Wetlands and amphibians

I had to turn to amphibians because I've shown snakes from Taiwan, and with the Petit Prince, dinosaurs from the Jurassic Coast, all sorts on the Origin of Species.  And could find no more reptiles.

I was quite pleased that the amphibian stamps arrived on cards from places I think of as, well, damp.  Finland is often called the Land of 1000 Lakes; Ireland has rivers and lakes galore, and in my mind Denmark comes somewhere between them.

This is a post for Sunday Stamps, now hosted by Violet Sky at "See it on a Postcard!"

Roskilde Cathedral

Roskilde Cathedral in Denmark is a UNESCO World Heritage Site because it was the first Gothic cathedral to have been built with brick, and as a result the style spread to the rest of northern Europe.It dates from the 12th century thought there was an earlier wooden church in the 10th century.  Very early in the 11th century a stone (travertine) cathedral was built to replace the church.

During the next century the brick cathedral was built around the travertine building.  This allowed services to continue during construction.  When this was far enough advanced to allow services in the new building, the original cathedral was dismantled.

Copenhagen

The Russian artist, Nicka Goltz, 1925-2012, was primarily known as a book illustrator and in 2006 he received an award for the illustrations for "The Big Book of the Best Fairy Tales by Andersen."

This picture, though, is of the 17th century waterfront in Nyhaven in Copenhagen, Denmark.  It was sent to me from Russia.

Frederiksborg

I've been very fortunate to have been sent cards from a number of unusual places (in Postcrossing terms) recently, all of them firsts for me: Croatia, Georgia, Israel, Macau, Puerto Rica, Romania.  So I was a little startled to find that this card from Denmark was among those firsts.

It shows Frederiksborg Palace built nearly 400 years ago by Christian IV in the Renaissance style, the largest in Scandinavia.  It is built on three islands on the site of a previous castle built by Frederik II.  It had to be restored by Christian V after being plundered in 1659.  All Danish monarchs between  1671 and 1840 were crowned there though in that time it was rarely used as a residence.  Nowadays it is a museum, the National History Museum, and houses an important collection of paintings.

The card doesn't give a name to the gentleman on the left. My guess is Christian IV.

The Little Mermaid, Copenhagen

Postmarked Copenhagen, dated 10 April 1980.
Copenhagen - The little Mermaid

The Little Mermaid is a surprisingly small sculpture in Copenhagen's harbour, is a major tourist attraction.  Because it is so easy to reach, it has been vandalised many times over the years.  The authorities have said that they may move it further out in the harbour, to avoid any more damage.  It is, in fact, a copy of the original which is kept by the Edvard Eriksen's (the sculptor) heirs.

In the meantime, the Copenhagen City Council has decided to send her to the Danish pavilion at the world exhibition Expo in Shanghai from April - November 2010.  Her place will be taken by a piece by a Chinese artist for the time she is away.

The message on the card:
Copenhagen is a really beautiful city but it's very quiet - not at all like a copital city.  We've done several trips outside the city - to Hamlet's castle at Elsinore - a quaint town on the coast.  Spring hasn't arrived yet so the countryside isn't at its best yet.

Gefion Fountain, Copenhagen

Dated 9 July 1972. Clearly from a member of a sports team as it mentions winning their first match.

The Gefion Fountain is the largest monument in Copenhagen