The following article was published yesterday by the Royal Mail Group, who operates throughout the UK and offers letter and parcel delivery services internationally. To learn more about the Royal Mail Group, visit their website.
We join with people across the United Kingdom and around the world in mourning the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
We extend our deepest condolences to His Majesty and to all members of the Royal Family.
A life in stamps
From her accession to the throne on 6 February 1952, Queen Elizabeth II was an ever-present feature of stamps in Britain.
Every stamp created during her reign featured an image of Queen Elizabeth II, usually in the forms of the Wilding portrait, the Machin definitive or the Gillick silhouette.
Her Majesty has also featured on numerous stamps created to mark Royal events and anniversaries such as birthdays, jubilees and weddings.
This gallery charts her life in stamps issued throughout her long reign.
See the full Life in Stamps gallery >
History's most reproduced work of art
Born in Stoke-on-Trent in 1911, Arnold Machin was a renowned artist and sculptor. Coming from a family of pottery workers, at the age of 14 Machin started working at the Minton China Factory, where he stayed for seven years.
A talented sculptor and modeller, he won scholarships to both the Derby School of Art and Royal College of Art. Machin also taught in London at the Royal College of Art and was later appointed Master of Sculpture at the Royal Academy Schools.
He was elected a member of the Royal Academy of Arts in 1956 and was appointed an OBE in 1965. He also designed the profile of The Queen that appeared on coinage from 1968 to 1984.
Following a decision to refresh the Wilding image, a number of artists were invited to submit their ideas to Royal Mail. All had to submit a portrait ‘rendering’ of The Queen and some sample stamp designs. Machin based his initial ideas on work he had previously done for his portrait of The Queen for the decimal coinage, which was based on photographs taken by Lord Snowdon.
Machin produced six portraits and created a total of nearly 70 sketches, far more than anyone else. Several of these greatly resembled the Penny Black, the world’s first adhesive stamp. Some had elaborate frames, and many gave the appearance of a cameo, reflecting Machin’s previous work for Wedgwood.
Nearly all featured The Queen wearing a tiara, as in the Snowdon photographs and on Machin’s effigy for coins. Machin was asked to develop his ideas, which as a sculptor he did in the form of a plaster cast.
A recording of the design process was filmed by the then General Post Office (GPO) for the film, Picture to Post. The film featured Machin as he worked on creating a profile of The Queen as a bas-relief cast. The bas-relief cast was then photographed and used as the image that appeared on the new stamp. Royal Mail’s design classic was first issued at the 4d value on 5 June 1967.
Since it was first issued, the portrait has been reprinted an estimated 220 billion times, in more than 130 different colours, and is considered to be one of the most reproduced images in the world.
See the APRL subject guide to this iconic stamp here and watch this video about the stamp's 50th anniversary.
The Royal Cypher
Since their introduction in 1852, post boxes have carried the insignia, or cypher, of the monarch reigning at the time of placement.
The 'EIIR' mark of Queen Elizabeth II is now the most commonly seen in the UK, featuring on more than 60 per cent of postboxes. Around 15 per cent of current boxes are from the reign of George V and then in descending order, George VI, Victoria, and Edward VII. There are 171 boxes surviving from the short 1936 reign of Edward VIII.
The 'EIIR' cypher stands for 'Elizabeth II Regina'. The 'R' was added to a monarch’s cypher after the reign of Henry VIII, and stands for either 'Rex' or 'Regina', which is Latin for King or Queen.
A Royal Visit
2016 saw Royal Mail celebrate 500 years of the postal service with a year-long programme of events. on the eve of Her Majesty’s 90th birthday, The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh visited Windsor Delivery Office and unveiled its brand new name in honour of the Monarch: The Queen Elizabeth Delivery Office.
They were accompanied on a tour of the office by Royal Mail’s Chief Executive Moya Greene, Chairman Peter Long and Delivery Office Manager Andrew Roeton. Crowds of wellwishers joined the event, made up of long-serving employees; postmen and women who have fundraised for charity or have gone the extra mile to help people in their communities; Royal Mail graduates and apprentices; and representatives of some of the charities with whom Royal Mail works. As the Royal party arrived, the Royal Mail choirs sang “Please Mr Postman.”
Her Majesty was then presented with a bouquet of flowers by Bob Hartley. Bob is currently Royal Mail’s longest-serving employee, having served 53 years and five months. He currently works at Leeds Mail Centre processing mail during the late shift.
During the visit, Her Majesty The Queen had an opportunity to see, for the first time, the printed versions of a Royal Mail Special Stamp issue celebrating her landmark birthday. As with all stamp issues, The Queen personally approved the design of these stamps before they were printed. The stamps go on sale to the public on the day of her 90th birthday, 21 April 2016.
Her Majesty was presented with the first in a limited numbered edition of 90 framed sets that bring together stamps issued to mark significant achievements of The Queen over the years. The Queen was also presented with a birthday gift of a sterling silver hallmarked fountain pen from Royal Mail.
As the Royal party left the delivery office, the Royal Mail choirs rounded off the visit with a special rendition of Happy Birthday to Her Majesty in a four-part harmony.
Before departing, The Queen unveiled a plaque to be installed in the customer service point as a lasting legacy of her visit to the office.