New stamps celebrate ‘magnificent’ items in Royal Armouries collection

A dozen new stamps being issued to celebrate the Royal Armouries have been revealed by the Royal Mail.

Eight stamps in the main set will show examples of armour made between 1520 and 1686 which were owned by monarchs including Henry VIII and Charles I.

A further four stamps, presented in a miniature sheet, show other treasures from the collection including a rare sword and scabbard from the Ming dynasty, a Japanese helmet from the Edo period and a European sword bearing Arabic inscriptions.

David Gold, Royal Mail’s director of external affairs and policy, said: “These stamps show magnificent examples of craftsmanship, engineering and high fashion, proving that for royal warriors of the past, dressing to impress was as important on the battlefield as anywhere else.

“We are grateful to the Royal Armouries for allowing us to share just a few examples from their collection”.

Jack Wanstall, senior licensing and partnerships manager at the Royal Armouries, said: “The Royal Armouries is delighted to be working in partnership with Royal Mail to showcase a selection of objects from our collection of over 75,000 pieces of history.

“Each object tells a story and we hope these stunning pieces will inspire curiosity about the role of arms and armour in shaping our world.”