November 10, 2008

EU Capital Cities


The series "Capital Cities of EU States" continues since 2005 on. As yet the following cities have been presented on its stamps: Budapest, Berlin, Dublin, Lisbon, Paris, Rome, Stockholm, Tallinn, Valletta and Vilnius.



London - Tower Bridge
History of London stems from the epoch of Roman Empire. Since the 11th century it is the capital city of England, and also the biggest city and harbour in the country. Great Britain belongs to the European Community since 1973, and therefore it is the EU Member State since its origins.Tower Bridge, one of the best recognizable symbols of London, is built of steel and its style is neo-Gothic. Its lower part is a drawbridge, allowing passage of the really big ships, while in its upper part the foot bridge is situated. Tower Bridge was built in the end of the 19th century as the second London bridge on River Thames. In the Victorian age it has been an example of the modern industrial construction.



Ljubljana - the Dragon's Bridge
History of Slovenia is much complicated, as the Balkan region was troubled with innumerable wars for ages. The striving of Slovenians to independence has revived during the Napoleon's epoch, and could manifest again only after the fall of the Josip Broz Tito's communist regime. Slovenia has separated from Yougoslavia in 1991, in 1992 it became the member of UN, and in 2004 it has joined the EU.The capital's name Lublana means "beloved". It is situated on the river Ljubljanica, over which there are a few beautiful bridges. One of them, the famous "Dragon's Bridge" (Zmajski Most), can be seen on the stamp. It was built about 1900 according to the design of Jurij Zaninović in Secession style, basically of the reinforced concrete.

Stamp Issue: 2007-10-24
number 4184, 4188

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