January 30, 2013

0489 TURKEY (Marmara Region) - Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge


If I'm not mistaken, in present there are only three bridges linking two continents: Suez Canal Bridge (which cross the Suez Canal at El Qantara, in Egypt, so link Africa and Asia), Bosphorus Bridge and Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge (which cross  the Bosphorus strait at Istanbul, in Turkey, so link Europe and Asia). In this postcard is the last one, also known as the Second Bosphorus Bridge, which was, when was completed (in 1988), the 6th longest suspension bridge span in the world.

With a length of 1,510m, a deck width of 39 m and a clearance from sea level of 64 m, the bridge, situated between Hisarüstü (European side) and Kavacık (Asian side), on the Trans-European Motorway between Edirne and Ankara, was named after the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror, who took Constantinople (Istanbul) in 1453 and ended the Byzantine Empire. It was designed by Freeman Fox & Partners and BOTEK Bosphorus Technical Consulting Corp., and has four lanes for vehicular traffic plus one emergency lane in each direction. No pedestrians are allowed to use the bridge. Nowadays, around 150,000 vehicles are passing daily in both directions. It is a toll bridge, but payment is required from only the vehicles passing from Europe to Asia.

About the stamps
The first stamp is part of a series which is intended to promote social equality of men and women. The inscription on the tab, Biz de varız, means "We are dedicated". The series was issued on March 8, 2012 and contain three stamps. I don't think that an Islamic country ever edited stamps with such thematic.

The second belongs to the series 30th Olympic Games London 2012, issued on July 27, 2012, and containing four stamps (50 Kurus, 1 Turk x 2, 2 Turk)

References
Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge - Wikipedia
30th Olympic Games London 2012 - Turkey - Philately News

Sender: Mina (direct swap)
Sent from Ankara (Turkey), on 07.09.2012

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