FOR THE FIRST TIME IN COLOURS

Preface by Nino Aquila and Francesco Lombardo.

Included in a slip-case, the present work stands out with respect to previous studies thanks to the detailed study, the updates, and the reproductions in colours.
The volume presents the plates life size and divided into four parts with the indication of the main characteristics for each stamp and the distinctive elements for each position in the sheet.
Collectors can compare the original copies checking position and variations.
Described in details even the retouches, reproduced enlarged.
Separately, gathered in a specific sleeve inside the slip-case, the 15 plates reproduced life size and in colours through the stochastic printing system to obtain better image definition and detail preciseness.
On the back of each plate, "fac-simile" has been printed to avoid any frauds.

The adventures of Man's flight and the Conquest of Space have always aroused great fascination in Men's minds. Through his creative stories with winged myths and later with Science and the invention of "flying machines", Man has chased after his "dream of flying" and there have been many stages along the development of the Man-Space relationship.
Even today, forty years after the first steps on the Moon and despite the conquest of Space, Men still have an intense bond with Earth.

The letters, cancellations and postage stamps discussed in this brief overview on space mail relevant to the commander of Elbrus mission, Anatoli Berezovoy, author of the first Space to Earth letters, prove this.

Anatoli Nikolaievich Berezovoy, 51st pilot and Soviet cosmonaut, commander of Elbrus mission on board the Orbital Space Station Salyut-7 from 13 May to 10 December 1982, spends 211 days in Space, at the time the record of stay.
During the mission he writes a diary (from 22 June to 29 November), an intimate and fascinating account of his experience, account that shows the real human side of "living in Space". Anatoli describes the sadness of the solitude and the distance from one's family, the weight of daily tasks and the worry over health problems. It also traces a bitter description of the difficulties of surviving the breakdown of equipment on board and the misunderstandings with his flight companion and with those responsible for links between the Earth and the station.
From the description given of radio and TV links, of the biological, geographical and astrophysical experiments and medical tests, it is possible to perceive the cosmonaut's strong desire for the mission to succeed and the importance it holds for the development of Soviet and worldwide cosmonautics.

Even mail has its part, and in several pages Anatoli expresses the joy he feels upon the arrival of the supply ships and the subsequent opening of the bags containing newspapers, magazines and mail, "a glass of cold water in the scorching steppe". Moreover, he lingers on the preparation of the philatelic material, letters, postcards and documents to be carried back to Earth, "space mail" which tells us about the uniqueness of living in Space.

Chronological history of Zeppelin mail of the Italian area flown on Graf Zeppelin, Hindenburg and Graf Zeppelin II airships, including rates
This catalogue deals, in great detail, with Zeppelin mail of Italy, Italian colonies, San Marino and Vatican from 1929 to 1939. This list only refers to flown items for which it has been possible to assess their existence. Other mails, whose existence has not been verified yet, although mentioned in other sources, have been omitted. Items which are not genuine or fakes have been frequently mentioned, instead.
In this catalogue Zeppelin airmail stamps have been excluded, as they have already been described in philatelic catalogues.
The recording, given in chronological order, enables to trace a catalogued Zeppelin mail simply by referring to the page related to the airship's name, the year and, thus, the flight number, from which month and day of that particular flight are evident.
The flights numbering used in this work is that reported in the official original records of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin / Deutsche Zeppelin Reederei. The use of this numbering avoids arbitrary misleading information, instead providing a reference form among collectors, dealers and aviation historians.
Dieter Leder: "Zeppelin mail experts and sophisticated collectors worked together and shared their knowledge, information and covers to make this catalogue the most comprehensive data base for Zeppelin mail from Italy and its connected areas."