1950: Istanbul Regional air navigation meeting
The second Middle East Regional Air Navigation (MERAN) Meeting was convened by ICAO at the Yildiz Palace, Istanbul, Turkey, from 17 October to 7 November 1950. Representatives of sixteen Member States, one non-Contracting State and four international organizations attended this Meeting. The first MERAN meeting was held in Cairo in October 1946.
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Istanbul - Yildiz Palace |
The Yildiz Palace was certainly one of the most beautiful palaces of Istanbul and also the last built by the Ottoman dynasty. It is the sultan Abdülhamit II (1876-1909) who built it and lived there during his reign. Built in the old Ottoman style, this second largest palace in Istanbul was a complex of pavilions and gardens scattered over a large area of hills and valleys overlooking the Bosphorus and surrounded by high walls. During his thirty-three-year reign, the sultan used this well-protected palace resembling a city within a city as his official quarters and harem.
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Vertical bisect |
The different courtyards, containing: pavilions, pools, greenhouses, aviaries, workshops and servants' quarters, were separated from each other by passageways and gates. The Sale, the largest and most exquisite of the buildings, reveals the luxury in which the sultans lived and entertained. The main part of the palace was called ”Yıldız Sarayı Hümayun-u” (i.e. Yildız Imperial Palace). The Turkish word Yildiz means Star.
On 17 October 1950, Turkey issued a set of three stamps to commemorate this RAN meeting; these are also the first stamps issued within the ICAO stamp collection, should PICAO’s time be excluded. It is to be noted that many freaks (i.e. misperforations or missing perforations or ink smears) of these stamps can be found. See the stamp issue at the following link: Turkey - Second Middle East Regional Air Navigation Meeting. In the special postmark for this meeting, the Turkish words BÖGLE TOPLANTISI mean REGIONAL MEETING.
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17th century bird‑flight of Hezârfen Ahmet Çelebi |
Biplane over Taurus mountains |
Airport entry and Douglas DC‑3 over Istanbul |
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Enamel pin/badge (front and back) offered to the Delegates attending the meeting. It displays the picture used for the cancel of the first day covers. |
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First Day Cover with generic aircraft on the cachet.
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Service cover used for the meeting – Text in English. Red imprint: UÇAKLA / BY AIR MAIL.
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Service cover used for the meeting – Text in Turkish. Red imprint: UÇAKLA / BY AIR MAIL.
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Service cover used for this meeting with the special postmarks. The back of this cover (see next picture) shows: ICAO/Yildizsarayi – ISTANBUL.
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Back of the above cover showing: ICAO/Yildizsarayi – ISTANBUL.
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First Day Cover - Commercial cover. No imprint on the back of this cover.
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Large size (24cmx20cm) service cover; English inscription. |
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