Identifying Stamps From The Middle East

Is there a good source for identifying stamps that appear to be from the middle east(Iran/Iraq/etc)? Any help is appreciated. Thanks

Hello stampdog.....

.......welcome to the club.

For US collectors the Scott catalogs are the best, if you check at your local Library you might find a set, but be careful there are many look-alike items. If you could post some photos we might be able to help id some for you.

There are certain motifs on Middle Eastern stamps that one gets to know about over time -- the signet on Turkish stamps, the Lion with Sword and Sun on Iranian issues, the individual rulers themselves. These are often repeated again and again on the definitives and identifying them becomes second nature. Sometimes the commemoratives can give one a problem, though. Luckily, most of the modern ones also have English on them.

Your best bet until you get used to them is to familiarize yourself with Scott's illustrations, or even search online for pictures of stamps from those countries.

If you provide some scans I could maybe help. I've been going after Arab nations as of late so am somewhat familiar with their material.

Known as a tugra (also spelled tughra).