JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本.

National Parks. 
Mount Hotaka, in Chūbu-Sangaku National Park.
First stamp in a set of 2, issued on 10.08.1972.
Face value: 10 Japanese yen.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 32,000,000 copies.
Size: 36 x 26 mm.

Catalogs 
- Michel No. 1157.
- Sakura No. P137.
- Scott No. 1120.
- StampWorld No. 1147.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1298.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1061.

Mount Hotaka or Hotakadake (Japanese: 穂高岳) is one of the 100 Famous Japanese Mountains as coined by the median, reaching a height of 3,190 m (10,466 ft). It is situated within Chūbu-Sangaku National Park, in Hida Mountains (Northern Alps) between Toyama and Gifu prefectures.

Thanks to Krystyna Betiuk for his contribution (https://pocztowkowezbiory.blogspot.com/)

JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本

100th Anniversary of National Weather Forecasts.
Map of Japan and satellite Himawari.
Stamp issued on 01.06.1984.
Face value: 60 Japanese yen.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 30,000,000 copies.
Size: 28 x 37 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 1588.
- Sakura No. C988.
- Scott No. 1564.
- StampWorld No. 1578.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1741.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1489.

The first meteorological predictions in Japan were made in 1884, and on July 1, 1956 the Japan Meteorological Agency (気象庁) was created, based in Minato (Tokyo), charged with gathering and providing results for the public that are obtained from data based on daily scientific observation and research into natural phenomena in the fields of meteorology, hydrology, seismology and volcanology, among other related scientific fields. On July 14, 1977, the first Geostationary Meteorological Satellite of the Himawari series (ひまわり), which is the one depicted on the stamp, was launched into orbit.

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Thanks to Dragan Buškulić for his contribution (https://worldofstamp2.wordpress.com/).

JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本

Roads crossing the Seto Inland Sea.
Great Seto Bridge.
First stamp in a minisheet of 10, issued on 08.07.2010.
Face value: 80 Japanese yen.
Design: Maruyama Satoru.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Print: 1,200,000 copies.
Size: 28 x 37 mm.

Catalogs
- AFA No.
- Michel No. 5352.
- Sakura No. R775a.
- Scott No. 3248a.
- StampWorld No. 5375.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 4422.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 5151.

The Great Seto Bridge or Seto Ohashi Bridge (瀬戸大橋) is a series of double deck bridges connecting Okayama and Kagawa prefectures in Japan across a series of five small islands in the Seto Inland Sea. Built over the period 1978–88, it is one of the three routes of the Honshū–Shikoku Bridge Project connecting Honshū and Shikoku islands and the only one to carry rail traffic. The total length is 13.1 kilometers (8.1 mi). The bridge opened to road and rail traffic on April 10, 1988. 

RYUKYU ISLANDS

RYUKYU ISLANDS / 琉球

Mount Arashi from Haneji Sea.
Stamp issued on 30.08.1971.
Face value: 3 cents of United States dollar.
Printing: Offset Photogravure.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 246.
- Scott No. 218.
- StampWorld No. 253.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 256.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 210.

Mount Arashi (Arashiyama, 嵐山) is located in Motubu Peninsula, northwest of Okinawa Island, next to the so-called Haneji Inland Sea, an inlet of the China Sea. In the foreground of the stamp is the small Yagaji Island, which can be accessed by walking from the shore at low tide. At the top of the mountain there is an observation deck from which there are interesting panoramic views.

JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本

Kanmon Bridge connecting Honshū and Kyūshū islands.
Stamp issued on 14.11.1973.
Face value: 20 Japanese yen.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 38,000,000 copies.
Size: 42 x 26 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 1191.
- Sakura: C628.
- Scott No. 1151.
- StampWorld No. 1181.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1333.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1093.

The Kanmon Bridge (関門橋) is a three-span suspension bridge crossing the Kanmon Straits, a stretch of water separating the Japan's islands of Honshū and Kyūshū. It connects the towns of Shimonoseki, on the island of Honshū, and Kitakyushū, on the island of Kyūshū. It was opened to vehicles on November 14, 1973. The central length of the bridge is 1,068 m (3,504 ft). Its height from the bottom of the beam to sea level is 61 m (200 ft).

JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本.

Gunma Prefecture.
Oze Moor in autumn, and Mount Shibutsu.
Second stamp in a set of 2, issued on 21.05.1998.
Face value: 80 Japanese yen.
Printing; Offset lithography.
Print: 15,900,000 copies.
Size: 26 x 36 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No.2560A.
- Sakura No, R244.
- Scott No. Z244.
- StampWorld No. 2605.
- Stanley Gibbons No. GUNM 5.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 2444.

