New Issue: Eclipse (Isle of Man)

The Isle of Man's latest issue is Eclipse and shows photographs from the partial solar eclipse in August.

I am surprised that this issue has had to wait until November instead of being released nearer the time.

Isle of Man Stamps and Coins says: "The Solar Eclipse 2026 Mint Set brings together four Isle of Man stamps celebrating the spectacular partial solar eclipse of 12th August 2026. Created in partnership with Manx astronomer Howard Parkin MBE BSc. BEd. FRAS, the issue explores the science, history and wonder of one of nature’s most remarkable phenomena.

"The issue explains how the Sun and Moon can appear almost the same size from Earth, allowing total solar eclipses to occur, while also exploring the differences between total, partial and annular eclipses. It introduces the umbra and penumbra and examines the history of eclipses seen from the Isle of Man, including observations dating back to 1185.

"The collection also looks ahead to the next total solar eclipse visible from the Island in 2151." Well, I don't think any of us will be around to see the next total solar eclipse! The photography is very good, but are these stamps any different to the other eclipse stamps that we have reviewed, from Greenland and Spain? Here is Greeland's issue...

...and here is Spain's.

Both of these are far more creative that the Isle of Man issue. Greenland's is incredibly artistic and focuses on the wider natural world. Spain's shows different views of the eclipse and shows movement. The Isle of Man stamps just show different stages of the eclipse with photographs of the sun in a darkened sky - really good photography but not quite as striking as the other two eclipse issues.

Design Quality: The design is nothing outstanding and is basically four photographs of the sun during the partial eclipse with the king's head, prices and "Solar Eclipse - Isle of Man" added. The photography is very good but the design isn't inspiring. 4/10 Theme and Subject Choice: This is a more obvious subject choice for places like Greenland and Spain, where the solar eclipse was total. Not so much the Isle of Man, although I would imagine many Isle of Man residents enjoyed watching the partial eclipse as much as I did. It's also later than the other two eclipse issues I mentioned - I understand that it can take a while to create stamps but this would have felt a better theme back in August. 6/10 Cultural and Historical Relevance: The Isle of Man, like so many other places, witnessed a partial eclipse. It is relevant as an event that took place on 12th August and would have been seen by islanders. As I say, this wasn't actually a full eclipse (something the stamps don't mention!) so it doesn't have quite the same relevance as some other places. 7/10 Innovation and Creativity: I'll give a few marks for the quality of the photography, but there's not much that I can say is creative or innovative about these stamps. 3/10 Collectability: These stamps should definitely interested collectors who are into space and there are a lot of them around. 7/10 Personal Appeal: These are nice photographs of the partial eclipse. That is all. It might feel unfair to compare them to other countries' eclipse issues, but the stamps from Spain and Greenland speak to me in ways these don't. 4/10 Overall Score: 31/60