The United Nations Postal Administration will issue a new Greetings from Geneva pane of 10 stamps and labels Sept. 21. The 1.40-franc stamps show different images associated with the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, the home of the U.N. office in Geneva.

Germany is commemorating 175 years of postage stamps by showcasing the world’s first: Great Britain’s 1840 Penny Black. Germany’s E0.62+E0.30 Day of Stamps semipostal will be issued Sept. 1 in panes of 10, with two special pictorial cancellations from Bonn and Berlin.

Collecting cinderella stamps — broadly defined as stamplike labels that are not postage stamps — is not for everyone. If you like things neat and orderly, with the rules spelled out and comprehensive cataloging with no surprises, you should probably stick to postage stamps.

The stamps, which were launched as the 500 countdown to the start of the games next year, feature a number of sports. Golf, handball, taekwondo, table tennis and triathlon – just to name a few.

All countries use their postage stamps to promote the message of who they are and what they stand for to their own population and to the rest of the world. But the Soviet Union (1923-1991) was unusual in that many of the people honored on its stamps were actually condemned and executed by the regime.

England will host the eighth Rugby World Cup Sept. 18 through Oct. 31, and Royal Mail will issue eight stamps for the event on the opening day.

Six new stamps from the United Nations Postal Administration promote a UNICEF initiative to end violence against children and adolescents.

The Jeddah issues of Saudi Arabia philately are provisional stamps riddled with overprint, surcharge and handstamp errors. A few collectors of this area believe that such varieties were intentionally created to sell to collectors.

An American icon is pictured on British computer-produced self-adhesive postage labels to be issued Sept. 16, the opening day of the Autumn Stampex show in London. The design depicts the Statue of Liberty with the New York skyline behind it, as seen from the deck of a ship.

Collectors frequently have deja-vu experiences when visiting foreign countries, when they recognize buildings or scenery from their stamp albums. This is exactly what happened to me when I spent a week on the island of Lundy in early 2014.

Beijing has been an important city since antiquity. It was the capital of China in the last three dynasties of Yuan (Mongol), Ming and Qing, and also is the capital of the People’s Republic of China. My connection to this city began when my family moved there in 1992.

New stamps from France feature animal’s eyes and are appropriately called “Les animaux nous regardent,” which translates to “the animals are watching.” France’s La Poste issued the 12 self-adhesive stamps July 31 in a single booklet. Each design focuses on the animal’s pupil. If you look closely, you can see the name of the animal inscribed on each eye.

A campaign oranized by Jewish News lobbying for the portrait of British Holocaust hero Nicholas Winton to be put on a Royal Mail stamp just might realize its goal. BBC News reports, "Royal Mail said Sir Nicholas, from Berkshire, was 'definitely among the subjects for future consideration.'"

Danish West Indies issued its first stamps in 1856. Its stamp output totaled fewer than 60 postage stamps and eight postage due stamps. The last set, comprising eight King Christian X definitive stamps (Scott 51-58) issued in 1915, is surprisingly difficult to find in grades of very fine or better.

Quite a few beer stamps have been issued by countries around the world, especially those countries noted for brewing. In 1983, Germany issued an 80-pfennig stamp (Scott 1396) to commemorate the 450th anniversary of its brewing purity laws. The design shows brewers from a 1677 engraving.

New Scott catalog numbers have been assigned to recent issues from the United Nations. The most recent United States federal duck stamps also received Scott numbers.

Even if you don’t collect Europa as a topic, you may want to take a look at these stamps for the many other topics found on them. Starting in 1974, each participating country selected its own Europa stamp designs based on a common theme for the year, including famous people, the arts, history, local landmarks and much more. The theme for 2015 is old toys, and, as with the Europa topic, you can find many more topics other than toys in the designs.

Over time, some nations have instituted mandatory taxes on letters and packages. The amount of the tax has been small, but considering the volume of mail within the nations that collect postal taxes, the result could be a tidy sum. The taxes on mail were often (but not always) paid through the purchase of a postal tax stamp, which was required to be affixed to the letter or parcel being mailed.

Liberia’s battles with Ebola virus disease have claimed worldwide media attention since early 2014. It may seem frivolous to focus on the unfortunate country’s stamps, but the EVD epidemic seems to have abated, and you might find yourself curious about this remote country and its philatelic history.

Canada Post issued a new stamp Aug. 21 to replace the withdrawn $1.20 Dinosaur Provincial Park stamp that had an incorrectly identified image. The original stamp was issued July 3 in Canada Post’s UNESCO World Heritage Sites series and withdrawn shortly thereafter, along with other products with the design mistake.