Penny black printing plates
Encyclopedia
The printing plates for the Penny Black
, two pence blue
and the VR official
were all constructed by Perkins Bacon
, the printers of the first postage stamp
s issued in Great Britain
.
The construction of these plates was long winded and complicated, which was intentional so as to make the forgery of the finished article almost impossible.
The first stage involved the engraving of a background for the design. This was produced with a rose engine which laid down a circular pattern of symmetrical design onto a piece of soft steel. This was then partly cleared to leave a square shape and an area in the centre was further cleared in the shape of Queen Victoria
's head ready for engraving.
At this stage the die was passed to the engravers who, working from a sketch provided by Henry Cole
, engraved the head in the centre.
Following this the labels were engraved at the top and bottom of the die, along with corner squares to take the stars and check letters. Finally the stars were engraved into the top corners.
At this stage the die was hardened and a series of impressions made on a transfer roller
, which—as its name implies—was used to transfer the image from the die to the printing plate. Once these images were complete on the roller, this was in turn hardened.
A sheet of soft steel was cut, sufficient in size to take 240 impressions of the stamps arranged in twenty horizontal rows of twelve. Onto this plate a series of guide dots were marked, some of which were joined with guide lines to allow the correct registration of the impressions. Many of these dots and lines show on the printed stamps and allow them to be correctly assigned to the plate from which they were printed.
Using the transfer roller, the impressions were transferred to the plate under great pressure until the required 240 impressions were completed. Finally the check letters were inserted into the lower corner using hand punches. As such the position of these letters on each stamp differs slightly from one plate to the next and provide an aid for collectors wishing to assign a given stamp impression to its correct plate. Finally the marginal inscriptions were added to the four sides of the sheet using a separate roller and the plate hardened ready for use in production.
Penny Black
The Penny Black was the world's first adhesive postage stamp used in a public postal system. It was issued in Britain on 1 May 1840, for official use from 6 May of that year....
, two pence blue
Two pence blue
The Two Penny Blue was the world’s second official postage stamp, issued after the Penny Black.It was issued in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and was first sold to the public at the London Inland revenue office in the afternoon of May 8th 1840. Except for its denomination of the...
and the VR official
VR official
The VR official was one of three postage stamps introduced by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in May 1840 for the pre-payment of postage. While the Penny Black and the Two Pence Blue were for use by the general public, as were the Mulready envelopes and letter sheets, the VR...
were all constructed by Perkins Bacon
Perkins Bacon
Messrs. Perkins, Bacon & Co was a printer of books, bank notes and postage stamps, most notable for printing the Penny Black, the world's first adhesive postage stamps, in 1840.- Origins :...
, the printers of the first postage stamp
Postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...
s issued in Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
.
The construction of these plates was long winded and complicated, which was intentional so as to make the forgery of the finished article almost impossible.
The first stage involved the engraving of a background for the design. This was produced with a rose engine which laid down a circular pattern of symmetrical design onto a piece of soft steel. This was then partly cleared to leave a square shape and an area in the centre was further cleared in the shape of Queen Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
's head ready for engraving.
At this stage the die was passed to the engravers who, working from a sketch provided by Henry Cole
Henry Cole
Sir Henry Cole was an English civil servant and inventor who facilitated many innovations in commerce and education in 19th century Britain...
, engraved the head in the centre.
Following this the labels were engraved at the top and bottom of the die, along with corner squares to take the stars and check letters. Finally the stars were engraved into the top corners.
At this stage the die was hardened and a series of impressions made on a transfer roller
Transfer roller
The transfer roller was used in the production of the first postage stamps, . It transferred the image of the stamp from the master die to the printing plate....
, which—as its name implies—was used to transfer the image from the die to the printing plate. Once these images were complete on the roller, this was in turn hardened.
A sheet of soft steel was cut, sufficient in size to take 240 impressions of the stamps arranged in twenty horizontal rows of twelve. Onto this plate a series of guide dots were marked, some of which were joined with guide lines to allow the correct registration of the impressions. Many of these dots and lines show on the printed stamps and allow them to be correctly assigned to the plate from which they were printed.
Using the transfer roller, the impressions were transferred to the plate under great pressure until the required 240 impressions were completed. Finally the check letters were inserted into the lower corner using hand punches. As such the position of these letters on each stamp differs slightly from one plate to the next and provide an aid for collectors wishing to assign a given stamp impression to its correct plate. Finally the marginal inscriptions were added to the four sides of the sheet using a separate roller and the plate hardened ready for use in production.
External links
- Penny Black trial plate National Postal MuseumNational Postal MuseumThe National Postal Museum, located opposite Union Station in Washington, D.C., USA, was established through joint agreement between the United States Postal Service and the Smithsonian Institution and opened in 1993. The museum is located across the street from Union Station, in the building that...
- Penny Black Plate 11 corner pair NPM
- Two pence blue die proof, April 1840 NPM
- Single trial impressions, submitted to Rowland Hill August 31, 1840 British Postal Museum & Archive