Description

— New stock added —

Hard-to-find 1976 set of Lundy 2p and 7½p puffin bust definitives, issued as an addition to the previous 1974 definitive set.

While the 7½p stamp is an entirely new value, the 2p is a reprint of the 1974 value but in a deeper shade of brown. However, both 1976 values are counted in catalogues, such as Aitchison’s, as new Lundy stamps, and the first day cover for the issue also featured both.

The difference between the 1974 and 1976 2p stamps is quite subtle, and is best discerned by comparing one directly against the other. Our tip is to find an example of the 1974 2p stamp used on cover prior to 1976, to help pin that one down as definitely being the earlier version! We have used that method to confirm the stamp shown here as being the 1976 release.

Listed in Jon Aitchison’s Lundy catalogue as numbers 201A and 217.

U/M / Unmounted Mint / MNH / Mint Never Hinged.

About Lundy

Lundy is a three-mile-long island in the Bristol Channel, whose stamps are among the longest-established and most sought-after local issues.

Unlike many labels that bear the name of British offshore islands - such as Eynhallow or Staffa - Lundy's stamps have always performed a genuine local postal function. When the British General Post Office withdrew its services from the island in 1928, the then-owner Martin Coles Harman introduced the first Lundy stamps in 1929 to cover the cost of carrying mail to the mainland. Those and subsequent stamps are denominated in "puffins", with one puffin equivalent to one penny.

To avoid confusion, Lundy stamps initially had to be fixed to the reverse of any postal items. From 1962, Lundy stamps were allowed were allowed to be affixed to the address side of postcards - but still well away from the 'official' British stamp - with this policy extended to all mail in 1992. These days, mail from the island only requires a Lundy stamp, which now incorporates the Royal Mail charge - indicated by an additional metermark - alongside the extra "puffinage".

Since 1969, Lundy has been owned by the National Trust, but financed, administered and maintained by the Landmark Trust, who continue to issue Lundy stamps. As of 2024, over 400 Lundy stamps have now been produced over the past nine decades, and 40,000 items of mail are sent annually.

You can read more about the Lundy postal service on the Landmark Trust website.