Buckingham Palace Unveils King Charles' New Royal Cypher

When King Charles III became Britain's new monarch, it signaled a significant change for the country. Not only because Queen Elizabeth II had been such a constant during her 70-year reign, but also because many things in the U.K. bear her image, name, and cypher.

Take banknotes, for instance. While the Bank of England announced that it will reveal notes that feature the new king's portrait at the end of this year, those that still have the queen's picture on them will remain in circulation and will only be removed "once they become worn or damaged."

As for things like postboxes, which currently bear the queen's cypher, E II R, these will likely change following a recent announcement by Buckingham Palace. As the royal family's mourning period has come to an end, the Palace has unveiled Charles' new royal cypher, which will be used on "all future royal and state documents," in addition to postboxes, letters, coins, and uniforms for the military and police services (via the i).

Designed by the College of Arms (via the royal family's official site), King Charles III's new royal cypher consists of the initials C for his first name, Charles, and R for rex, the Latin word for king. The C encompasses the R, with the Roman numeral for three positioned in the middle of the R. A representation of the crown sits above the monogram. There is also a Scottish version of the cypher featuring the Scottish crown, which was approved by Lord Lyon King of Arms, the Public Register of All Armorial Bearings in Scotland (via The Court of the Lord Lyon).

Personally chosen by Charles, the new royal cypher will appear "on government buildings, state documents and on some post boxes," Buckingham Palace explained, but the decision to replace Queen Elizabeth II's cypher "will be at the discretion of individual organizations, and the process will be gradual." It was used for the first time on September 27, stamped on letters from the royal households (via BBC News).

As is the case with the banknotes, existing items that bear the queen's royal cypher will still be in circulation and will only be replaced if worn to the point of unrecognition or damaged. This includes postboxes, as some dotted around the U.K. still bear the cyphers of Queen Victoria, Edward Vii, George V and VI, and even Edward VIII. Each cypher will remain" until boxes need to be replaced," according to BBC News.