Oze Moor (尾瀬ヶ原) is a high altitude marshland in the Oze National Park. Approximately 8 km² (3.09 sq mi) in size, it is well known for the various species of plants, including the mizu-bashō (White Skunk Cabbage), Nikkōkisuge (yellow alpine lilies, Hemerocallis dumortieri var. esculenta) and Watasuge (Eriophorum vaginatum). It was declared Ramsar Wetland on November 8, 2005.

Mount Shibutsu (至仏山) is a serpentine mountain in the north-east of Gunma Prefecture. It is 2,228 m (7,310 ft). It is part of Oze National Park and the Minakami UNESCO Eco Park.

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Thanks to Dragan Buškulić for his contribution (https://worldofstamp2.wordpress.com/).

JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本

Lake Chūzenji and Mount Nantai in autumn.
Second stamp in a set of 2, issued on 01.03.1999.
Face value: 80 Japanese yen.
Printing: Photogravure.
Size: 26 x 36 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 2637.
- Sakura No. R276.
- Scott No. Z276.
- StampWorld No. 2682.
- Stanley Gibbons No. TOCH-5.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 2518.

Lake Chūzenji (中禅寺湖), also called Sea of Happiness, is a scenic lake in Nikkō National Park, into Tochigi Prefecture. It was created 20,000 years ago when Mount Nantai (a stratovolcano, 2,484 m; 8,150 ft) erupted and blocked the Yukawa river. The lake has a surface area of 11.62 km² (4.48 sq mi) and a circumference of 25 km (82 mi). Its elevation at the surface is 1,269 m (4,124 ft), and the water reaches a depth of 163 m (508 ft). The Lake was discovered in 782 by a priest named Shōdō when his group succeeded in climbing Mt. Nantai. Considered sacred, the mountain was closed to women, horses, and cows until 1872.

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Thanks to Dragan Buškulić for his contribution (https://worldofstamp2.wordpress.com/).

JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本

Mount Shinnyu, in Nishi-Chūgoku Sanchi Quasi-National Park.
Second stamp in a set of 2, issued on 28.08.1973.
Face value: 20 Japanese yen.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 35,000,000 copies.
Size: 36 x 26 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 1186.
- Sakura No. P256.
- Scott No. 1146.
- StampWorld No. 1176.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1327.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1088.

Mount Shinnyu (新入山) is a mountain of 1,153 m (3,783 ft) localizada en el Nishi-Chūgoku Sanchi Quasi-National Park (西中国山地国定公園), founded on January 10, 1969 in Shimane Prefecture, Hiroshima Prefecture, and Yamaguchi Prefecture.

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Thanks to Kazimierz R. Leszczyński for his contribution (http://leszkarozdub.blogspot.com).

JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本.

National Parks.
Jōshin'etsu-kōgen National Park (上信越高原国立公園). Mount Asama.
First stamp of 2, issued in minisheet on 25.06.1954.
Face value: 5 Japanese yen.
Printing: Photogravure.
Size: 42 x 26 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 632A.
- Sakura No. P79.
- Scott No. 600.
- StampWorld No. 621.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 727.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 555,

Jōshin'etsu-kōgen National Park (上 信 越高 原 国立 公園) is located in the Chūbu region, of the island of Honshū. It is formed around several active and inactive volcanoes. It is divided into two separate areas: the area of southern Niigata and northern Nagano and the area of eastern Nagano. It was established on September 7, 1949 and was significantly expanded in 1956 to include the mountainous region of Myōkō-Togakushi. Its area is 1,482 km² (572.18 sq mi). The southwestern area of the Mikuni Mountains (三国 山脈 南 西部) includes Mount Tanigawa, 1,963 m (6,440 ft) and two active volcanoes: Mount Kusatsu-Shirane, 2,162 m (7,093 ft) and Mount Asama, 2,542 m (8,340 ft). Mount Asama is the most active volcano in Honshū.

JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本.

Antarctic Expedition.
Map of Antactica, Aurora Australis and ship.
Stamp issued on 20.11.1965.
Face value: 10 Japanese yen.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 25,500,000 copies.
Size: 36 x 26 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 905.
- Sakura No. C439.
- Scott No. 857.
- StampWorld No. 895.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1017.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 819.

The first Japanese expedition to Antarctica took place in 1956, in the context of the International Geophysical Year research program implemented from July 1957 to December 1958. The one in 1965, which departed on November 20 aboard the observation ship Fuji, equipped with the most modern technology of the moment, was the seventh expedition. Since then, continuous monitoring observation programs have been used to obtain basic data and samples that are indispensable for academic research and are carried out over long periods, often as part of an international monitoring network.

