Wednesday, June 8, 2016

Odd stamps : 01g Perfumed stamps

According a song, there is an awful lot of coffee in Brazil.
Aparently that much, that there is enough to add fragrance to a stamp issued in 2001.

The stamp shows coffee in 3 varieties.

Brazil coffee stamp 2001

We see on top the coffee as a bean. Cofee beans are red (or green) and become dark after being roasted, s hown on the right hand side of the stamp.
Finally a cup of fresh coffee is added to the design.
coffee beans
roasted coffee beans
I found some useful information on the word 'Coffee' on the internet.


The word "coffee" entered the English language in 1582 via the Dutch koffie, borrowed from the Turkish kahve, in turn borrowed from the Arabic qahwah ( قهوة).
The word qahwah originally referred to a type of wine, whose etymology is given by Arab lexicographers as deriving from the verb qahā (قها, "to lack hunger") in reference to the drink's reputation as an appetite suppressant. The word qahwah is sometimes alternatively traced to the Arabic quwwa ("power, energy"), or to Kaffa, a medieval kingdom in Ethiopia whence the plant was exported to Arabia. These etymologies for qahwah have all been disputed, however. The name qahwah is not used for the berry or plant (the products of the region), which are known in Arabic as bunn and in Oromo as būn. Semitic had a root qhh "dark color", which became a natural designation for the beverage. According to this analysis, the feminine form qahwah (also meaning "dark in color, dull(ing), dry, sour") was likely chosen to parallel the feminine khamr (خمر, "wine"), and originally meant "the dark one" ... thanks Mr. Wikipedia.

The stamp of Brazil has a certain fragrance, but honestly ... it smells more like roasted paper then coffee. Of course, the stamp was issued quite a long time ago, and the fragrance might have vaporised already. I'm a huge coffee drinker, but this smell is so to say ... not my cup of tea.


Coffee art


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