Great Britain 1870 ½d rose red Plate 1, SG48.
A very fine used example lettered 'OM' neatly tied to a “British Asylum for Deaf & Dumb Females” printed voting circular by a London N.W. circular date stamp for the first day of issue 'OC. 1.1870'.
The cover was then turned and re-sent bearing another ½d rose red cancelled by a London “E14” DUPLEX FOR 'OC.22.1870'.
A lovely example of this scarce Victorian first day cover.
The ½d rose red stamps, first issued on 1 October 1870, were the first halfpenny stamp. It was introduced to cover a reduction in the postal rate for newspapers and postcards.
It was designed to be approximately half the size of the penny stamps and is famous for being the smallest British postage stamp ever issued at 17.5mm x 14mm. The stamps were given the nickname "Bantams" due to their small size.
Because of their size, the sheets were perforated from side to side rather than top to bottom, with the A column normally inserted first. The stamps were watermarked with the word "halfpenny" that extended across three stamps.
The ½d rose red stamps were replaced in 1880 by the surface printed halfpenny green stamps.
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