Ludlow style wall box

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In the UK, a Ludlow wall box is a post box where mail is deposited to be collected by the Royal Mail. They are built into stone pillars or the walls of buildings and are never found free-standing. This is because they are made largely from wood. They were nearly all made by the now-defunct company of James Ludlow & Son of Birmingham, whose name they take. Similar designs exist as historical artefacts in certain Commonwealth countries. Ludlow style boxes have been in use since 1885 and were in continuous manufacture until 1965.

According to the Letter Box Study Group (LBSG), there are more than 450 locations in the UK and Republic of Ireland where Ludlow post boxes are in use, stored or preserved. As Royal Mail estimates that there are over 100,000 post boxes in the UK, the Ludlow style boxes represent a very small group of nonetheless important designs.^[1]