British embossed postage stamps very narrow which is why examples with four margins are rare. In some cases the impressions were impressed overlapping each other by quite a large amount. The stamps were embossed, (printed), at Somerset House. Early collectors would often cut the stamps to shape retaining only the embossed central design and cut square examples are much more valuable. In 1856 after the European postage rate was reduced the stamps were replaced by surface printed issues. British embossed postage stamps The adhesive embossed postage stamps of the United Kingdom, issued during the reign of Queen Victoria between 1847 and 1854 exhibit four
Postage stamps and postal history of Sweden Postage stamps and postal history of Sweden Posten, the Swedish mail service, was established in 1636 by Axel Oxenstierna, and by the 18th century it had been extended throughout the country. The same century also saw the introduction of a practice unique to Sweden, that of attaching a feather to the wax seal of a letter to indicate that it needed to be delivered more quickly. Sweden issued its first postage stamps on 1 July 1855, a set of five values denominated in skilling banco. These stamps depicted the coat of arms, were inscribed "SVERIGE", as have been all subsequent