RYUKYU ISLANDS

RYUKYU ISLANDS / 琉球

Government Parks.
View from Mabuni Hill (Okinawa).
Stamp issued on 30.07.1971.
Face value: 3 cents of United States dollar.
Printing: Photogravure.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 245.
- Scott No. 217.
- StampWorld No. 252.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 255.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 209.

The Ryūkyū Islands (琉球 諸島), officially, in Japanese, Nansei Islands (南西 諸島) is the southernmost archipelago of Japan, in the southwestern part of the country, in the East China Sea. They have a total area of 4,642.11 km² (1,792.33 sq mi) and their maximum height is Mount Miyanoura, of 1,936 m (6352 ft). The archipelago is made up of 83 islands, 48 of them uninhabited: the largest are Okinawa (沖縄), 1,206.98 km² (466.02 sq mi), and Amami (奄美), 712.35 km² (275.04 sq mi). Part of the archipelago was an independent kingdom between the 14th and 19th centuries: in 1879 it was abolished by the Japanese Meiji government and integrated into Japan as Okinawa Prefecture. After the Second World War, in 1945, the archipelago came under the administration of the United States and the islands were totally returned to Japan on May 15, 1972 (between 1948 and 1972 Ryukyu issued its own stamps). One of the bloodiest battles of the war took place in Okinawa, between American and Japanese troops, from April 1 to June 23, 1945, with a death toll of more than a quarter of a million.

Mabuni Hill, 89 m (292 ft) above sea level, south of the island of Okinawa and on the shores of the Pacific Ocean, was one of the worst hit during the battle that took place in 1945 between US and Japanese troops: there, precisely, the battle finally ended on June 23 of that year after the suicide of two senior Japanese military commanders. A part of the hill is occupied by a Peace Park Memorial consecrated to the memory of the victims of that battle, with a cemetery where the ashes of some 110,000 of them lie and a commemorative museum inaugurated in 1975.

DJIBOUTI

DJIBOUTI / جيبوتي

Wedding of Japan’s Crown Prince Naruhito and Masako Owada.
With an artistic representation of the Mount Fuji.
Souvenir sheet issued on 10.01.1994. 
Face value: 500 Djibutian francs.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Printed on wood and wood paper.
Size: 119 x 100 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 593
- StampWorld No. 437.

Mount Fuji (富士山), 3,776.24 m (12,389.2 ft) high, on the island of Honshu, is a compound volcano and the highest peak in Japan. It is located between Shizuoka and Yamanashi prefectures in central Japan, about 100 km (62 mi) west of Tokyo. It is classified as an active volcano, but with little risk of eruption: the last recorded eruption dates back to 1707. Mount Fuji is part of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park and is on the list of World Heritage cultural properties of UNESCO since June 2013. Considered sacred since ancient times, until the Meiji era (end of the 19th century) it was forbidden for women to reach the top. It is one of the symbols of Japan. Its volcanic cone is a recurring theme in Japanese art. The first known ascent of Mount Fuji dates back to 663 and was made by an anonymous Buddhist monk. The first non-Japanese to climb the volcano was Rutherford Alcock in 1860.

About Wedding of Prince Naruhito and Masako Owada, please see here.

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Thanks to Vairo Gregori for his contribution (https://ternifil.org/).

JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本.

Hyōnosen-Ushiroyama-Nagisan Quasi-National Park (氷ノ山後山那岐山国定公園).
First stamp in a set of 2, issued on 20.08.1969.
Face value: 15 Japanese yen.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 18,000,000 copies.
Size: 26 x 36 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 1050.
- Sakura No. P238.
- Scott No. 1004.
- StampWorld No. 1040.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1173.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 952.

Hyōnosen-Ushiroyama-Nagisan Kokutei Kōen (氷ノ山後山那岐山国定公園) is a Quasi-National Park that occupies part of the prefectures of Hyōgo, Tottori and Okayama, on the island of Honshū. It was created in April 10, 1969 and has a total area of 488.03 km² (188.43 sq mi). Inside there are several mountains, among which the 1,510 m (4,950 ft) Mount Hyōno (氷ノ山) stands out, as well as beautiful valleys and numerous waterfalls. The stamp represents the Harafudo waterfall (原不動滝), 88 m (289 ft) high, in three steps.

JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本.

Noto Hantō Quasi-National Park (能登半島国定公園).
First of a set of 2, issued on 01.08.1970.
Face value: 15 Japanese yen.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 20,000,000 copies.
Size: 36 x 26 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 1085.
- Sakura No. P242.
- Scott No. 1039.
- StampWorld No. 1075.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1211.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 987.

