Norway #1, 4 Skilling Blue, Coat of Arms

Norway · 1855 · 4 Skilling

This is the first postage stamp issued by Norway, featuring the national Coat of Arms. The design, created by Nils Andreas Harbou, depicts a crowned lion rampant holding an axe, enclosed within a circular frame with the inscription 'FRIMÆRKE' (Postage Stamp) and the denomination '4 SKILLING'. The stamp was printed without perforations on handmade paper with a watermark of the coat of arms.

Issued on January 1, 1855, this stamp marked Norway's entry into the postal reform movement that began with Great Britain's Penny Black. It simplified the postal system, which was previously based on distance and weight, making mail more accessible to the general public.