1983 Commonwealth Day

New Zealand, along with a number of other Commonwealth countries, issued stamps to mark Commonwealth Day in 1983. Consisting of four denominations, the issue reflects New Zealand's cultural, geographic and economic diversity. Each stamp features the Commonwealth symbol.

2017 Native New Zealand Freshwater Fish.

          More than 40 different species of freshwater fish have been identified in New Zealand’s waterways. Around three-quarters of these secretive and largely nocturnal natives are already endangered, which is a troublingly high number compared to other countries. Some of the issues our freshwater fish face include barriers in migration, destruction of habitat and the introduction of predators such as trout.

          Many of New Zealand’s freshwater fish species have had to evolve unique attributes in order to live in our varied habitats. The lowland longjaw galaxias is so named for its distinctive upturned lower jaw, the redfin bully has taught itself to climb, the longfin eel can live for up to 100 years, the lamprey is commonly known as a “vampire parasite” and the torrentfish has a unique zebra-style camouflage.
          From deep ice-cold lakes to fast moving raging rapids, the vast range of species found in New Zealand’s waterways are celebrated with these beautifully illustrated stamps. The diversity of New Zealand’s aquatic life is clearly apparent when these stamps are viewed side by side.

Centenaries 1985 & 1986.

           This post covers two issues celebrating centenaries of two organisations that do much to support our way of life in New Zealand. The first is the St John's Ambulance, always there in times of need, giving on scene first-aid and life-saving transport to hospital.
           The second organisation is the New Zealand Police. A strip of five stamps illustrating the varied facets of police work - old and modern.

1985 Centenary of St John's Ambulance.

1085 is one hundred years since the St John's Ambulance Association was established in Christchurch. To mark this event NZ Post issued a three value set showing the three crosses connected with St John's. This post looks at the history of the St John's movement going back hundreds of years before it became the organisation we know today.

24c - Bailiffs and Dames Grand Cross on Red.

2000 Ross Dependency Transport on Ice.

Transport on the Ice includes six stamps and a first day cover that depicts the rugged nature of the Antarctic terrain and the transportation challenges.

1993 World Wildlife Fund Conservation

For a small country, New Zealand is well endowed with fascinating wildlife. Yet a disproportionately high number of our native species are at risk of disappearing; some are rare, others endangered or vulnerable and many are regionally threatened. For many, time is running out. Reassuringly, though, a global awareness has helped turn the tide for some species.

1989 Wild Flowers

From the garden to the countryside you will find wildflowers growing in profusion and somehow this colourful scene brightens the day.

This set contains four introduced pasture or garden flowers which were probably planted by early settlers to remind them of 'home'.  The seeds were carried by wind, water and animals to places far beyond the original gardens and now provide colour along our roadsides and over the countryside. In some cases, plants such as the Clover have become assets to New Zealand while others, such as the Wild Ginger they have become problem weeds that people are now encouraged to remove.

1989 New Mail Centre Openings

On the 9th August 1989, NZ Post officially opened two new mail centres designed for the faster and more efficient sorting of mail for Hamilton and Auckland's North Shore. Special covers with pre-printed stamps were created to mark this important milestone. 

The front cover showing views of both centres. The stamp is an NZ Post mail van.

The reverse side with text regarding this event.

(See the text enlargement below.)

1999 Ross Dependency Night Skies

New Zealand's territory in the Antarctic, the Ross Dependency is justly famous for the diversity of its weather phenomena.

2017 Southern Lights.

          Auroras (Southern Lights), are the result of electrically charged particles from solar winds reacting with gases in the earth’s atmosphere. The excess energy from these reactions creates a stunning light show that can be seen at the North or South poles. In order to view the Southern Lights you would need to be as far South as possible, which is part of the reason that New Zealand is such a prime location for viewing these colourful displays.

          The Southern Lights can range in colour from pink to green to purple, with the colours dependent on a number of factors. The type of solar wind particle, the type of gas molecule and the electrical state at the time of the collision all have an effect on the eventual colour of the aurora.

                    

          The Aoraki Mackenzie International Dark Sky Reserve is located in the Mackenzie Basin of the South Island. The extreme lack of natural light and the multitude of clear nights make it the perfect combination for stargazing, or if the timing is right, for viewing the Southern Lights. The Mt John observatory is the University of Canterbury’s premier astronomical observatory and is a much favoured spot for catching a glimpse of the Southern Lights.
          This stunning stamp issue features six gummed stamps - each featuring a photograph of the Southern Lights, taken at the Aoraki Mackenzie International Dark Sky Reserve. Each stamp shows a different view of the Southern Lights, with the various colours and patterns of shimmering light clearly evident in these stunning photographs.

