In our fortnightly Picture This column, Lynn Museum focuses on the history behind a famous Christmas song.

This postage stamp shows a partridge balanced on top of another, surrounded by eight pears – a playful nod to The Twelve Days of Christmas.

Designed in 1977 by artist David Gentlemen, the Post Office reproduced this stamp for its yearly Christmas greetings.

The song first appeared in print in 1780 in a children’s book called Mirth without Mischief.

It began as a fun twelfth night memory game – but its repeating lines and quirky gifts helped it become a much-loved part of festive tradition.

The partridge is the only gift that appears on every one of the twelve days, and there’s a reason for that, as for centuries, the bird has been seen as a sign of the holidays and even a hint of what the new year might bring.