ORIENT EXPRESS – Joint issue ROMANIA - AUSTRIA

Joint issue Romania - Austria, souvenir sheet of the “Orient Express”, the legendary train, which once connected the two countries in a very luxurious manner, in order to mark the special cultural relationships between Bucharest and Vienna, built over time.

The stamp with the face value of 4.70 Lei represents the Orient Express train in May 1921, at Sinaia station. It had been pulled by a Pacific engine, type 2C1-h4, which belonged to the Bucharest Travelers Depot and was used on the route Bucharest North – Ploiesti – Sinaia – Brasov and back.

The stamp with the face value of 2.40 Lei represents the Orient Express train, in 1909, at Salzburg station, consisted of a four-axle restaurant car and pulled by a compound engine, type 2B-n2v from the Austrian series K.k.St.B. 206.01-206.70 belonging to Depot Wien II and which was used to pull the Orient Express train on the route Salzburg – Vienna and back.

In the background the image shows a map on which the corresponding track is recorded, the Paris Ostbahnhof, the Giant Ferris Wheel and the famous mosque “Hagia Sofia”.

The Orient Express train made the connection between Paris and Constantinople, namely between the Occident and Orient, and was undoubtedly the most famous and romantic of all trains. Writers, musicians, painters and cinematographers got inspired from the history of this famous train and contributed to the creation of its legend.

This train began operating in June 5th 1883, under the name of Le Train d’Orient or Express d’Orient and its first route, Paris (East Station) – Nancy – Strasbourg – Stuttgart – Munich – Salzburg – Vienna – Bratislava – Budapest – Jimbolia – Timisoara – Caransebes – Varciorova – Craiova – Pitesti – Bucharest – Giurgiu – Smarda, 2,638 kilometers long, lasted for 59 hours and 15 minutes. The first Orient Express left Giurgiu for Paris on June 8th 1883, at 13:30, arriving into the capital city at 15:00 and, after a 15 minutes halt, it left on its route to Paris.

On this occasion, the Postal and Telegraph Service in Giurgiu saluted their Parisian fellows by a telegram with the following Latin text: “Sequanam Danubius amice salutat.” (“Danubius friendly salutes Seine”) The Parisian Postal and Telegraph Service promptly answered, also in Latin, to the greetings of the people from Giurgiu: “Gratae Danubii fratris salutationi respondet Sequana soror.” (“Sister Seine thanks brother Danubius for his greetings.”)

Title: ORIENT EXPRESS – Joint issue ROMANIA - AUSTRIA
Date of Issue: 6 September 2010
Country: Austria/Romania
Denominations: 0,65 EUR x 2 and 4.70 Lei, 2.40 Lei

Source: www.post.at, www.romfilatelia.ro