Guernsey Post’s Alderney “Ian Fleming” Issue Features “Hidden” Map

Guernsey and Alderney, 20140730

Guernsey Post’s July 30th, 2014 issue from Alderney commemorating the life of British espionage author Ian Fleming features a “somewhat hidden” map. The set is comprised of six self-adhesive stamps, featuring black and white photographs of Fleming at various times during his lift.  Denominations of the issue are 41p, 54p, 55p, 66p, 74p, and 83p.  Also available is a ￡3 miniature sheet, and features Fleming driving a car resembling the one in his story, “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.”  The hidden map is shown here on the 54p stamp. Fleming is shown in the foreground with a map of the world on the wall behind him.  Centered on the Pacific Ocean, Australia, New Zealand, the island of  New Guinea are on the left, and South America on the right are all clearly visible on the map. An inscription reads, “The Life of Ian Fleming – Well traveled, he wrote vividly about the places he visited. ” The set of six singles are also available in sheets of ten, which additional descriptive text and images in the margins. From the web site, it was not clear if there are any more maps on the sheets, aside from the 54p issue.