New Issue: Prehistoric Fauna (Kyrgyzstan)

I don't review ever set of new stamps but I try to review everything from Royal Mail, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. Apart from those, I review stamps I either like or find interesting.

This is one of those that I like. I have always been interested in prehistoric animals and this new set from Kyrgyzstan shows three very different animals.

Rhamphorhynchus: a long-tailed pterosaur, this flying reptile hunted fish and small animals. Unlike the other two animals shown here, rhamphorhynchus was widespread throughout Europe and Central Asia.

Tashkumyrodon: It was one of the earliest known mammals in Asia and was named after the town of Tash-Kömür in Kyrgyzstan, near where the original specimen was discovered in the early 2000s.

Alpkarakush: A theropod dinosaur that lived over 160million years ago. It was only discovered in 2006, when two partial skeletons were found in the Uurusai Valley.

Design Quality - These are like lots of other stamps that show prehistoric animals. There is nothing outstanding about the design, but it is quite tidy and the illustrations work well. The animals are quite detailed while the backgrounds are quite plain. This helps the animals stand out. 8/10

Theme and Subject Choice - There have been many stamps about dinosaurs but these are specifically about prehistoric animals found in Kyrgyzstan. They are not very well-known and two of them have only been discovered quite recently. It's not simply another set of stamps about the same popular subject - this one is definitely about Kyrgyzstan and its prehistory, which I think makes it a much better subject choice.  8/10

Historical and Cultural Relevance - These particular prehistoric animals are very relevant to Kyrgyzstan and, as far as we know, two of them were only found in that area of the world. They're not the usual animals we find on stamps like this and most people will probably never have heard of them. 8/10

Innovation and Creativity - I find these stamps very interesting but I don't think they're particularly creative or innovative. The artwork is good but quite simple and there's nothing particularly distinctive other than the very unusual animals. 6/10

Collectability - A lot of people seem to like dinosaurs on stamps - they're one of the more popular thematic subjects for collectors. But I think they're also collectable because these are very unusual prehistoric creatures, not the common ones, and they were all discovered in Kyrgyzstan. They will appeal to people interested in archaeology and people who like prehistory but want something a bit different. 8/10

Personal Appeal - These are great stamps. I have a lot of dinosaur stamps in my collection - basically because I like dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals - but these are quite special. They're nice drawings but they're also about historically significant animals, two of which are unique to Kyrgyzstan. These animals, as far as I have been able to find out, have never appeared on any other stamps anywhere in the world. So these stamps are unique and important "firsts" for anyone interested in prehistoric nature. 10/10  

Overall score - 48/60