Queen Victoria Surcharged Issue

Hong Kong · 1880 · 10 Cents on 16 Cents

This stamp features the classic left-facing profile of Queen Victoria, a common design for British colonial issues of the era. It is a provisional issue, created by surcharging an existing 16 Cents stamp with a new denomination of '10 CENTS' in black ink. The original design is framed by an ornate border with 'HONG-KONG' inscribed at the top and the original value at the bottom.

Issued during British colonial rule, this surcharged stamp was a practical measure to meet an unexpected demand for the 10-cent postal rate, likely due to changes in mail tariffs within the Universal Postal Union.