Post box on Dame Street

Freestanding cylindrical cast-iron pillar postbox, erected c. 1905. Plinth with plain moulded cap having embossed lettering 'Handyside Derby London', central drum having hinged door with daily collection slot and embossed with royal insignia of Edward VII, frieze with upper and lower astragal mouldings containing letter slot flanked with embossed lettering 'postbox' to left and right. Quadrant moulding below debossed margin with shallow-domed cap. Set in stone pavement of c. 2012.

Handyside postboxes are found throughout Ireland and Britain. Andrew Handyside was a Glaswegian who took over the Britannia Foundry in Derby in 1848. The castings manufactured by the firm were renowned all over the world for their strength and quality. In 1853 they made their first postbox, securing a contract in 1879 to supply large numbers. They continued to manufacture all varieties of postbox into the early twentieth century. On the 14th March 1922 this was the first postbox painted green after independence.