33. Alexander Column

I am making a good collection of cards from St-Petersburg, both from official and private swaps. Suddenly it seems I have been there, as every view makes me feel at home. This time, I got to travel to the Palace Square and see the impressive Column of Alexander in front of the -not less impressive- Hermitage or Winter Palace. Not only I do like the building itself but thinking of how many pieces of art are inside makes my head go dizzy! Stendhal syndrome from a postcard, could that happen?

On the back of the card, a handful stamps representing Russian animals that I have received before: the fox (0.50), the bear (10 R) and the lynx (2.00) -- the lynx is a new addition I love because the Iberian lynx is an endangered species in Spain, and featuring them in stamps is a way as good as any to raise awareness. And they are cute wild cats.

The right stamp, however, depicts a painting of Zinaida Serebriakova, a Russian artist from the early 20th century, called The Shoots of Autumn Crops (1908). It belongs to a series issued to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the birth of the painter.