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Story: Postage stamps

New Zealand's first pictorials

These are a full set of 13 pictorial stamps that were released in 1898. Up until this time most countries' stamps had featured portraits of kings, queens or heads of state. These stamps feature images of iconic New Zealand landscapes and depictions of native birds. The idea of a full definitive set of stamps, where each denomination was different from the others, was thought up in 1894. The winning designs were chosen from over 2,000 submitted by the public.

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New Zealand Post

Reference: 1898 Pictorial stamp issue

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How to cite this page

Carl Walrond, Postage stamps – Stamps, 1855 to 1940, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/zoomify/32047/new-zealands-first-pictorials (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Carl Walrond, published 29 September 2011.

Comments

NEIL FENWICK
06 April 2024
The picture above showing the set of pictorials shows an incorrect picture for the 2½d stamp. The original set as issued 5th April 1898 did have a similar looking 2½d stamp but with an incorrect spelling of the lake as WAKITIPU. The actual stamp as shown in the picture above with the changed spelling of WAKATIPU was issued one month later in May 1898. There were also a few other slight changes to the design.