King Charles III To Go Without A Crown On Redesigned Royal Mail Stamps

The Royal Mail has unveiled the image of King Charles III that will be used on first and second-class stamps, which will be made available to the public from April 4, 2023.

The monarch’s profile will be depicted facing to the left, featuring a portrait that is being used on the forthcoming coins. According to The Guardian, this is the seventh continuation of a tradition that dates back to when the Penny Black stamp was first created for Queen Victoria in 1840.

Similar to his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, the royal will retain the background colors of the stamps. Plum purple will be used to indicate first-class stamps, while holly green will be used for second class, marine turquoise for large first class, and dark pine green for large second class.

David Gold, the Royal Mail’s Director of External Affairs, told the publication the King wanted continuity with the stamps, and did not want to induce big changes. Notably, he will be portrayed without any crown or embellishment.

This design feature was chosen on purpose so King Charles III would appear just as a human being, channeling a message of being at citizens’ service. However, for now, the agency plans to exhaust its existing stock of Queen Elizabeth II stamps before distributing the new ones.

Those interested in being the first to receive the new stamp designs can register their interest with the Royal Mail from this week here.

[via The Guardian and Royal Mail, images via various sources]