Darwin honoured on new British stamps

Royal Mail issued a set of stamps this week to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin, and the 150th anniversary of his seminal work on the theory of evolution.

Royal Mail issued a set of stamps this week to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin, and the 150th anniversary of his seminal work on the theory of evolution.

Six of the stamps feature jigsaw-style designs to symbolise how his research in disparate subjects came together to form his work on evolution, set out in “On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection”.

The other four are part of a set that build into a map of the Galapagos Islands, where Darwin carried out much of his research in the 1830s.

“Charles Darwin’s ideas triggered a revolution in the understanding of how species evolve,” said Julietta Edgar, Royal Mail’s head of special stamps.

“The brilliance of his thinking is symbolised in the unique design of the stamps, the jigsaw shape suggests how Darwin was able to draw on his different areas of study to formulate groundbreaking new ideas.

“The distinctive jigsaw design of the stamps is a great way to link Darwin’s vast areas of research, while the special sheet is a beautiful representation of the Galapagos Islands.”

Darwin, who also appears on the bank of Britain’s £10 bank note, was born on 12 February 1809. “On the Origin of Species” was released in 1859.