This is a survey of the

postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the f ...

s and postal history of

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

. Under the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

, the

Kazakh SSR ; kk, Қазақ Советтік Социалистік Республикасы) *1991: Republic of Kazakhstan (russian: Республика Казахстан; kk, Қазақстан Республикасы) , linking_name = the ...

postal service was an integral part of the Soviet system. The republic was periodically recognized in sets of stamps honoring the different parts of the USSR. Kazakhstan became independent in December 1991, and organized its own post. Its first stamp, depicting a warrior's suit found at the Issyk mound in 1969, was issued 23 March 1992.

Overprint An overprint is an additional layer of text or graphics added to the face of a Postage stamp, postage or revenue stamp, postal stationery, banknote or Ticket (admission), ticket after it has been Printing, printed. Post offices most often use ...

ed stamps of the USSR are also known from this early period, but the Philatelic Club of Almaty has concluded that their official status is uncertain; although some saw postal usage, they were not generally available in post offices, nor do their values reflect actual postal rates in effect. The first definitive stamps were a set of five issued on 24 January 1993, four of which were a stylized design consisting of a

yurt A yurt (from the Turkic languages) or ger ( Mongolian) is a portable, round tent covered and insulated with skins or felt and traditionally used as a dwelling by several distinct nomadic groups in the steppes and mountains of Central Asia ...

and spaceship (alluding to the country's Baikonur Cosmodrome), along with the higher value of 50 rubles depicting the

flag of Kazakhstan The flag of Kazakhstan or Kazakh flag ( kk, Қазақстан туы, ; russian: Флаг Казахстана, translit=Flag Kazakhstana) was adopted on 4 June 1992, replacing the flag of the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic. The flag was de ...

. The currency changed to tijn and tenge around the end of 1993. Existing stamps, all denominated in

rubles The ruble (American English) or rouble (Commonwealth English) (; rus, рубль, p=rublʲ) is the currency unit of Belarus and Russia. Historically, it was the currency of the Russian Empire and of the Soviet Union. , currencies named ''rub ...

and kopecks, were then sold as if they were in the new currencies. New stamps issued in the first half of 1994 were initially sold as denominated in tijn, then later in tenge. The yurt-and-spaceship design was re-issued in the new currency beginning in July 1994. Kazakhstan has since followed a moderate pattern of issues, averaging 30 to 40 types per year. The space theme is frequent. In 1997, a set of stamps with images of tulips was released including; '' Tulipa regelii'', ''

Tulipa greigii ''Tulipa greigii'', (Greig's tulip) is a species of tulip native to Central Asia and Iran. Taxonomy The Latin specific epithet ''greigi'' honors the Russian Samuel Greig, (1735-1788, "Father of the Russian navy") due to Greig once being preside ...

'' and '' Tulipa alberti''.

Bibliography

* Scott catalogue * Stanley Gibbons Ltd: various catalogues * Rossiter, Stuart & John Flower. ''The Stamp Atlas''. London: Macdonald, 1986.

References

External links

Kazakhstan Postal Service (Kazpost) homepage
*

Linn's column on overprinted Soviet stamps
* {{Kazakhstan topics Communications in Kazakhstan History of Kazakhstan by topic

See also

Bibliography

References

External links