Stamp collecting stamp collecting began at the same time that stamps were first issued, and by 1860 thousands of collectors and stamp dealers were appearing around the world as this new study and hobby spread across Europe, European colonies, the United States and other parts of the world. The first postage stamp, the Penny Black, was issued by Britain in May 1840 and pictured a young Queen Victoria. It was produced without perforations (imperforate) and consequently had to be cut from the sheet with scissors in order to be used. While unused examples of the Penny Black are quite scarce, used examples
Compendium of postage stamp issuers (U) has been that the issuer of British stamps is called Great Britain. Compendium of postage stamp issuers (U) Each "article" in this category is a collection of entries about several stamp issuers, presented in alphabetical order. The entries are formulated on the micro model and so provide summary information about all known issuers. See the page for details of the project. This was historically called the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1801–1922) after which it became the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland or UK for short. It has never been a philatelic term, any more