The postal service of British Antarctic Territory has announced the release of a number of excellent new issues prepared by Creative Direction and distributed by Pobjoy Stamps. Many of the stamps feature very well chosen wildlife photographs including portraits of ever-popular penguins, appealing baby seals and other attractive and interesting subjects. These stamps will give a lot of pleasure to many collectors and are expected to be released in mid-November.
- 25th anniversary of the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Territory - 6 stamps. Designed by Bee Design and lithographed by BDT International Security Printers and perforated 14. Rating:- *****.
- 25th anniversary of the International Association of Antarctica Tourism Operators - 4 stamps. Designed by Bee Design and lithographed by BDT and perforated 14. Rating:- *****.
- Gentoo penguins - 6 Airmail letter rate stamps and 5 Airmail postcard rates. Designed by Bee Design. Lithographed by BDT (gummed) and Lowe Martin (self-adhesive stamps in coils). Perforated 14. Rating:- *****.
- Antarctic ocean zones - 1 sheetlet of 12 different stamps and 4 stamps. My attention has been drawn to a splendid creature featured on one of the sheetlet stamps which is called "the pram bug" - aptly named. Many of the other creatures featured in the set are equally fascinating and beautifully illustrated. Rating:- ******.
Mauritius Post has reissued 3 values from its current definitive series which features the island's flora with a "2016" imprint in the lower border. Rating:- ***.
India Post issued a single stamp on 4 October 2016 to commemorate the Central Water and Power Station. Rating:- *.
Royal Mail's Christmas issue is made up of 8 values and shows the usual lack of imagination and use of cliched subjects that we have come to expect from Royal Mail at Christmas time - and let's be honest they don't come more cliched than robins, snowmen, Christmas trees, Christmas stockings and plum puddings. The stamps have the appearance of being the sort of designs usually seen on cheap Christmas cards bought in cut price "pop-up" shops. This is a pity since the only special stamps the public ever seems to get to use in recent years have been the Christmas stamps. At least, I suppose, they are colourful but, sadly, very uninteresting. The date of issue will be 8 November 2016. Rating:- **.
Stamperija's latest para-philatelic products include 10 "sheetlets", each containing 4 different "stamps", and 10 "miniature sheets" with the names of Maldives inscribed on them. The featured subjects on "Fauna and Flora of the World" are:- Fish, Pandas, Birds of prey, Wolves, Cats, Butterflies and minerals, Bears, World's rarest animals, Endangered species and the Varanus lizard. The "stated date of issue" was 20 July 2016. Rating:- 0.
Hello. A question of curiosity as you announce all these series: does the British Antarctic Territory issue all its program on the same day like the French Southern and Antartic Lands?
ReplyDeleteThe French Lands issue most of it on January 1st (but a special issue at national stamp show). Best wishes.
Hello Sebastien. Yes, I think the last 2 or 3 years has seen almost all the BAT stamps being issued on the same day although there was an exception earlier this year when an issue to commemorate the Queen's birthday was released on 21 April along with a number of issues from other British territories - Ascension, Falklands, South Georgia and Tristan Da Cunha. Last year most BAT issues were released, I believe, on 17 November apart from the set which was issued to commemorate the Queen becoming the longest reigning British monarch which I think was issued on 9 September.
DeleteBest wishes.
Thank you.
DeleteBAT schedules their issues for the start of what passes as summer there. They are very attractive although L26.94 all at once is a bit much!
Delete"Para-philatelic product"... Very good expresion. You make me smile.
ReplyDeleteDear Carlos. Thank you. It occurred to me that Stamperija products have really ceased to be "philatelic" (if they ever were) and something else was needed to describe such products.
DeleteBest wishes.