The Virtual Machin Album

The most significant issue for the 40^th anniversary is the new £1 Machin. Royal Mail asked Jeffery Matthews, who has been contributing to the development of the Machin definitives since 1971, to design a new color for the £1 Machin. Matthews, who previously designed 33 colors for the Machins, chose ruby, the color that signifies the 40^th anniversary.

The new stamp is shown here in a color block of eight.

Of importance to collectors is that this new £1 stamp does not have an overprint of shiny iriodin ink. Its predecessor, the £1 mauve, had this overprint added to prevent counterfeiting. The overprint was removed because the £1 value is no longer considered a high-value stamp.

The £1 ruby appeared in two other formats — in the 40^th anniversary souvenir sheet and in the 40^th anniversary prestige booklet. All three formats of the £1 ruby were issued on June 5, 2007, the exact 40^th anniversary of the first Machins.

The £1 ruby replaces the £1 mauve.