New Issue: Songbirds (Moldova)

Like the Falklands Islands' Summer issue, this is another issue I discovered when looking for something to buy.

I am not sure exactly when they were issued, but the Free Stamp Catalogue has only listed them this week so they are quite recent.

Stamps showing birds are always very popular but there are also an awful lot of them and they can sometimes feel quite "samey".

These are a bit different and it is helpful that in this photograph we don't just see the stamps but the full border as well. These are four attractive stamps but they also have labels attached to them which show the same bird slightly closer and from a different perspective. The borders are also part of the picture and we see branches, bit of trees and even parts of the birds.

My dad has helped me identify the birds. They are: European robin (Erithacus rubecula) — Romanian: Măcăleandru

Collared flycatcher (Ficedula albicollis) — Muscar gulerat

Eurasian jay (Garrulus glandarius) — Gaiță

Eurasian wryneck (Jynx torquilla) — Capîntortură

These are very detailed illustrations, a bit like the Falkland Islands summer stamps, although I don't know whether these are paintings or coloured pencil drawings. They are wonderful and almost life-like. They are a bit like the kinds of drawings you find in bird-spotter books.

The backgrounds are different colours but instead of just a plain coloured background you get a feeling that this is created by a focus on the bird. So the robin is on a branch with the blue sky behind him and some blurred-out green leaves, the flycatcher has the blurred-out forest behind him, the jay is sitting in a tree on a sunny day and the wryneck is also in the forest, with green-yellow leaves on the trees. The faded-out backgrounds contrast with the fantastic details of the birds.

Design Quality: The stamps have been designed so that our eyes are drawn to the birds. Look at the wonderful details of their feathers and even their eyes. The lettering is well-positioned. Adding the labels underneath is good because it gives us a different view of the same bird and they look great in pairs. 8/10

Theme and Subject Choice: These are birds native to Moldova, although some of them are well-known in other parts of the world too. Birds are a very popular theme for stamps and most of the time it's a very good theme - they're attractive, of course, but also they can raise awareness of conservation as well as celebrating local bird life. 7/10

Historical and Cultural Relevance: These birds are native to Moldova, but they are also birds that are quite common across most of Europe. They're not culturally iconic in the way that penguins are in the Falklands or white storks are in Poland. These stamps could be from any European country. 6/10

Innovation and Creativity: The artwork is creative and detailed. 7/10 Collectability: Birds are one of the most popular subjects for thematic collectors, and these stamps are particularly attractive. 8/10 Personal Appeal: There are lots of bird stamps around, but these are definitely one of the better sets. The artwork is excellent and I love the realism and colours in the illustrations. 9/10 Overall Score: 45/60