Czech Republic 2025

Czech Rep.

Date of Issue: 7th May 2025

one stamp (E value = 48.- CZK)

the stamp is issued in a mini-sheet of 6 stamps

The stamp design features one of the most famous archaeological finds in the Czech Republic, the sandstone head of a Celt from Mšecké Žehrovice. The designer has placed it in a stylised display case, symbolising museum exhibition practices. The blue sky in the background alludes to the spiritual and even transcendent dimension of the artifact. As the only example of monumental Celtic sculpture found in the Czech Republic, this head stands as an unparalleled archaeological discovery. The artwork is inspired by the sculpture and incorporates the painting technique that leans towards realism and almost achieves photorealism in its depiction. The sculptural representation immediately captures attention with its illusion of depth and sense of space.

The design was inspired by collection pieces from the National Museum, where the Celtic head and bronze ankle ring will be part of the newly opened exhibition People at the National Museum.

Moldova 2025

 Moldova

Date of Issue: 11th April 2025

two stamps (5.- & 12.- MDL)

 

both stamps are issued in mini-sheets of 10 stamps

both stamps are issued in a booklet of 4 stamps issued in a souvenir-sheet of (2x 2 stamps)

 

The Cucteni – Trypillia culture (5th – 4th millennia BC) and its antiquities represent one of prehistoric Europe’s most spectacular archaeological cultures. Spread accross the territory of Romania, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine, it is characterized by settlements, often of considerable size, with a complex internal structure. The craftsmanship of the Cucuteni artisans is illustrated by ceramic vessels and other items made from various raw materials. The incised and painted decoration on the ceramic artefacts reproduces multiple aspects of the magical-religious beliefs practised by the ancient communities. Some of the items from the Cucuteni – Trypillia settlements of the territory of the Republic of Moldova are part of the national and world cultural treasures.

 

Romania 2025

Romania

Date of Issue: 29th April 2025

two stamps (5.- & 25.- RON) 

both stamps are issued in 3 types of souvenir-sheets. 2 of 3 stamps + 1 vignette & 1 of 4 stamps (2 of each)

NOTE those stamps are also issued in sheets of 32 stamps

A limited souvenir-sheet with the 2 Europa stamps has also been in issued in a philatelic folder

Austria 2025

Austria

Date of Issue: 1st May 2025

one stamp (1.20 €)

Bosnia and Herzegovina (Croat post) 2025

Bosnia and Herzegovina (Croat post)

Date of Issue: 5th April 2025

two stamps (2x 3.50 BAM) & 1 souvenir-sheet of 2 stamps (2x 3.50 BAM)

both stamps are issued in a mini-sheet of 8 stamps (4 of each) with 2 vignettes

Motif of an archaeological find from 1880, known as Glasinačka kolica (Glasinac cart). It was found by the Austro-Hungarian lieutenant Johann Lexa and handed over to the Naturhistorisches Museum in Vienna, where it is still kept today. Its replica is housed by the National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Sarajevo.

The cult bronze cart with representations of waterfowl probably had a ritual purpose connected with the cult of the Sun. Researchers date this find to the 7^th century BC. In terms of motif and style, it relies on the tradition of the Late Bronze Age, when waterfowl were the dominant symbol of the "Urnfield Culture" (the ritual of burning the deceased and storing the ashes in urns that were then buried in earthen graves).

The Glasinac cart consists of four interconnected wheels with two imaginary birds on top, which have the body of a dove, the beak of a marsh bird, the crest of a rooster and the ears of a bull. On the lower larger bird, which is hollow inside, a smaller bird sits as a lid. On each axle there is another smaller bird as decoration. The cart is 19 cm long, 10 cm wide and 15 cm high, and weighs 1055 g. It was used in rituals as a vessel for embers to burn fragrant substances, and was left in the deceased's grave.

Germany 2025

Germany

Date of Issue: 8th May 2025

one souvenir-sheet (0.95 €)

A world cultural leap 40,000 years ago on the edge of the Swabian Jura:

40,000 years ago, a huge leap in the development of modern man took place at the point where the Swabian Jura meets the foothills of the Alps. In the caves of the Ach and Lone valleys near Ulm, Ice Age man began to conceive and create figurative representations of animals, humans and hybrid creatures as well as the world's first musical instruments. Nowhere else in the world have older comparable artefacts and musical instruments been found.

 

The delicately crafted sculptures are evidence of the emergence of the modern human spirit, which was expressed in art, symbols, music, rituals and beliefs. They show us the central and universal significance that art and music have always had for mankind.

The best-known finds of Ice Age art include figures such as the ‘Lion Man’, a mysterious hybrid of cave lion and human, the ‘Venus of Hohle Fels’, the oldest depiction of a human in the world, and the ‘Mammoth of Vogelherd’. The skilfully crafted sculptures made of mammoth ivory are around 40,000 years old and measure between four and six centimetres in size. The lion man stands out from the group of figures with its exceptional size of 31 centimetres.

Numerous high-calibre originals, such as the Venus or the Lion Man, are on display in the Prehistoric Museum Blaubeuren and the Museum Ulm. In addition, the Württemberg State Museum in Stuttgart and the Museum of the University of Tübingen also present Stone Age artefacts from the caves of the Swabian Alb.

The oldest figurative artworks and musical instruments known to mankind were discovered in the Hohle Fels, Geißenklösterle and Sirgenstein caves in the Achtal valley and in the Bockstein, Hohlenstein-Stadel and Vogelherd caves in the Lone valley. In July 2017, UNESCO awarded these six caves and the surrounding landscapes the title of UNESCO World Heritage Site ‘Caves and Ice Age Art of the Swabian Jura’.

To this day, the two valleys of the Ach and Lone rivers remain largely unspoilt and invite you to take a journey back to the last Ice Age on a variety of hiking and cycling trails.

France 2025

France

Date of Issue: 9th May 2025

one stamp (2.10 €)

 
This stamp is issued in a sheet of 15 stamps

NOTE - France first announced the stamp below before replacing it with the new design. No official information has yet been released about this change. We can imagine that the reason is to have a design closer to the official theme of ‘National archaeological discoveries’. The first drawing, with a dinosaur skeleton, is more about a palaeontological discovery...