Kōrero: Postage stamps

Brewery staff at Simpson and Harts brewery at Wetherstones, near Lawrence in Otago, pose with their casks of beer in 1894. From 1885 to 1915 every cask required revenue stamps, which were attached to the plug or stopper of the casks. The Beer Duty Act 1880 had established a threepence-per-gallon excise duty on beer. Evading this tax was difficult – beer brewing operations are large and would be difficult to hide.