Lahti is once again hosting a traditional Christmas nativity event, and a special postmark will be used starting on Monday, December 2. Posti stamps the special postmark on all Christmas greetings that have been dropped off in the mailbox at Vapaudenkatu 6 between December 2 and December 19. Items dropped off on Independence Day, December 6, and Sunday, December 8 and December 15, will be stamped the following weekday.
This year’s nativity postmark depicts the holy family and a Bible with a cross and the text BIIBBALL on its cover. This is a reference to the Northern Sami language translation of the Bible, which has been produced over the past 20 years as a joint project between the Nordic countries. The new Bible replaced the previously used late 19th century translation on September 1, 2019.
Nativity stamps have been published annually since 2005. Like the previous years’ nativity stamps, this year’s stamp, which is the fifteenth one to be published, has been designed by heraldist Tapani Talari.
The Lahti stamp club’s postmarking point and exhibition
The Lahti stamp club is also participating in the event by setting up its own postmarking point on the premises of Vapaudenkatu 6 from December 2 to December 19. The point is open 10 a.m.–3 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 10 a.m.–4 p.m. on Thursdays and 10 a.m.–3 p.m. on Saturdays. The stamper is most likely to be present after noon. There is no stamping on Independence Day (Friday, December 6).
The Lahti stamp club’s service point also sells Christmas cards and Christmas stamps. An exhibition featuring Christmas-themed cards and stamps from the collections of the stamp club members is displayed in the lobby of the Marian Kammari building.
Last mailing dates for Christmas greetings
Domestic Christmas greetings (EUR 1.10) with a Christmas no-value indicator stamp must be dropped off in a mailbox by midnight on Wednesday, December 11.
Christmas greetings with a domestic no-value indicator stamp (EUR 1.60) will be delivered by Christmas if they are mailed according to the mailbox emptying times by Tuesday, December 17.
The mailing dates for Christmas greetings to recipients outside of Finland can be found on Posti’s Christmas website at posti.fi.
