically.

How to pay:By giro:Denmark: BG Bank A/S, Girostrøget 1, 0800Høje Taastrup, Account No.: 1199-940 4120.

Sweden: Postgirot Bank AB (publ) Vasagatan 7,105 06 Stockholm. Account No.: 41 45-9.

Norway: Postbanken, Kunderegister Bedrift,0021 Oslo. Account No.: 7878.06.55312

Finland: SAMPO BANK, UNIONINKATU 22,00075, SAMPO. Account No.: 800016-70617928.

The Netherlands: Postbank NV, Account No.: 3487172.

Switzerland: Postscheckamt, Office de chequespostaux, Ufficio dei conti correnti postali, 4040Basel. Account No.: 40-6773-5.

Germany: Postbank, Niederlassung Hamburg,Überseering 26, 22297 Hamburg. Account No.:541414200 BLZ 200 100 20.

United Kingdom: Alliance & Leicester GiroBank plc, Bridle Road, Bootle, Merseyside,Liverpool GIR 0AA. Account No.: 358 7118.

Luxembourg: Postes et Telecommunications,Division des Postes, Service des ChequesPostaux, Secretariat, 38 Place de la Gare, 1090Luxembourg. Account No.: 26606-28.

France: La Poste, Centre Régional DesServices Financiers, de la Poste en ile-de-France, 16 rue de Favorites, 75900 Paris.Account No.: 250.01 F020.

If you transfer an amount from outsideDenmark through our giro account 1199-940 4120 in Copenhagen, Euro Giro willcharge you a fee for each transaction.

Credit cardsAccess, Eurocard, JCB, MasterCard, VISA,Dankort, Maestro, VISA Electron

Cheque- in your own currency.

Cash- to be sent by insured mail

Postal orderIRC (IBRS)- international reply coupons: value DKK 6.00

each.

1-year deadline for claimsAny claims concerning stamps and philatelicitems purchased from POST Greenland mustreach POST Greenland, Filatelia, no later thanone year dated from the last day of the monthin which the items were dispatched. The dateof the postmark or the invoice is valid as thedate of dispatch.

Payment within 14 daysPayment of our invoices is to be made within14 days from the date of the invoice.We kindly ask you to note that the registrationof your payment will take approx 2 weeks ormore. As a result, on occasions you may re-

ceive an invoice with a balance, which does notinclude your recent payment.

All information on prices, fees etc. are subjectto printer’s errors.

We are your service teamWe are the people you reach whenever youwrite, fax, email, or telephone POST Greenland.Some of us have been here for several yearswhilst others are fairly new. We look forward tobeing of service to you regarding your philatelicinquiries.

TMA

.02

.07

.01

In the next issue, read about

• The 50-year anniversary ofQaanaaq

• he “Europa” stamp theme –Poster Art

• The new stamps by Anne-Birthe Hove in the “CulturalHeritage” series

• Arctic Team Challenge

• And much more…

March10. New Day Cancellation in 3955

Kangaatsiaq.12. Issue:

Sledge dogs in Greenland: 3 com-memoratives, 2 mini sheets, 1 stamp booklet, 1 souvenir folder

The Danish Literary Greenland Expedition 1902-04: 2 special stamps, 1 souvenir sheet, 1 souvenir folder

15. Exhibition: ”Svendborg på Mærkerne”, Denmark, 15.-16.03.03

21. Exhibition: ”Philatelia mit T’card und MünzExpo”, Cologne, Germany, 21.-23.03.03

25. Arctic Circle Race 2003, Sisimiut (Holsteinsborg), 25.03. – 01.04.03

29. Exhibition: ”TOF60”, Taastrup, Denmark, 29.-30.03.03

May23. Exhibition: ”Mare Balticum 2003”, Kiel,

Germany, 23.-25.05.03

New postal rates concerning the additional charge onregistered post and insured letters

As of 2 January 2003 the postal rates concer-ning additional charges on letters and packa-ges posted through POST Greenland haveincreased. The additional charge for a regi-stered letter posted domestically inGreenland, or to Denmark or the FaroeIslands, has increased from DKK 31.00 toDKK 35.00. The additional charge for registe-red packages went up from DKK 46.00 toDKK 50.00. The additional charges for insu-red letters have also increased from 46.00 to51.75 for the first DKK 3000.00. For everyadditional DKK 1000.00 a charge of DKK 3.00will be added, as opposed to formerly DKK0.00.

However, POST Greenland’s postal rates fortransferring funds and post office faxes havedecreased as of 2 January 2003. For moreinformation we refer to the new postal ratefolder issued by POST Greenland, which canbe acquired free of charge through Filateliaor on POST Greenland’s website www.post.gl.

Please remember – fromMarch until May 2003

To our customers residingin Denmark

The "POSTSAG" (Mail Matter) arrange-ment is being discontinued

On 2 January 2003 the arrangement ofbeing able to label letters from Denmark

to POST Greenland, Filatelia as “mailmatter” was discontinued. In the future

letters to Filatelia must be franked accor-ding to Post Danmark’s postal rates.

PLEASENOTE:

POST Greenland has decid-ed to postpone this year’s

issue of the Greenland addi-tional value stamp for thebenefit of the fond „Santa

Claus of Greenland" from 16thJune 2003 to the last

Greenland issue of the year.

For the sixth time the world’s toughest cross-country skiing race, "Arctic Circle Race",will be held in Sisimiut (Holsteinsborg). POST Greenland marks this great internationalsports event that takes place from 25 March through 1 April by issuing a Greenland specialcancellation. Clearly addressed envelopes for cancelling with this special cancellation mustbe received by POST Greenland, Filatelia no later than Monday 24 March 2003. POSTGreenland wishes all participants and organizers of ACR 2003 a very good and enervatingcross-country skiing race! Read more about ARC on www.greenland-guide.gl/acr/

POST Greenland sponsors the 2003 Drambuie World Ice Golf ChampionshipsThe 5th Drambuie World Ice Golf Championships will take place in Uummannaq from27th March to 1st April 2003. POST Greenland is happy to announce that we will act assponsor of the golf balls to be used during these world-famous championships.

Collecto rGREENLAND

MEET A YOUNG PHILATE-LIST FROM TASIILAQ

PAGE 3

THE DANISH LITERA-RY GREENLAND

EXPEDITION 1902 – 04

PAGE 11

SUBSCRIPTION MAGAZINE FOR COLLECTORS OF GREENLAND STAMPS

VOL. 8 - NO. 1 - FEBRUARY 2003

THE GREENLANDICSLEDGE DOG

PAGE 6

REPORT FROM “FRI-MÆRKER I FORUM

2002”

PAGE 4

THE 2002 GREEN-LAND STAMP OF THE

YEAR

PAGE 9

SALES FIGURESFROM 30.11.2002

AND FINAL SALE ON31.03.2003

PAGE 14