Queen Victoria on a mauritian stamp. This unused, blue two pence Bed & Breakfast stamp of the La Reine Créole Post Office on Mauritius is an adoption of the famous Post Office stamp dates to 1851. Only 12 examples of this original two pence value are known to have survived, and of those, only four are unused.

The used red one penny ones were mailed on invitation envelopes sent by Lady Gomm, the wife of the thengovenor of Mauritius, to attend a gala ball on September 30, 1847.

The stamps are known as the Post Office Mauritius because they bear the words "Post Office" rather than "Postage Paid", which were inscribed on later issues of the design. They are considered extremely valuable because of their rarity and history.

They were among the first stamps to be issued by a British colonial post office. In fact, Mauritius was the fifth country in the world to issue stamps after England started 1841, following behind Geneva, Basel and Zurich in Switzerland and Brazil.

Since 1993 the one penny and the two pence stamps first were kept in the historical collection of the Mauritius Commercial Bank. Recently the Blue Penny Museum opened at Caudan Waterfront in Port Louis. You have the chance to visit this historical rare collection.