Chile

Here is a new cover from Chile, the long narrow strip of land on the coast of South America!

Unfortunately, the stamps were not franked and the postmark was placed only on the envelope. I find this rather curious as the purpose of a postmark is to cancel the stamps to avoid future use.....

The stamp on the top is one of a 4v set "100 Años de la Reserva Nacional Malleco" issued on 20 Nov 07. The set shows landscapes of the Malleco national reserve and in the small boxes on the lower right hand corner of the stamps, they feature flora and fauna that are probably found in the area. In the stamps shown here, we have pine trees and what seems to be a fox.

The emblem on the stamp and on the attached vignette is the logo of Conaf, or the Corporacion Nacional Forestal, the Chilean National Forestry Corporation, which is responsible for administrating forest policies in Chile and in charge of promoting the development of Chile's national forests.

The stamp on the bottom is also part of a 4v set that showcases the town of Chillán, which will be hosting the 20th Women's World Cup in November until December. A more detailed account on the stamps from Eric Contesse (thanks Eric, hope you don't mind!):

With these four stamps, the Post of Chile has reminded that Chillán was a very important cultural and artistic town but also that it was located in the heart of a rich agricultural region (bottom left stamp). The stamp in the upper left shows one of the characteristic monuments of the city, its modern style cathedral built in 1939, just after a terrible earthquake. Its monumental cross peaks at nearly 40 meters high !
The stamp in the upper right represents one of the two famous murals ("From Mexico to Chile") in the Mexico school, painted between 1941 and 1942 by Mexican artists Siqueiros and Guerrero. The last stamp shows various local craft objects.
The central part of the four stamps shows a ball with the new municipal stadium "Nelson Oyarzun" of Chillán, renovated for the occasion.

Also, more information on the stamps is available from the Correos de Chile website.

I find the round sticker on the cover very interesting and wonder if it is officially printed and designated for use by Correos de Chile. Does anyone know? This label is quite different from the more formal labels issued by other postal administrations....