Stories & Myths - 2022 EUROPA Competition

You have still a week (until 9 September) to cast your vote on the competition that chooses the most beautiful EUROPA stamp of the year. The theme this year is Stories & Myths. 

You can see the full gallery on this page. Below, the EUROPA stamps I have got this year:

France. Mélusine (Melusina) is a legendary creature depicted as a mermaid, a reptile from the hips down, or a dragon. Coming from chivalrous stories and medieval tales, she becomes a river nymph, living in a water hole, a fairy nestled at the bottom of a cave, or even living in the hollow of a moor.

The Netherlands. Vrouwtje van Stavoren (Lady of Stavoren) is a legend about how pride comes before a fall. The story is about a rich merchant's wife. In a fit of rage, she throws grain overboard in the harbour of Stavoren. When bystanders are outraged, the woman throws a precious ring into the waves and says she will only regret it when the sea returns her ring. And the sea does just that, as she finds the ring in the belly of a fish. From then on, things start to go downhill: the woman loses all her money, the harbour silts up and Stavoren’s prosperity becomes a thing of the past.

Spain*. In the southwest of Mallorca lies the legendary island of Dragonera, a hideout for pirates and smugglers between the 14th and 16th centuries. It takes its name from its silhouette resembling that of a sleeping dragon, a legendary animal watching over the coast and the ships approaching it. According to the myth, there are many small dragons or guardians of the area, the Lilford's wall lizards (Podarcis lilfordi) , an endemic species of the island which can be specially seen during the warmer months. The legend of the dragon speaks of this mythological animal and all kinds of reptiles protecting Mallorca from unwanted invaders.

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*I have not got, but sent, this one!