The first stamps of the reign of Charles III have been issued but the King’s head isn’t on them.
The four stamps are memorial editions, marking the death of Queen Elizabeth II. They all feature famous portraits of Her Late Majesty and, for that reason, there is no profile of a Monarch on them.
Usually, UK stamps have a silhouette of the Monarch’s head in the top right hand corner. However, as the stamps feature full face images of Her Late Majesty, no silhouette is needed as her photo is enough to represent the nation of origin.
These are the first stamps to be approved by King Charles III but they also come with the backing of his mother. The images were first used on the Golden Jubilee set which had to be approved by Queen Elizabeth II before release.
All four are black and white and feature Her Late Majesty’s dates, 1926 – 2022, on the right hand side of the stamp. The 1968 portrait by Cecil Beaton is on the first class stamp while the second class stamp features one of the famous photos taken by Dorothy Wilding. The higher value stamps show images taken by Yousuf Karsh and Tim Graham.
As the stamps were revealed, Simon Thompson, the CEO of Royal Mail said ”For the past seventy years every British stamp has been personally approved by Her Late Majesty, Queen Elizabeth. Today we are unveiling these stamps, the first to be approved by His Majesty The King, in tribute to a woman whose commitment to public service and duty was unparalleled in the history of this country.”
The stamps are available as commemorative editions from September 27th 2022 and will go on general sale at Post Offices on November 10th 2022, just ahead of the usual Christmas rush for stamps.
