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The King’s Stamp

This is a past exhibition. See events coming up at The Postal Museum.

Discover the story of definitive stamps, from the reigns of six monarchs and explore over 180 years of iconic design.

Definitive stamps are everyday stamps, which in the UK feature the reigning King or Queen. This year, a new monarch will feature on stamps for the first time in 70 years.   

Find out how stamps and royal cyphers are developed and produced and how monarchs influence these designs, shaping their own royal identity through everyday objects.  

Exhibition highlights include:

A closeup of a sheet of purple stamps.
A closeup of a printed proof showing Queen Victoria's profile in black ink on old paper.
Printing proofs showing how the first ever stamp, the famous Penny Black, was developed.
An illustration of the letters 'ER' and a crown, with the roman numerals for the number two.
Artwork showing how royal cyphers from Queen Victoria to Queen Elizabeth II have been produced.
A closeup of a sheet of five stamps, each with illustrations of famous trains.
Terence Cuneo’s original painting of The Flying Scotsman, used in the 1985 ‘Famous Trains’ commemorative stamp release.

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