Noto Hantō Quasi-National Park (能登半島国定公園) covers a portion of Noto Peninsula, in Ishikawa and Toyama Prefectures, into the Chūbu region (Honshu Island). Noto Peninsula (能登半島), extends about 100 kilometers into the Sea of Japan. The park was established on May 1, 1968, and its area is 96.72 km² (37.34 sq mi). On the stamp you can see, in the background, the Tateyama Mountain Range (立山連峰).

JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本.

Zaō Quasi-National Park (蔵王国定公園).
Crater of Mount Zaō.
Stamp issued on 15.03.1966.
Face value: 10 Japanese yen.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 24,000,000 copies.
Size: 36 x 26 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 923.
- Sakura No. P223.
- Scott No. 875.
- StampWorld No. 913.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1036.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 831.

The Zaō Kokutei Kōen (蔵 王国 定 公園) is a Quasi-National Park that extends in the Ōu Mountains between Miyagi and Yamagata Prefectures. It was established in 1963, and its main feature is Mount Zaō, which is in fact a complex group of volcanoes, some of which are still active, in the north of the island of Honshu. Its maximum height is 1,841 m (6,040 ft). The crater of the central mount, named Okama (御 釜), formed by an eruption in 1720, contains a lake 360 m (1,200 ft) in diameter and 60 m (200 ft) deep.

JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本.

Ishizuchi Quasi-National Park (石鎚国定公園) and Mount Ishizuchi (石鎚山),
in Prefectures of Ehime and Kōchi (Shikoku island).   

Stamp issued on 11.01.1963.
Face value: 10 Japanese yen.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 10,000,000 copies.  

Catalogues
- Michel No. 813. 
- Scott No. 774. 
- StampWorld No. 
- Stanley Gibbons No. 916.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 729.

The Ishizuchi Kokutei Kōen (石 鎚 国 定 公園) is a Quasi-National Park founded on November 1, 1955 and has an area of 106.83 km² (41.25 sq mi). The park area is classified as a Protected Landscape and a Protected Marine Area. Inside the park is Mount Ishizuchi (石 鎚 山), 1982 m (6,502 ft) high. The Kamega forest also appears in the foreground on the stamp.    

JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本.

Mont Fuji from Mitsu Pass, in the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park.
Third stamp in a set of 4, issued on 16.01.1962.
Face value: 10 Japanese yen.
Printing: Photogravure.
Print: 8,000,000 copies.
Size: 36 x 26 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 784.
- Sakuro No. P93.
- Scott No. 743.
- StampWorld No. 774.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 887.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 696.

Mount Fuji (富士山) is a compound volcano and the highest peak on the island of Honshu and in all of Japan, at 3,776.24 m (12,389.2 ft) in altitude. It is located between the prefectures of Shizuoka and Yamanashi in central Japan and west of Tokyo and is a symbol of Japan, very present in art and literature. Since ancient times it was considered a sacred place, access forbidden to women until the 19th century. Although it is still considered an active low-risk volcano, its last eruption dates from 1707.

The Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park (富士 箱根 伊豆 国立 公園) is distributed by the Yamanashi, Shizuoka, Kanagawa prefectures, and the Tokyo metropolitan area. It contains Mount Fuji, five Fuji lakes, Hakone, the Izu Peninsula, and the Izu Archipelago. It was established on February 2, 1936 as the Fuji-Hakone National Park (the Izu Archipelago  and the Izu Islands were added in 1950) and its current area is 1,227 km² (474 sq mi). The park is not a specific place, but a collection of scattered tourist sites that dot the region.

JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本.

Senba Cliff in the Muroto-Anan Quasi-National Park (室戸阿南海岸国定公園).
Second stamp in a set of 2, issued on 22.03.1966.
Face value: 10 Japanese yen.
Print: 21,500,000 copies.

Catalogues
- Scott No. 877.
- StampWorld No. 915.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1038.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 833.

El Muroto-Anan Quasi-National Park is on the coast of Kōchi and Tokushima Prefectures, on the southern island of Shikoku. It was founded on 1 June 1964 and has an area of 72.2 km² (27.9 sq mi).

JAPAN

JAPAN / 日本.

Jōshin'etsu-kōgen National Park, Chūbu región. Mount Tanigawa (1977 m / 6,486 ft).
Second stamp in a set of 2, issued on 25.06.1954.
Face value: 20 Japanese yen.
Printing: Photogravure.
Size: 42 x 26 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 633A.
- StampWorld No. 622.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 728.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 556.

Jōshin'etsu-kōgen National Park is a national park in the Chūbu region of the main island of Honshū, Japan formed around several active and dormant volcanoes. The park spans the mountainous areas of Gunma, Nagano, and Niigata prefectures.