Mauritius 1847 "Post Office" 2d. deep blue, unused.

The first British Colonial postage stamps were issued in Mauritius in 1847. These are the famous “Post Office” issue, so called because of the inscription in the left margin. The design and colours were based upon the then current stamps of Great Britian.

Shown here is an unused example of the 2d. deep blue, the Blue Mauritius.

Altogether, only fourteen copies of the 1d orange-red and twelve copies of the 2d deep blue are known to exist today. These stamps are considered as some of the most famous and important of all the philatelic rarities.