Penny Lilac Penny Lilac The Penny Lilac was the basic penny postage stamp of Great Britain from its first issue on 12 July 1881 and was used until 1901. It superseded the short lived Penny Venetian Red because the Customs and Inland Revenue Act of 1881 necessitated new stamps that were also valid as revenue stamps, and so the Penny Lilac was issued in that year, inscribed "POSTAGE AND INLAND REVENUE". All previous stamps had been inscribed merely "POSTAGE". This stamp remained the standard letter stamp for the remainder of Queen Victoria's reign, and very large quantities were printed. The oval design
Penny Black of new red stamps, but a small number were printed in black. These are scarce. The stamps were printed in unperforated sheets, to be carefully cut with scissors for sale and use. As a result, stamps with badly cut margins, or no margins, are common and worth very little, while examples with four clear margins are rare and valuable, and fetch very high prices, especially if in mint condition. An original printing press for the Penny Black, the "D" cylinder press invented by Jacob Perkins and patented in 1819, is on display at the British Library in London. The total