Canada -

“ SHIPS ~ SHIP WRECK ~ THE FRANKLIN EXPEDITION.”

MNH ~ Miniature Sheet !

A wonderful memento for history enthusiasts, Canadiana collectors, and those interested in Arctic exploration, this colourful collectible pays tribute to the discovery of HMS Erebus, the lost flagship of the Franklin Expedition.

Erebus was one of two ships that became trapped in ice during an ill-fated 1840’s voyage in search of the Northwest Passage. Their crew eventually died in a desperate southbound march. Erebus remained lost until 2014, more than a century and half later, when Parks Canada and its partners located the ship off the Nunavut coast.

The main image, an underwater photo depicting the finding of Erebus' bell, is overlaid on a map of the Arctic region where Franklin’s sailors met their grisly fate. The sheet also includes the international stamp from this series, which combines a sonar image of Erebus beneath the water with a line drawing of the ship's main deck.

The title and the diagonal text across the stamp are written in English, French, and Inuktut, a tribute to the stories of Inuit eyewitnesses, passed down through oral accounts which helped pinpoint the historic discovery.

ISSUE DATE: August 6, 2015

(CD16).