The 1945 stamps feature the statue of Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens,
London. Peter Pan was chosen for its connotations of immortal youth.
Designed and issued just a few months after the end of the Second World
War, the stamps reflect a romantic image far removed from the reality of
heavily bombed London. The stamps were designed by James Berry, himself an
expatriate Londoner, who sent regular food parcels from New Zealand to
friends and family throughout the war.
Kensington Gardens were laid
out around 1728-1738 as the private gardens of Kensington Palace. Long
after they had been opened to the public, the King asked his Prime
Minister the possible cost of enclosing them again - the answer was
"a Crown". Kensington Gardens is now most famous as the setting
of J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan books and stage play. In 1912 Barrie paid
Sir George Frampton, a renowned sculptor and one of the original eight
members of the British School of Sculpture to create the bronze
statue.
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