1972 GREAT BITTER LAKE GBLA EGYPT SUEZ DJAKBIER CSR

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In June 1967 the fourteen ships were sailing northwards through the Suez Canal as fighting broke out between Israel and Egypt in what was to become known as the Six-Day War. Both ends of the canal were closed, and after three days it became apparent that the canal would remain unnavigable for some time as a result of the scuttling of ships to block its passage. The fourteen ships were forced to anchor in the widest part of the Suez Canal, the Great Bitter Lake. In October 1967 the officers and crews of all fourteen ships met on the Melampus to found the "Great Bitter Lake Association" which would provide mutual support. In the time to come, the crew members regularly met on board their ships, organised social events, founded a yachting club and held the "Bitter Lake Olympic Games" to complement the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City. In time, a postal system evolved, the hand-crafted stamp of which became collectors' items around the world. In time it was possible to reduce the number of crew members on board the ships, and in 1969 the ships were gathered into several groups to further reduce the number of crew necessary for their upkeep. In terms of the postal system, this resulted in the creation of group stamps such as the stamp bearing the name "MS Müwinikies", which derived from the ship names "Mü" (Münsterland), "wi" (Nordwind) read more

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