                    

Personal Message & Greeting Stamps.

        Sometime ago Anne did a post on Personalised Stamps. These seemed to have appeared in 2001 and continued on until today. Well recently we found another series of stamps that are close cousins to the Personalised Stamps, these are the Greeting Stamps. There appears to have been four of these issues with another two that appear to be a cross between Greeting and Personalised Stamps.

        This post is intended to cover the first four Greeting Stamp issues and I've also included the other two cross issues that are also found in our Personalised Stamps collection, (See link above.)

         Greeting stamps were usually issued in booklets so could be included in a booklet collection. Their purpose was to provide stamps for special purpose greeting cards and letters. The idea being that when you sent a birthday card you could use a stamp saying 'Happy Birthday' too.

1983 Rita Angus Paintings

This issue of stamps featured the works of Rita Angus whose meticulous compositions in oil and water-colours earned her the reputation as a leader of the modern school of New Zealand painting.

2011 Kapa Haka

Also see our index New Zealand Maori  

From the graceful movements of the Poi to the overwhelming power of the Haka, Kapa Haka (traditional Maori performing arts) is intrinsic to New Zealand’s cultural identity. Distinctive from other indigenous performing arts, Kapa Haka combines song, dance, expression and movement.

2011 Beyond the Coast

         New Zealand’s varied marine animals are brilliantly portrayed in this vibrant stamp issue: Beyond the Coast. The beautiful artwork was inspired by the Poor Knights Islands, which lie 23 kilometres off New Zealand’s Tutukaka coast in the upper North Island. A total marine reserve and nature reserve, these 11-million-year-old islands are rich with incredible marine life.          

          New Zealand’s 15,000 kilometres of coastline is home to magnificent coves, bays, harbours, sounds and fiords. However, beyond this irregular coastline lies a roughly 4.3 million square kilometre exclusive economic zone that hosts an array of unique marine life. More than 15,000 species are known to live there, of which many are migratory. New Zealand's isolation means that a large number of these species are unique to our island nation, and scientists believe that many more have yet to be found.

1998 Ross Dependency Ice Formations

Antarctica is roughly twice the size of Australia – some 14 million square kilometres. Massive glaciers flow down from the ice cap to merge into flat-topped ice shelves. One of these is the Ross Ice Shelf on what is known as the Ross Sea. This shelf is moving, pressing forward all the time. The airfields on the ice have to be move regularly, keeping then from drifting way from the bases on land. Relentless activity takes place all year round on this huge shelf, as nature creates daunting shapes and fascinating colours. This issue features examples of some of the ice formations that have been captured on film.

2016 Christchurch Stamp and Postcard Exhibition

The Christchurch 2016 Stamp and Postcard Exhibition was held from 18 to 20 November at the Addington Event Centre. This national exhibition featured a full range of philatelic exhibits plus postcards and other collectables - nearly 5,000 pages of material in total. The theme of the exhibition was the centenary of the founding of the Canterbury Aviation Company by Sir Henry Wigram.

In keeping with aviation theme of the exhibition, NZ Post issued two very special exhibition products - an exhibition miniature sheet and a souvenir first day cover. The miniature sheet depicts the arrival of the Fokker Trimotor VH-USU (known as the Southern Cross) at Wigram Aerodrome on 11 September 1928, after the first successful flight between Australia and New Zealand. It incorporates a replica of the 1958 stamp that was issued to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the first trans-Tasman flight. The first day cover features a scenic photo of the Avon River.

1980 - 1981 Definitives.

Definitives Tour.

Back to 1975 Pictorials                              Forward to 1980 - 1985 Definitives.

Here are two small definitive issues that don't seem to fit with the 1975 Definitives as it been too long since those stamps were issued. Since they don't seem to fit with the 1982 - 1985 Definitives either we have decided to include them on their own post.

For other posts on Maori Subject see our Maori Index.

Maori Leaders Definitives.

The 1980 Definitive issue featured Maori leaders who made a difference. In some cases, their good work continued, even up until today. The strip above shows used examples of these stamps while below mint copies are used.

1982 - 1985 Definitives Part Two.

Definitives Tour.

Back to 1980 - 1981 Definitives.                              Forward to 1985 - 93 Native Bird Definitives.

Back to 1982 - 1985 Definitives - Part One.

Black printed double. (See enlargement lower down this page.)

In this second Post on the 1982 - 1985 Definitives I want to look at the subject of each stamp and also provide a few printing errors as well. Again I have treated these as separate issues on the one page.

1982 - 1985 Definitives Part One

Definitives Tour.

Back to 1980 - 1981 Definitives.                              Forward to 1985 - 93 Native Bird Definitives.

