Portal:Gibraltar/Issuing Authority

The Gibraltar Philatelic Bureau is the company responsible for the design, printing, production, marketing and sale of Gibraltar stamps worldwide. Gibraltar stamps have been issued since 1886 and are considered to be highly collectible by the worldwide philatelic fraternity.

The Philatelic Bureau receives stamp issue suggestions from hundreds of people annually, both from Gibraltar and collectors worldwide. A shortlist of issue titles is created after which it is narrowed down to an officially proposed stamp programme for the year in question. This is then sent to the Gibraltar Government for a final decision. The fact that many of the issues released in the past 10 years have received coverage in the worldwide press and that two Gibraltar stamps have broken world records, serves as a testament to the team's expertise in producing dynamic and interesting subjects.

If the issue has been painted by an illustrator, the designer then work on a final design by scanning and thereafter retouching and resizing the artworks. He then works on layout ideas incorporating - as a must - the Queen's Cipher (her effigy or the EiiR).

The final designs are sent for approval by the Gibraltar Government and then the Governors' Office who pass them on to Buckingham Palace for the approval by Her Majesty the Queen. According to official sources, the Queen always reviews proofs of all stamps issued by the Commonwealth countries, as she is one of the world's most prominent collectors. After an issue is approved it is sent to specialist security printers, most of which also print banknotes and other important items. The whole process is much longer and formal than people expect.

Every single stamp tells a story and all stamps are, without a doubt, miniature works of art.