Gibraltar 2025 "Europa 2025 - National Archaeological Discoveries"
| Issue Date |
08.05.2025 |
| ID |
Michel: 2200-2201, Bl. 172;
Scott:
Stanley Gibbons: 2119-2120, MS2121;
Yvert et Tellier: ;
Category: An
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| Design |
Designer: Stephen Perera,
Illustration: Jonathan Pointer
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| Stamps in set |
2 |
| Value |
£1.96 - Reconstructions of Neanderthal
£3.16 - Neanderthal skull (Gibraltar 1)
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| Size (width x height) |
stamps: 40.0mm x 30.0mm
Souvenir-Sheet: 105.0mm x 71.0mm
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| Layout |
Two Mini-Sheets, 6 stamps each.
Souvenir-Sheet of 2 stamps.
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| Products |
FDC x2, PP x2, MC x2 |
| Paper |
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| Perforation |
13.50 x 13.25 |
| Print Technique |
Offset Lithography, 4 colours |
| Printed by |
Cartor Security Printers |
| Quantity |
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| Issuing Authority |
Gibraltar Philatelic Bureau Ltd |
On May 8
th, 2025,
the Gibraltar Philatelic Bureau Ltd on behalf of the Royal Gibraltar Post Office
issued the set of two stamps
"
Europa 2025 - National Archaeological Discoveries".
One stamp features a reconstruction of a Neanderthal pair, while the other depicts
the famous “Gibraltar 1” skull.
The design of the skull stamp was later reused for ATM stamps issued in Gibraltar
on July 4
th, 2025.
Gibraltar has previously released several stamps featuring Neanderthals
and the sites where their remains were discovered in Gibraltar.
Click
here to view them.
Below are quotes from an official press release, published by Gibraltar Post in 2025.
The Gibraltar Neanderthal skulls are among the most significant fossil discoveries related
to Neanderthals.
The first skull, known as the Forbes’ Quarry Skull or Gibraltar 1, was discovered in 1848 at
Forbes’ Quarry, on the northern face of the Rock of Gibraltar.
This find predated the famous discovery of Neanderthals in
Germany’s Neander Valley (1856),
but its importance wasn’t fully recognised at the time.
The skull is that of an adult female and exhibits classic Neanderthal features such as a large brow
ridge, a long, low skull, and a robust build.
It remains one of the best-preserved Neanderthal skulls ever found.
A second skull, Gibraltar 2, was found in 1926 close to Forbes’ Quarry, at Devil’s Tower Cave and
belonged to a Neanderthal child.
This discovery provided valuable insights into the growth and development of Neanderthals.
Studies of the Gibraltar Neanderthals suggest they were among the last surviving populations of their
species, with evidence indicating that Neanderthals lived in the region until around 32,000 years ago,
long after they had disappeared from much of Europe.
Gibraltar’s caves, particularly Gorham’s Cave, on the Rock’s eastern side, have provided further
evidence of Neanderthal life, including hearths, tools, and even possible engravings that suggest
symbolic behaviour.
The region’s mild climate and rich marine resources may have contributed to the Neanderthals’
prolonged survival.
Today, the Gibraltar skulls are housed in the Natural History Museum in London,
and Gorham’s Cave is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, recognised for its importance in understanding Neanderthal history.
Recent research on the Gibraltar Neanderthals has shed light on their diet, behavior, and cognitive
abilities.
Isotopic analysis of remains from Gorham’s Cave suggests that these Neanderthals had a diverse diet,
including marine resources such as shellfish, fish, and seals, challenging earlier notions that
Neanderthals were primarily big-game hunters.
Additionally, discoveries of charred plant remains indicate they also consumed roasted vegetables.
Perhaps most intriguingly, an engraving found in Gorham’s Cave,
a cross-hatched pattern etched into the rock,
has been interpreted as possible evidence of symbolic or artistic behavior, suggesting that
Neanderthals were capable of abstract thought.
These findings contribute to the growing understanding that Neanderthals were not the brutish,
primitive beings they were once thought to be, but rather intelligent and adaptable hominins capable
of complex survival strategies.
Products and associated philatelic items
| FDCs |
First-Day-of-Issue Postmark |
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| Presentation Packs |
Mini-Sheets |
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| Maxi cards |
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References
Acknowledgements
- Many thanks to Dr. Peter Voice from Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences,
Western Michigan University, for reviewing the draft page and his valuable comments.
