Machin definitives' 40th anniversary

UK's Telegraph reports on-line reports that a new presentation pack of stamps, called the Machin Definitives' 40th Anniversary, will be released today.

One of the four stamps in the set shows a photograph of Arnold Machin which is the first time Royal Mail has honored a stamp designer in such a way.

According to the article, "Machin, who died eight years ago, was paid a flat fee of £4,500 for his work on the stamps - the equivalent of £58,000 at today's values. In return, he surrendered all his rights to the design."

The stamp design was based on the plaster bust [shown above with Machin standing behind it] of the Queen that Machin sculpted, then photographed, so it could be used in silhouette as the image on Royal Mail stamps.

The bust, measuring 18in by 16in, is normally kept in the vaults of the British Postal Museum and Archive (BPMA) in London. However, it and other material will be on display from July 18 until August 15 at the Royal College of Art in London.

To read the entire article, click here.