O4901

Save Vanishing Species

Amur Tiger

Collins Cover Announcement 

Save Vanishing Species

The Amur Tiger

This outstanding stamp came into being to raise funds to help save vanishing species of wildlife around the world. It sells for 55-cents, and the difference between that price and the 44-cent rate is being distributed to five conservation funds to help protect tigers, elephants, great apes, rhinoceroses and marine turtles. At first a sea turtle was to be the subject on the stamp, but at the last moment the consensus was to picture a tiger. In my opinion, it was the right choice because the Amur (Siberian) tiger cub depiction is just outstanding.

Although the Amur tiger is shown, the stamp project is intended to help all wild tigers in various regions of the world just as it is meant to help save all sub-species of the creatures mentioned above. The Amur region is a 380 million acre watershed in Asia with a diverse landscape of grasslands, forests, and mountains. Siberian and Chinese tigers are clinging to existence in the wild, but fortunately in India their numbers have actually increased since 2000 thanks to conservation efforts.

My individually hand painted cachet is a stunner. A majestic male Siberian (Amur) tiger dominates this "entire" watercolored cachet, and he leaves no doubt that he is the king of his domain. The detail in the artwork is superb, the realistic coloring brings out the majestic appearance of this regal beast, and the expert brushwork truly transforms this First Day Cover into a prime piece of philatelic wildlife art. Without a doubt, this will be one of the finest covers in your collection.

I'm extremely pleased to offer the rare Amur tiger as he roams wild and free in his remote Siberian landscape. Collins #O4901 — $14.50.