Victorian Post Box (Type A)

Maker: Handyside & Co, Derby and London

Late nineteenth century

Cast iron

Main Street

Gibraltar

According to a leaflet published by Gibraltar's Royal Mail, this British Overseas Territory "boasts the only known street that has an example of a letter box from each British monarch since they were first introduced in 1852." We learn from the same source that pillar boxes were introduced here in late 1858, and that Gibraltar is the only Commonwealth or British Overseas Territory with a "Royal Mail" designation: it was granted the appellation by Queen Elizabeth II in 2005. Note: "Type A" refers to the size of the box, which corresponded to the volume of mail it was expected to be required to hold.

  • The Edward VII postbox on Gibraltar's Main Street

    • Photograph by Jacqueline Banerjee.

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