Germany
2011
"150 years of discovery prehistoric bird Archaeopteryx"
Issue Date |
11.08.2011 |
ID |
Michel: 2887 Scott: Stanley
Gibbons: Yvert:
UPU: N/A Category: pF |
Author |
Julia Warbanow, Berlin |
Stamps in set |
1 |
Value |
Euro 0.55 Archaeopteryx (can be used for regular mail
exchange inside Germany)
|
Size (width x height) |
35mm x 35mm |
Products
|
FDC x1 MS x1
SS x1 |
Layout |
MS of 10 stamps (2x5) |
Paper |
stroke, white,
fluoresce, special
post paper DP 2 |
Perforation |
13x13 |
Print Technique |
Multicolor offset print |
Printed by |
Bagel Security-Print GmbH & Co.KG,
Moenchengladbach |
Quantity |
|
Issuing Authority |
Deutsche Post |
The prehistoric bird
Archaeopteryx is one of the most famous fossils in
the World.
It was described in 1861 based on one feather cast.
Later on, when more complete specimens had been found, this fossil became important
evidence for the Theory of Evolution.
As an intermediate species from dinosaurs to birds,
Archaeopteryx has both bird-like
and reptile-like character traits in its skeleton.
The ancestor of
Archaeopteryx was a small predatory dinosaur.
All fossils of
Archaeopteryx found so far come from the Solnhofen Plattenkalken at
the Fraenkischen Jura regions of the state of Bavaria, Germany.
They are approximately 150 million years old.
The most exemplary fossil is stored at the Museum fuer Naturkunde in Berlin.
The design of both stamp and coin chosen was actually the winner of a competition.
Other stamp candidates include:
The second prize submission depicts the 1861 feather, but none of the submissions
depicted the 1861 skeleton.
The Berlin specimen, although not discovered until 1876, was the winning submission.
On August 11, 2011, the Deutsche Post issued a single stamp to commemorate 150 years
of since the discovery of
Archaeopteryx (printed in mini-sheets of 10 stamps).
The best fossil of
Archaeopteryx appears in many pictures and illustrations of
paelontology-related books is the Berlin Specimen, which is also depicted on the stamp.
The Berlin specimen is stored at the "Berliner-Museum fuer Naturkunde".
Archaeopteryx on stamp of GDR from 1973 |
These fossil was already depicted on a stamp of GDR in 1973 as part of
stamp set of 6
values, showing various fossils from the museum collection.
The initial discovery, a single feather,
was unearthed in 1860 or 1861 and described in 1861 by Christian
Erich Hermann von Meyer.
It is currently located at the Humboldt Museum fuer Naturkunde in Berlin.
This is generally assigned to
Archaeopteryx and was the initial holotype,
but whether it actually is a feather of this species or another, as yet
undiscovered, proto-bird is unknown.
There are some indications it is indeed not from the same animal as most of the
skeletons.
Werner von Siemens on German stamp from 1990
|
The Berlin Specimen was discovered in 1874 or 1875 on the
Blumenberg near Eichstaett, Germany, by farmer Jakob Niemeyer. He sold
this precious fossil for the money to buy a cow in 1876, to inn-keeper
Johann Doerr, who again sold it to Ernst Otto Haeberlein, the son of K.
Haeberlein. Placed on sale between 1877 and 1881, with potential buyers
including O.C. Marsh of Yale University's Peabody Museum, it was
eventually bought by the Humboldt Museum fuer Naturkunde, where it is
now displayed, for 20,000 Goldmark.
The transaction was financed by Ernst Werner von Siemens
(depicted on several German stamps), founder of the
famous company that bears his name.
Described in 1884 by Wilhelm Dames, it is the most complete specimen, and the first
with a complete head.
It was in 1897 named by Dames as a new species,
Archaeopteryx
siemensii; a recent evaluation supports the
Archaeopteryx siemensii species
identification.
Some paleontologists say that
Archaeopteryx is not the first bird,
but the last flying dinosaur.
Products and associated philatelic items
There are two postmarks issued with this stamp:
the postmark of Berlin was used on the
official FDC of Deutsche Post,
while the postmark of Bonn was used on the
Souvenir Sheet.
Three additional postmarks issued by Deutsche for some other location that have some connection to
Archaeopteryx: Solnhofen - the vilage where all Archaeopteryx fossils are found.
Eichstaett - a small town near Solnhofen, has an impressive museum of natural
history with many fossils found in the area, including Archaeopteryx.
Dino Park Muenchenhagen at Rehburg-Loccum - the biggest park with
life-size replicas of Dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures in
Germany.
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Mini Sheet
Official
FDC |
Personalized
FDC |
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Some used
covers |
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Some Souvenir
Sheets |
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References:
Wikipedia
Souvenir
Sheet
Latest
update 30.10.2017
Any feedback, comments or even complaints
are welcome: [email protected] (you
can email me on ENglish, DEutsch, or RUssian)