Great Britain 1918 2s6d-10s dull grey-blue "Seahorses", SG415a/7.
A very fine unmounted mint, with full original gum, set of three values printed by Bradbury Wilkinson.
SG Catalogue Value: £1,700.
The intricacy of the design of the Seahorse stamp issue is the credit of the renowned Australian sculptor, Bertram Mackennal.
The most famous stamp collector at the time (King George V) personally approved the designs.
They are beautifully engraved, being produced by the intaglio recess printing method. This meant they were of higher quality than most stamps before and after. You can really feel the engraved lines indented into the paper.
Four contractors were used to print over 100 million of the Seahorse stamps (Waterlow & Layton, De La Rue, Bradbury Wilkinson and Waterlow & Sons).
