FOUR postage stamps, in celebration of the development of gold and diamond mining, were issued yesterday.
The imprints were also hailed as a salute to the people and places of significance involved in the industry, at the ceremony in the Brickdam, Georgetown Head Office of Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC).
The issues by Guyana Post Office Corporation (GPOC) include one that portrays Bartica as gateway to the interior on a map of the confluence of  Mazaruni and Cuyuni Rivers.
Another shows a collection of diamonds and gold nuggets, one more has the image of veteran porkknocker  Dick Manning and a fourth is an image of  outstanding female porkknocker Cyrilda De Jesus.
Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, performing the duties of the Office of President, was among the speakers at the forum, among whom were by Acting Commissioner of GGMC Mrs. Karen Livan; Chairman of the GGMC Board, Mr. Ronald Webster and Chairman of the GPOC Board, Bishop Juan Edghill.
Others present included GPOC and GGMC senior staffers, miners, Regional Chairman of Region Seven (Cuyuni/Mazaruni) of which Bartica is a part, Mr. Holbert Knights and the two porkknockers honoured, Mr. Manning and Mrs. De Jesus.
Mr. Hinds said it is apt that Guyana’s postage stamps should reflect people and things of significance to Guyanese.
He attested that gold and diamond mining has been important for its people and Guyana on many counts.
The Prime Minister noted that Bartica has, since the days following the abolition of slavery, been the gateway into Guyana’s hinterland for many hoping to find the elusive golden El Dorado described by the early explorer, Sir Walter Raleigh.
He said, of the remaining three stamps, the two most important were the ones that feature local personalities in mining over the last decades, De Jesus and Manning.
Livan said: “We want to celebrate the history of mining. We don’t want to forget the past, even as we look to the future and chart a course to deal with the issues and the challenges which lie ahead.”
WONDERFUL HISTORY
Webster said Guyana has a wonderful history of postage stamps and mentioned the famous two cents Black Magenta.
He urged those present to purchase the First Day Covers on sale yesterday, telling them: “Years from now, they could be attracting a very high price from philatelists and collectors.”
Edghill agreed and added: “But this is not only about sales and making money. This is about preserving history, because, hundreds of years from now, these simple acts of remembering the contributions the people will have made, the role they would have played and their pioneering spirit would give as much insight into life in our times as the people  who write the history books.”
“We are not only selling stamps. We are selling our pride, what we stand for and what we believe in,” he declared.
The new stamps were sold on the GGMC premises for one hour after the formal ceremony and, from today, will be available to other members of the public in the Philatelic Department of GPOC, in $100 denominations.
Frames containing all four are being sold as well, at $1,000 for the small, $1,200 for the medium size and $1,500 for the large.
The should have been released at Porkknockers Day, during Mining Week 2010 in August at Bartica, but their production was delayed due to circumstances beyond the control of GPOC