175th Anniversary of the First Ever postal stamp to be celebrated at the 15th Europhilex

May 1, 2015 - PRLog -- Europhilex, the European stamp event, is set to see an exclusive exhibition of the first ever postal stamp.   The stamp on display is from the original sheet of stamps, printed on 8^th April 1840 that were sent to the postal board for approval on 10^th April.  This is the only remaining example from the original sheet of Penny Black’s that then went into production on 11^th April. Owned privately, this is one of the only times you will be able to see it, alongside a display of other Philatelic Firsts that have changed the world.

The Penny Black, invented in Britain, was the first ever adhesive stamp. It revolutionised modern communication and went into circulation for the first time on 6^th May 1840.

‘The World’s First Postage Stamp’ was created due to the need for messages to be transmitted rapidly and for an affordable price.  The Penny Black inspired a revolution in the postal service led by Sir Rowland Hill.

Hill and his colleagues led a campaign in the late 1830s to abolish the old system, where postal charges were normally paid for by the recipient.  Hill helped slash the cost of posting a letter. As a result, the pre-paid Uniform One Penny Post was introduced in the UK on 10 January 1840. It was an immediate success as the volume of mail being sent rose rapidly. To show the postage had been paid, Hill introduced adhesive postage stamps, using the skills of Perkins Bacon & Co who were leading printers of cheques and banknotes at the time, that could be stuck on the front of a letter. This proved to be such a simple and useful innovation that it spread around the world. Despite all the changes that have taken place in communications technology since, it remains in general use today – 175 years later.

The Europhilex, held at the Business Design Centre in Central London, is set to welcome stamp enthusiasts and formal collectors.  The doors for Europhilex will be opened for free to the public from Thursday – Saturday and it will be a great opportunity for families and individuals to learn about the history of the hobby, as well as see the rare collections themselves.

Europhilex will commemorate and celebrate this landmark achievement that marked the beginning of the modern communications era.

15th Europhilex

13-16th May 2015

London’s Business Design Centre

www.london2015.net/tag/europhilex/