7p Filipino
Expedition Team Members Making Ascent - Singles
(57,000)
20p Filipino Expedition Team Members at Base Camp -
Singles
(57,000)
26p Two Filipino Members on Top of Mt. Everest With Philippine
Flag - Singles
(57,000)
Souvenir Sheets of Three (18,000)
7p Two Filipino Members on Top of Mt. Everest With
Philippine Flag
7p Filipino
Expedition Team Members Making Ascent
20p Filipino Expedition Team Members at Base Camp
Project Coordinator: Alfredo G. Gabot
Design Coordinators: Ric
Galvez,
Dr. Ngo Tiong Tak
Designers: Jesus Alfredo de Jesus, Richard
Allen Baron, Vic Cerevo
Photos: Provided by Art valdez
First Day Covers: Manila
CONQUEST OF MT. EVEREST BY FILIPINOS
Mt. Everest is the highest point on Earth, as
measured by the height of its summit above sea level. The mountain,
which is part of the Himalaya range in High Asia, is believed to
have been formed some 60 million years ago and sits alongside other
mountains as a ridge that separates Tibet and Nepal. Towering at
8,848 meters high or 29,028 feet, it is called Chomolungma ("Goddess
mother of the world") in Tibet and Sagarmatha ("Goddess of the sky")
in Nepal. It was formerly called Peak XV by the Westerners before it
received its official name in 1865 in honor of Sir George Everest, a
British Surveyor General from 1830-1843 who had mapped the Indian
subcontinents.
Climbing the world's highest mountain was once
an impossible feat. Attempts to climb began in 1921, when the
forbidden Kingdom of Tibet opened its doors to outsiders, yet the
conquest of Everest was not only extremely difficult but also life
threatening. Many had tried and failed to make the ascent. As of the
end of the 2004 climbing season, 2,238 people had reached the summit
and 186 people died. The dangers of Everest include avalanches,
crevasses, ferocious winds up to 125 MPH, sudden storms,
temperatures of 40° F below zero, and oxygen deprivation. Dead
bodies are left where they perish because the effects of the
altitude make it nearly impossible to drag bodies off the mountain.
The summit was eventually reached on May 29, 1953 by New Zealander
Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay from Nepal.
Over time, Mt. Everest has
become the figurative meaning to denote the apex or the highest
point and reaching the roof of the world was considered to be a
prize of momentous proportion. In May 2006, three Filipino climbers
have secured a place for the Philippine flag among the many flags
flying high in the apex of the world. On May 17, 2006, Heracleo
Oracion honored the country when he became the first Filipino to
reach the summit. The next day, Erwin Emata and Romeo Garduce also
made it to the top one after the other. The conquest of Mt. Everest
by Filipinos is a mark of Filipino excellence, perseverance, and
courage.
The remarkable achievement of Heracleo Oracion,
Erwin Emata and Romeo Garduce is a triumph of the entire nation and
worthy of emulation by every Filipino.