Penfold Letter Box (1872-1879)
This box is perhaps one of the most popular type of pillar box ever introduced. The only box named after its designer, John Penfold, it was first erected in 1866. Hexagonal in shape with the top decorated by acanthus leaves and balls, the Penfold continued to be manufactured for thirteen years but with fifteen modifications to the design. Surviving examples of this particular box (an example of the larger size of the second modification) are very rare. The most survivors are in London, including Hampstead, and Cheltenham, where there are eight still standing, all of which are listed. Other examples can be found in Buxton (listed), Cambridge, Dorchester (listed), Ilkley, Rochester, Shrewsbury, and the village of Budby, Nottinghamshire.
