Afghanistan Stamps Profile

Afghanistan, a country landlocked by Pakistan, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and China, in Central Asia has been viewed in negative light for the better part of the last half century for the following reasons.

• Incessant wars since 1971,
• An economy dependent on opium trade despite abundant mining resources (natural gas, oil, gold, copper, etc.),
• Courting a very conservative version of Islamic ideology resulting in violations of basic human rights,
• Reputed to be the major base of religious fundamentalists, and
• Impoverishment of the population (per capita income on the average is below two dollars per diem).

The latest census figures record population at more than 30 Million, almost 2.5 times the number in 1979. The US invasion of Afghanistan following September 11, 2001 has resulted in a slow but steady improvement in the political environment in Afghanistan – A democratic government is in its infancy, and multiple projects aimed at the reconstruction and revival of a real economy are now underway. Even so, countless problems linger – the government is under constant threat from religious fundamentalists, opium trading continues to be an essential aspect of Afghan economy, socioeconomic problems with its associated poverty has remained, and literacy rate is below 40%.

The first stamps from Afghanistan are circular in shape (imperforate, not cut-to-shape) with the design of a tiger’s head surrounded by Arabic script. The design symbolizes the ruler of the Kingdom of Kabul, Sher Ali Khan (“sher” is Arabic for tiger) at that time. Engraving was done individually resulting in several variations of these issues. The same theme in various colors (one color for each of the main post offices) continued until 1881. The defeat of Sher Ali Khan to the British and his eventual death following political asylum in Russia accounted for the change in the central design – the tiger head was replaced by inscriptions and that theme continued until 1891. Tiger head issues of Afghanistan vary widely in catalogue value – for example Scott #79 1sh gray of 1878 catalog for about $5 for a MNH copy while Scott #8 and #9 on toned woven paper catalog in the neighborhood of $1000 and $1500 respectively. Even so, for a few dollars a collector can acquire a “tiger head” through eBay. Twenty years of exclusive tiger head issues has resulted in their survival in large numbers among collectors and dealers and explains their affordable pricing. If you want to complete your philatelic collection by purchasing some stamps from Afghanistan but lack the appropriate funds, you could consider looking into quick payday loans.

Following independence from the United Kingdom in 1919, a set of stamps depicting the royal star of King Amanullah was issued on August 24, 1920. The set consists of three stamps (Scott #214-216) commanding a catalog value in the $250 range for MNH and a little less for Used. Reissues of the same design in 1921 in different dimension (22x28.5mm in place of 39x47mm) have a catalog value in the $10 range for the set (Scott #217-219) for MNH and Used catalog for around $5.

Most of the issues between 1921 and 1951 are relatively common as they were issued in large volume during independence anniversaries with the designs predominantly portraying mosques, government buildings, and other architectural structures. Hence it is relatively easy to acquire a complete set of stamps for this period. Exceptions include the 1941 15p gray green (Scott #334) depicting the independence monument, which catalog for $35 MNH. Certain varieties, Imperf pairs, and Tete Beche pairs also catalog for higher values.

The monotonous architecture theme gave way to national or global themes from 1951 onwards with the Pashtunistan flag issue (Scott #388 and #389). This issue is significant and serves a great historical context. At the time, the Afghan government supported the ‘Free Pashtunistan’ movement the aim of which was to form a new country for the Pashtun people combining the Pashtun occupied areas in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Islamic fundamentalist regime of Afghanistan has roots in this complex issue as the adjacent Pakistan government needed to encourage such a regime for their own national security. The US and Soviet interests further complicated the core issues. National, Global, or Architectural themes continued till 1960.

Afghanistan started issuing stamps for the philatelic market in 1961. Many of these issues were categorized so as they were lower denominated stamps (less than 25p) and did not represent a postal need. Needless to say, these stamps have nominal catalogue value and are not collectible. Nevertheless, the design improved with varied themes and colors. Some of the higher denominated stamps have good catalogue value, excellent designs, and themes and are collectible. The set of four stamps that promote tourism released in 1989 is one such issue (Scott #1380 to #1383) and depicts mosque, minaret, etc. in excellent colors. Unfortunately, this was the last issue before a gap of 13 years through 2002 when no stamps were issued due to internal political issues and war. However this created a field-day for con-artists who produced illegal issues in various sets during this period. Some catalogues do a disservice to the philatelic community by listing stamps during this period. These have minimal value, if any and are not collectible. The UPU’s WNS numbering system show a few stamps each for the period from 2002 thru 2007. It should be fairly easy to acquire a complete set of these stamps as they are few in number and do not command premium catalogue value yet.

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Last Updated: 07/2011.