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17.02.2015
To celebrate 170 years of operation of the Latvian Museum of Natural History, Latvijas Pasts launches a new series of stamps entitled Unique Exhibits of Latvian Museum of Natural History by releasing the stamp Placoderm Fish. The first-day cancellation of the new stamp is to be held at the Museum, 4 Krišjāņa Barona Street, Riga, from 10 AM to 6 PM on February 20, 2015. A special presentation event in honor of the first stamp in the new series, which is scheduled to start at 11 AM, will see the participation of representatives of Latvijas Pasts and Latvian Museum of Natural History; besides, visitors will have an opportunity to view the exhibit depicted on the stamp – the placoderm fish – accompanied by a museum specialist.
The print run of the new stamp dedicated to the unique exhibit of the Museum’s paleontology collection – the placoderm fish – is 100,000 copies; the denomination of the stamp is €0.71, making it suitable for mailing a regular Class B letter to any country within the European Union. The release of the stamp is accompanied by the issue of a special cover with a print run of 1,500 copies. The stamp and the cover have been designed by the artist Ģirts Grīva.
Speeches during the special presentation of the stamp at the Museum will be delivered by Latvijas Pasts Chairman of the Board Arnis Salnājs and Latvian Museum of Natural History Director Skaidrīte Ruskule. At the end of the presentation, anyone interested will have the opportunity to listen to a short story about the placoderm fish and also have a look at this fish and other exhibits of the paleontology collection in the Museum’s exhibition.
The stamp depicts the fossils of the approximately 384 million years old placoderm fish in the genus Asterolepis ornata. The fossils of this fish species are the most commonly found petrified fish remains from the Devonian Period in Latvia – they have mainly been preserved as small fragments of bone plates. However, thanks to the unique discoveries of unbroken fossils in the early 1970s and more recent findings, this species is considered to be the best studied placoderm fish in Latvia. Latvian paleoichthyology research has a long history – the placoderm fish species depicted on the stamp was studied by Eduards Eihvalds (1795–1876), Jelgava-born naturalist and paleontologist who also gave the fish its scientific name in 1840. The Latvian Museum of Natural History stores and collects evidence on the natural history of Latvian territory and its diversity today, as well as continues the tradition of research in natural sciences.
The new stamp Placoderm Fish, first-day cover and cancellation can be viewed here.
The next new philatelic release is scheduled for March 6.
About SJSC Latvijas Pasts
Latvijas Pasts ensures the widest availability of postal services throughout Latvia by maintaining more than 600 post offices. The primary function of the company is provision of the universal postal service; Latvijas Pasts also provides commercial transport, express mail, payment, press subscription, retail and philatelic services. Latvijas Pasts is a wholly State-owned company with more than 4,200 employees. The quality measurements of Latvijas Pasts domestic mail deliveries are regularly conducted by TNS Latvia, one of the leading market, social and media research agencies in Latvia. In turn, the quality measurements of the cross-border deliveries are provided within the framework of the International Post Corporation through the intermediary of the research companies TNS, Ipsos and Quotas.
Additional information:
Agija Tērauda,
Public Relations Specialist
Phone: +371 67608506
E-mail: agija.terauda@pasts.lv
twitter.com/latvijas_pasts; facebook.com/latvijas.pasts