UN VIENNA

This amazing cover from UN Vienna depcits a miniature sheet issued in 2023 with pictures of eminet fishes from the Great Barrier Reef. The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef. It is near the coast of Queensland, Australia. It is made up of nearly 2900 coral reefs and over 600 islands. It is 327,800 km2 big and 2600 km long. It has been listed an important World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1981. The Great Barrier Reef is the largest structure made by living things. It can be seen from outer space. The Reefs are threatened. The biggest threat to the Great Barrier Reef today is coral bleaching caused by high sea water temperatures as a result of global warming.

HONDURAS

This cover from Honduras depicts several stamps and 2 miniature sheets on both sides of the envelope. On the front side a mnisheet of 1,50 lempiras celebrates de World Heritage Site Maya Site of Copan. The Maya Site of Copan is one of the most spectacular archaeological sites of the ancient Maya civilization and was declared UNESCO World Heritage in 1980. Located in a majestic landscape in western Honduras, the city saw Maya sculpture reach its highest artistic expression.

HONDURAS

SRI LANKA

UN VIENNA

This cover from UNO Vienna depicts 4 stamps of the same type, celebrating the Selimiye Mosque and its Social Complex, in Turkey. The Selimiye Mosque is an Ottoman imperial mosque, which is located in the city of Edirne (formerly Adrianople), Turkey. The mosque was commissioned by Sultan Selim II, and was built by the imperial architect Mimar Sinan between 1568 and 1575. It was considered by Sinan to be his masterpiece and is one of the highest achievements of Islamic architecture as a whole and Ottoman architecture in particular. The mosque, together with its külliye, was included on UNESCO's World Heritage List in 2011.

P. R. CHINA

MALAYSIA

UN VIENNA

This cover from UN Vienna depcits 4 stamps of the same type, celebrating Ephesus. Ephesus was a city in ancient Greece on the coast of Ionia, 3 kilometres southwest of present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in the 10th century BC on the site of Apasa, the former Arzawan capital, by Attic and Ionian Greek colonists. During the Classical Greek era, it was one of twelve cities that were members of the Ionian League. The city came under the control of the Roman Republic in 129 BC. The city was famous in its day for the nearby Temple of Artemis (completed around 550 BC), which has been designated one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Its many monumental buildings included the Library of Celsus and a theatre capable of holding 24,000 spectators. Today, the ruins of Ephesus are a favourite international and local tourist attraction. In 2015, the ruins were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

CROATIA

A UNESCO cover from Croatia, depicting 2 stamps celebrating the Lokrum Island, Dubrovnik. Dubrovnik (historically Ragusa) is a city on the Adriatic Sea in southern Croatia. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterranean Sea, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva County. Its total population is 42,615 (census 2011). In 1979, the city of Dubrovnik joined the UNESCO list of World Heritage sites. The history of the city probably dates back to the 7th century, when the town known as Ragusa was founded by refugees from Epidaurum (Ragusa Vecchia). It was under the protection of the Byzantine Empire and later under the sovereignty of the Republic of Venice. Between the 14th and 19th centuries, Dubrovnik ruled itself as a free state. The prosperity of the city was historically based on maritime trade; as the capital of the maritime Republic of Ragusa, it achieved a high level of development, particularly during the 15th and 16th centuries, as it became notable for its wealth and skilled diplomacy. At the same time, Dubrovnik became a cradle of Croatian literature. The entire city was almost destroyed when a devastating earthquake hit in 1667. During the Napoleonic Wars, Dubrovnik was occupied by the French Empire forces, and then the Republic of Ragusa was abolished and incorporated into the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy and later into the Illyrian Provinces. Later on in the early 19th to mid 20th century, Dubrovnik was a part of the Kingdom of Dalmatia within the Austrian Empire, and later part of the Banovina of Zeta which later became part of Banovina Croatia in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and SR Croatia in SFR Yugoslavia. In 1991, during the Croatian War of Independence, Dubrovnik was besieged by the Yugoslav People's Army for seven months and suffered significant damage from shelling. After undergoing repair and restoration works in the 1990s and early 2000s, it re-emerged as one of the Mediterranean's top tourist destinations, as well as a popular filming location.

P. R. CHINA

UN VIENNA

This cover from UNO Vienna depicts 4 stamps of the same type celebrating the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park is an American national park located in the U.S. state of Hawaii on the island of Hawaii. The park encompasses two active volcanoes: Kīlauea, one of the world's most active volcanoes, and Mauna Loa, the world's largest shield volcano. The park provides scientists with insight into the development of the Hawaiian Islands and access for studies of volcanism. For visitors, the park offers dramatic volcanic landscapes, glimpses of rare flora and fauna, and a view into the traditional Hawaiian culture connected to these landscapes. The park was originally established on August 1, 1916, as Hawaii National Park, which was then split into this park and Haleakalā National Park. In recognition of its outstanding natural values, Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park was designated as an International Biosphere Reserve in 1980 and a World Heritage Site in 1987.

SPAIN

A cover from Spain depicting a single stamp that celebrates International Classical Theater Festival, in Mérida. The stamp shows a picture of the roman amphitheater im Mérida (the Roman colony of Augusta Emerita), one of the largest and most extensive archaeological sites in Spain, registered as UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993.