Bulgaria's Transport Ministry announced on October 25 the post stamps it would print in 2011, with a series dedicated to the centenary anniversary of the birth of clairvoyant Baba Vanga, born Vangelia Goushterova on October 3 1911.

The series was likely to grab the attention of both collectors and the general public, the ministry said in a statement.

Born in the village of Strumitsa in present-day Macedonia, which at the time of her birth was part of Bulgaria, Baba Vanga moved to Petrich in Bulgaria. In 1942, she moved to the Roupite area near Petrich, where she lived until her death in 1996. A museum there displays photographs, documents and her personal belongings.

Baba Vanga was known throughout the Balkans and beyond for her unique gift to predict and "see" the past, present and future. Ironically, however, she was blind. She acted as a kind of counsellor and aid to many people, from leaders of the Communist Party through to common folk who queued in front of her house day and night. The Bulgarian Orthodox Church contended that Vanga was possessed by demonic powers.

One of Vanga's predictions was that World War 3 would start in 2010.

Overall, Bulgarian Posts will issue 43 new stamps in 2011, the bulk of them commemorating notable events in Bulgarian history and anniversaries, including 1200 years since Khan Kroum's victory over the Byzantine Empire in the Battle of Pliska, 135 years since the April Uprising against the Ottoman Empire and 20 years since the foundation of the Atlantic Club of Bulgaria.

Other notable new stamps will commemorate 50 years since Yuri Gagarin's first manned space flight, 200 years since the birth of Hungarian composer and pianist Ferenc Liszt and 150 years since the birth of Norwegian explorer and scientist Fridtjof Nansen.

Bulgarian Posts will also join the European-wide Year of the Forests initiative with a forest-themed stamp.