Following King Charles III’s ascension to the throne in September, Britain’s Royal Mail began selling the first postage stamps featuring his image on Tuesday.
The monarch’s portrait, unveiled in February and approved by Charles himself, will now appear alongside the stamp’s value and barcode on all Royal Mail stamps ahead of his coronation next month.
The so-called “definitive stamp,” designed for everyday use, is based on the official effigy found on new UK coins.
Retailers will continue to sell existing Queen Elizabeth II stamps and will be supplied with the new version when supplies run out.
The new stamps are already on sale on the website.
The image of Charles is adapted from a portrait by British sculptor Martin Jennings created for new UK coins, which are already in circulation.
The new design shows Charles facing left, as all British monarchs have done on stamps since the “Penny Black” was issued as the world’s first postage stamp in 1840 under Queen Victoria.
The release also comes a day after stamp prices were increased by the postal service so that it could remain “sustainable”, according to a Royal Mail statement.
