Tag Archives: Great Britain

Michael Ellison provided this very interesting postmark showing the 1759 Eddystone Lighthouse known as Smeaton’s Tower. The postmark commemorates the 300th anniversary of the birth of John Smeaton, the famous British civil engineer, who among many other projects, designed the Eddystone lighthouse that was completed in 1759. That lighthouse was dismantled and rebuilt in 1877 on the nearby Plymouth Hoe due to erosion of the rock upon which the lighthouse stood. The design of the postmark incorporates a cross section of the lighthouse showing how the stone was dovetailed and fresnel lenses in the “0’s” of the “300”. The 6/8/24 notation is the date of issue of the postmark. For more information about Smeaton and his lighthouse see this Wikipedia Article. Thanks, Michael!