Accession No

6173

Brief Description

four stamps issued in 1989 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Royal Microscopical Society, on 1st day cover, by Royal Mail, issued by Cambridge Instruments Ltd., English, 1989

Origin

England; Cambridge; Clifton Road

Maker

Royal Mail Cambridge Instruments Ltd. [issuer]

Class

microscopes; ephemera

Earliest Date

1989

Latest Date

1989

Inscription Date

5-9-1989

Material

paper; plastic

Dimensions

height 110mm; width 220mm; depth 0.5mm

Special Collection

Provenance

Inscription

Royal Microscopical Society
1839 - 1989
150 Years
FIRST DAY COVER issued by Cambridge Instruments, Clifton Road Cambridge CB1 3QH
Cambridge Instruments, 25 YEARS IN SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPY
5th September 1989, Cambridge

Description Notes

Four stamps issued in 1989 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Royal Microscopical Society, on 1st day cover , issued by Cambridge Instruments

First day cover consists of white envelope (in plastic protective holder) with four large stamps (35mm x 35mm) attached on right hand side. All four stamps contain the inscrption “ROYAL MICROSCOPICAL SOCIETY 1839-1989” and the Queen’s head embossed in gold. All four stamps contain a circular image in their centre, set against a black background.

Stamp 1 (top left) = 19p, image depicts “SNOWFLAKE x 10”.
Stamp 2 (top right) = 27p, image depicts “BLUE FLY x 5”.
Stamp 3 (bottom left) = 32p, image depicts “MICROCHIP x 600”.
Stamp 4 (bottom right) = 35p, image depicts “BLOOD CELLS x 500”.

On the left hand side of the envelope, printed directly onto the envelope, is a large silver medallion, with “Royal Microscopical Society” printed around its top edge, and “1839 - 1989 ROYAL MICROSCOPICAL SOCIETY 150 YEARS” printed inside the medalion. Below this is an image of a brass microscope on the left and a man sitting at a bank of computers on the right. Next to these images is printed “FIRST DAY COVER Issued by Cambridge Instruments Clifton Road Cambridge CB1 3QH Telephone (0223) 411411”

On the reverse side of the envelope is a printed description of the images shown on the cover: “Light microscope manufactured in London in 1841 by Hugh Powell for the Microscopical Society of London” and “Cambridge Instruments Stereoscan 360 Scanning Electron Microscope, 1989”, plus “Printed by A. T. Shelley (Printers) Ltd., Leicester.”

References

Events