Nelumbo nucifera

I am participating in the April AtoZ Blogging challenge and my theme is Plants featured on Indian Stamps. This is my eight attempt at the AtoZ. 

My theme is inspired by an online talk by Daniel L Nikrent of Cornell University, USA held by Maharashtra Vriksha Samvardhini about Parasitic Flowering Plants featured on Stamps. 

I am not a stamp collector nor a fan of stamps. Hence almost all my posts are purely based on research on the internet. I have tried to cross check the info before posting here. Please do share correct info and links to the same in case of discrepancy. 

India Post has a very strong network reaching deep deep into the interiors of the country and I depended on it for news from home when we were posted in far away places.  In this age of smartphones, Internet, how many of us really write letters – snail mail as they are now called? Despite this , I find that new stamps are being issued and we have stamps on diverse topics including Armed Forces, Films, Personalities, Wildlife, Handlooms, Handicrafts, Food and so on.. It is amazing!

Nelumbo nucifera or the Lotus of the Nelumbonaceae family is India’s national flower. It can be seen in several art forms like paintings and woven into saree borders. Lotus flowers are also offered in worship. In addition, its stem is edible so are its seeds. The flower and its leaves rise above the water level wherein they grow. Here is an image of its leaf from my collection.

Our national flower is on a India Post stamp of denomination 25nP issued in 1977.

The India Postage Stamps website  has a complete catalogue of stamps. Please click the link to see many many wonderful stamps.

Colnect is a comprehensive portal for Stamp collectors. It gives detailed information about every listed stamp.  Click here for detailed info about Stamps – what is a stamp, types, formats, water marks, perforations and much more.  

You can catch up with my previous posts here. We meet after the weekend for yet another beautiful plant and its stamp! 

Stay Healthy! Stay Happy!