2013Nocturnal birds of prey - First Day Cover

The owls are impressive birds to which numerous myths, legends, stories or superstitions have been associated ever since antiquity. In many cultures from Africa, America, Europe or the Middle East there are beliefs according to which the presence of owls would predict diseases and death. On the other hand, in Hinduism, the owl is associated to the goddess Lakshmi, a divinity of prosperity, luck, fertility and generosity, while the old Greeks used to associate the owl to wisdom, considering it to be the bird of Athena, the goddess of wisdom.