Great Britain Queen Victoria Penny Black

Great Britain · 1840 · 1d (One Penny)

The Penny Black is the world's first adhesive postage stamp, issued by Great Britain in 1840. The design features a profile portrait of the young Queen Victoria, based on a sketch by Henry Corbould, which was in turn based on the 1837 'City' medal by William Wyon. The stamp is imperforate and printed in black ink on watermarked paper.

Its introduction was a key part of the postal reforms championed by Rowland Hill, which standardized postage rates and introduced the concept of prepayment, revolutionizing communication worldwide.