Alice in Alderney

On this cover is an Alice in Wonderland souvenir sheet commemorating the book's 150th anniversary. It was issued for the channel island of Alderney on behalf of Guernsey Post and postmarked recently in Alderney.

The Channel Island of Alderney

On this cover, postmarked in Alderney, are a pair of Atlantic puffin stamps from 2023. In the middle is a squat lobster stamp from a 2007 set that commemorated the 2005 recognition of the west coast of Alderney as a Ramsar "wetland of importance". And on the right is a 2007 Guernsey definitive that shows rock outcroppings at Albercq on the north short of the island of Guernsey.

Alderney is one of the channel islands in the English channel between England and France. It is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey. Even though postal services are provided by Guernsey, Alderney stamps are produced by Guernsey Post on behalf of the island. But Guernsey and Alderney stamps are valid throughout the Bailiwick (which is just another way of saying jurisdiction). 

Alderney's Final Panel of the Bayeux Tapestry

This miniature stamp sheet from Alderney depicts their version of the missing scene from the end of the Bayeux Tapestry. What it interesting about this stamp is that the top layer is not paper, but cotton: 100% combed cotton, with a thread count of 167x167. It's a nice looking sheet. Has an interesting texture. 

The Bayeux Tapestry is 70 meters of embroidered cloth that depicts events leading up to the Norman conquest of England. It is believe that the tapestry was commissioned sometime in the 11th century. The end of the tapestry is missing and is believe to contain one final "scene" but exactly what it contained is uncertain.

On the channel island of Alderney, a large group of island residents came together to construct their own final scene to the tapestry. Their tapestry, at 3m in length, documents the days after the battle of Hastings in 1066, which includes the coronation of William the Conqueror as the King of England and the construction of the Tower of London.

The History of Alderney Harbour

Twenty Five Years of Alderney Stamps

The channel island of Alderney has been issuing stamps for the past 25 years and to mark the occasion they have released a set of six commemoratives featuring photographs of island scenes that appeared on the first Alderney definitives issued in 1983. They have also put out a 5£ definitive that I don’t find terrible interesting. Alderney issues a few commemoratives each year, typically depicting island scenery and wildlife, and they can be purchased online from the Guernsey Philatelic Bureau. Their shipping charges are very reasonable and service is prompt and reliable.

Alderney is a British Crown dependency and an autonomous state of the Bailiwick of Guernsey. The third largest channel island, it has a population of around 2400 and covers an area only eight square kilometers. At one time their economy was entirely based on agriculture but is now dependant on tourism and financial services. The island language, a Norman dialect known as Auregnais, is now considered extinct, in part due to an influx of British immigrants and an almost total evacuation of the population that lasted the duration of the Second World War.