New Issues
The end of an era: The final stamps of Queen Elizabeth II
Queen Elizabeth II has graced UK stamps for 70 years, but now we’re coming to the end of an era; Royal Mail have released their final commemorative stamp issue with the Queen’s silhouette, celebrating the centenary of the world’s most famous locomotive – Flying Scotsman.
So, before we steam ahead towards the BRAND-NEW Flying Scotsman editions, let’s take a look back at Queen Elizabeth II’s iconic 70-year reign in UK postage…
The beginning of Queen Elizabeth II stamps
1953 marked the beginning of Her Majesty’s Reign and the introduction of the Wildings – a series of definitive postage and revenue stamps featuring Dorothy Wilding’s portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, which were used up until 1967.
The first four stamps to be issued within this series were for Her Majesty’s 1953 Coronation, presented in the colours of Carmine-Red, Ultramarine, Deep Yellow-Green and Deep Grey-Blue.
Commemorative stamps were then introduced during the 1950s and early 1960s. However, the Postmaster General, Tony Benn, proposed a new criteria outlining what could appear on them. From 1965, it was decided that all GB stamps had to include a small silhouette of the Queen based on the coinage head of Mary Gillick, which then became the standard.
Two once-in-a-lifetime tributes
And now, Royal Mail have issued twelve commemorative editions featuring Flying Scotsman.
Not only are they the official UK stamps to mark the centenary of the world’s most famous locomotive, but they will also be the last to show the Queen’s silhouette after 70 years – marking two incredible moments in British history!
These nostalgic editions portray the steam locomotive travelling through North Yorkshire, Northumberland, Berwick-on-Tweed and London’s Victoria Station. Inspired by poster artwork from the 1920s and 1930s, Royal Mail’s spokesman David Gold intends for them to evoke “the golden age of steam travel”.
Your chance to celebrate both!
To pay tribute to such monumental moments in history, a limited-edition coin and stamp cover has been released, comprised of The Royal Mint’s Official UK 2023 Flying Scotsman £2 in Brilliant Uncirculated Quality along with Royal Mail’s BRAND-NEW Flying Scotsman stamps.
But considering these are the last UK stamps to feature Queen Elizabeth II, we are predicting insatiable demand – and we have already seen sell-outs at The Royal Mint for the Flying Scotsman coin range.
All steams ahead! Click here to secure one for your collection now >>
Celebrate 100 years of the world’s most famous steam locomotive!
When I think of the world’s most famous steam locomotive, only one name springs to mind – Flying Scotsman.
And as we approach the 100th anniversary since it was introduced to the railway, we can reflect on its remarkable history with The Royal Mint’s BRAND-NEW UK 2023 Flying Scotsman £2 coin.
But first, let’s travel back an entire century to see where it all began…
Doncaster, 1923
Built in Doncaster 100 years ago, Flying Scotsman was the first locomotive of the newly formed London and North Eastern Railway. It went into service on 24 February 1923 and was designed by Sir Nigel Gresley as part of the A1 class – the most powerful locomotives used by the LNER at the time.
In 1928, Flying Scotsman was redesigned with a revised corridor. This meant the crew could take over service without the locomotive having to stop, reducing the journey time from London to Edinburgh by eight hours!
As a result, Flying Scotsman hauled the first-ever non-stop service from London to Edinburgh on 1 May 1928.
By 1934, Flying Scotsman was the first locomotive in the UK to reach 100mph on rails. It was also the first locomotive to circumnavigate the globe in 1989 – both remarkable feats at the time!
Flying Scotsman retired in 1963 but returned to the tracks in 2022, hauling a limited number of steam excursions just prior to its 100th anniversary.
The UK 2023 Flying Scotsman £2 Coin
In celebration of 100 years since the world’s most famous steam locomotive took to the tracks, The Royal Mint have released a very special £2 commemorative coin.
Depicting a nostalgic side-on view of the locomotive during one of its many rail journeys, the coin features a thoughtfully crafted design by John Bergdahl.
What’s more, your £2 comes available in Brilliant Uncirculated, Silver Proof, Silver Piedfort or Gold Proof quality!
And interestingly, it has been more than two decades since The Royal Mint last released a colour-printed UK £2 commemorative coin. So, this range marks a special moment for the £2 coin, as it includes a colour-printed Silver Proof AND Silver Proof Piedfort edition!
But with just limited numbers available, you must act now to secure yours!
The SOLD OUT Great Sphinx of Tanis Masterpiece from La Monnaie de Paris
If you’ve heard of La Monnaie de Paris, you’ll know that their coins are some of the hardest pieces to get hold of, especially outside of France and have a record of sell outs.
Their artistic excellence and minting quality mean that their pieces are some of the best on the market.
And with their latest release, they have created a true Egyptian Masterpiece.
Introducing the SOLD-OUT Great Sphinx of Tanis Masterpiece from La Monnaie de Paris…
This coin features so many tiny details that are easy to miss, so let us talk you through some of them.
Great Sphinx of Tanis
First of all, and perhaps the most obvious is that this 10 Euro coin has been expertly struck from .999 Pure Silver in the shape of a Sphinx.
But it’s not just any Sphinx – it is an exact replica of the Great Sphinx of Tanis.
(Credit: Wikimedia Commons)
The Great Sphinx of Tanis is thought to date from as early as the 26th century BC and was discovered in the ruins of the Temple of the God, Amun-Ra and now resides in the Louvre Museum in Paris.
Dual Anniversary
Another key feature is that this coin has been issued for a dual anniversary. 2022 marks 200 years since the deciphering of hieroglyphs and 100 years since the discovery of the Tomb of Tutankhamun.
The obverse features the inscription ‘1822-2022’ to honour the ground-breaking work of Jean-Francois Champillion. After years of hard work, Champillion finally cracked the code that allowed the world to understand the ancient Egyptian language.
(Credit: Wikimedia Commons)
Champillion was so overwhelmed by his discovery that he shouted, ‘I’ve got it’, before fainting and having to spend the next few days in bed recovering.
The Discovery of the Tomb of Tutankhamun
To celebrate 100 years since the Discovery of the Tomb of Tutankhamun by Howard Carter in 1922, the reverse of this coin features an image of a young Tutankhamun being watched over by the God, Amun.
Also displayed are the cartouches of Tutankhamun. A cartouche is a panel expressing royal or divine names in Egyptian hieroglyphics. The archaeologists who found the tomb knew it was Tutankhamun’s because they could read the cartouches over the door seals – all thanks to the work of Champollion a century earlier.
SOLD OUT on the International Market
La Monnaie de Paris coins are amongst some of the hardest pieces to get hold of. Very few have been made available to collectors outside of France, and they have already completely sold out on the International market.
Even as an official distributor, only 100 coins have been secured for UK collectors.
This coin is unavailable elsewhere on the international market, so we don’t expect these to be around for long.
Pieces like this are few and far between so if you want to make sure you’re one of a select number of UK collectors to own this new artistic masterpiece, you’ll need to be quick.
Click here to avoid missing out >>