The Royal Mail is releasing four stamps to mark the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla, promoting causes close to the new king’s heart.
The four themes, presented in a miniature sheet, are the coronation, diversity and community, the Commonwealth plus sustainability.
The coronation stamp depicts the moment of coronation, with St. Edward’s Crown being lowered onto the king’s head by the Archbishop of Canterbury. The king holds the sceptre with a dove, and the sceptre with a cross sits in the coronation chair.
The diversity and community stamp features figures representing the Jewish, Islamic, Christian, Sikh, Hindu and Buddhist religions and represents all faiths. The background shows aspects of both rural and urban Britain and includes some of the many different places of worship found in the United Kingdom.
Depicting the outward-looking United Kingdom, global trade, co-operation, democracy and peace, the Commonwealth stamp features an imagined Commonwealth meeting, a representation of the Commonwealth Games, some of the flags of the Commonwealth nations, a scene depicting trade and commerce and a Commonwealth War Graves cemetery.
The sustainability stamp depicts natural landscapes alongside sustainable farming methods and features renewable energy sources such as hydroelectric power and solar panels. Images of diverse forests, wildflower meadows and pollinating insects highlight the importance of wildlife conservation, while traditional crafts such as hedge-laying and beekeeping also feature prominently.
The new set marks just the third time the Royal Mail has issued stamps to mark a coronation. The two previous occasions were for King George VI in 1937 and Queen Elizabeth II in 1953.
The Royal Mail is accepting orders for the Charles III miniature set at royalmail.com.