Search Room exhibitions

The Royal Mail Archive has a small exhibition area in the Search Room. This is used to display highlights from our philatelic collection.

Our latest Search Room exhibition, A Timeless Classic: The Evolution of Machin's Icon, looks at Arnold Machin's iconic portrait of Her Majesty The Queen.

A feature of every British stamp since 1952, The Queen has had her philatelic portrait reproduced more than anyone in history. This exhibition looks at how Machin captured the hearts and imaginations of people worldwide through his design, creating an iconic portrait of The Queen.

Items on display include plaster casts, engraved dies and sketches. This exhibition was a companion to the major presentation of Timeless and Classic at the Royal College of Art in summer 2007.

Visit the Exhibitions section to have a look at all our online exhibitions.

Download brochures for past and present Search Room exhibitions:

• A Timeless Classic: The Evolution of Machin's Icon (PDF, 2.2MB)
  
• Elizabeth: Queen & Icon (PDF, 903KB)
  
• Victorian Innovation (PDF, 409KB)
  
• The Victorian Era of British Stamps (PDF, 132KB)
  

All Search Room exhibitions are free! All you have to do is visit the Archive.