Forward to 1982 - 1985 Definitives - Part Two.

During the early eighties there were a few definitive sets issued but by now it was becoming clear that New Zealand was breaking away from the large definitive issues towards smaller, regular issues. This was partly because of rising postal rates meant that a larger definitive issue would quickly become out of date.
I notice that most catalogues seem to put the 1982 Minerals and the 1983 Fruit together as one issue where, as is shown below, they were separate issues over 12 months apart. While displaying them on the same page I have kept them as completely separate issues.

1982 Definitives - Map.

24c - New Zealand Map with Latitude / Longitude Lines.

1981 Royal Wedding

Like many other British Commonwealth countries, New Zealand issued stamps to commemorate the Royal Wedding of His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales and Lady Diana Spencer, the Princess of Wales in July 1981.

Two se-tenant stamps, one stamp depicting the Royal couple, with the other depicting St Paul's Cathedral where the wedding took place. 

2016 It's a Kiwi Thing

A post celebrating the quintessentially quirky Kiwi things we do with NZ Post's latest Kiwiana-themed stamp issue - It’s a Kiwi Thing. From the adrenaline-charged thrill of a bungee jump with nothing more than a rubber band around your ankles to the perilous dangers of hot mince-pie handling, it’s these Kiwi things that make us who we are.

Olympic & Commonwealth Games.

        This post is a collection of stamps, issued by New Zealand, to celebrate Olympic and Commonwealth Games in which men and women from New Zealand have competed in. The stamps don't just celebrate the games, but also tell of many of the success stories New Zealand has had. Note that not every games that New Zealand competed in are represented here because New Zealand Post didn't always issue stamps. 
        I enjoyed this post because I came across many stamps I had never seen before and it also opened my eyes to just how successful New Zealand has been at these games. Amazing for such a small country. I've heard New Zealand-born friends proudly boast what a great little country this is. Now I've discovered another way in which this is true.
       New Zealanders competed in the Olympic Games for the first time in London in 1908 as part of the Australasian team, and New Zealand participated for the first time as a separate nation at the Antwerp Games in 1920. It was there that rower Darcy Hadfield won this country's first medal - a bronze in the single sculls. New Zealand's first gold was for boxing at the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics.

                Total Olympic medals:- Gold - 46; Silver - 28; Bronze - 44; Total - 118. 
       Total Commonwealth Medals:- Gold - 144; Silver - 203; Bronze - 262; Total - 609.

1982 Architecture

The next issue of New Zealand Architecture appeared in 1982

with a four stamp issue featuring two houses and two public buildings.

20c - Alberton, Auckland.

1997 Ross Dependency Antarctic Birds

Six Antarctic sea birds are depicted on the 1997 Ross Dependency stamp issue. While the stamps were issued in sheets with the World Wildlife Fund logo printed on four of the six values, however all six stamps are available without the logo from the se-tenant block as can be seen above and on the First Day Cover below.

1996 Ross Dependency Antarctic Landscapes.

          The Ross Dependency issued it second annual stamp issue on the 13th November 1996. In this case, the theme was Antarctic Landscapes, a popular theme that has appeared often in the Ross Dependency stamp issue series.

          New Zealand's claimed territory in the Antarctic, the Ross Dependency, is justly famous for the variety and beauty of its wilderness landscape. From the ice-choked shores of the Ross Sea to the buckled pressure ridges on the fringe of the massive Ross Ice Shelf the Ross Dependency's landscape changes dramatically towards the interior of the 'seventh continent'. The Transantarctic Mountains, with peaks rising to over 4000 metres and all extensively glaciated, dissect Ross Dependency separating the coastal region from the high ice plateau of the East Antarctic Ice Shelf. Active volcanoes, like Mount Erebus, are also important features of the Ross Dependency.

1995 Ross Dependency Antarctic Explorers

         After the 1994 Ross Dependency Definitives it was decided the demand for Ross Dependency stamps justified an annual issue. The first of these appeared on the 9th November 1995 and has continued until at least 2016.

        This first issue featured six famous explorers with their ships/aircraft in the background. These were interesting stamps, each with an exciting story of adventure to be told. Each explorer was selected because they had left their mark on the section of Antarctica we now know as the Ross Dependency.

        These stamps were not available for use on postage in New Zealand but the stamps and First Day Covers could be purchased from New Zealand Post via their Christchurch Branch where Ross Dependency postage was handled for dispatching to and from Scott Base in the Dependency.

        At the time of writing, I have been unable to find a good example of the First Day Cover for this issue. One will be added later if a suitable image comes available. Meantime I have included three images of the presentation pack issued for this set.