Gold Coast Queen Victoria Key Plate Stamp

Gold Coast · 1889 · 2½d

This definitive stamp features the profile of Queen Victoria, printed in ultramarine, within an octagonal frame. The duty plate, indicating the '2½d' denomination, is printed in purple on blue paper. This design is part of the widely used 'Key Plate' or 'Key Type' series common across British colonies.

Issued during the height of the British Empire, these stamps were used for postage in the Gold Coast colony, now modern-day Ghana. The Key Plate system was an economical printing method, allowing a common design to be adapted for different denominations and colonies.