Pillar Post Box at Upper Penang Road

I found a pillar post box in Upper Penang Road. Just opposite the Garage, NO 2,Penang Road. It bear the royal cypher of GR(George Rex), with a tudor crown on top. GR is the Royal Cypher of King George V(1910-1936).

In 1653, the first post boxes are believed to have been installed in Paris, France. By 1829, post boxes were in use throughout France.

The Penfold pillar box

In 1859 the design was improved, hexagonal box topped with an acorn was introduced, and this became the first National Standard pillar box. It was designed by J.W. Penfold, an architect and surveyor. The ‘Penfold’ was made in three sizes and the design lasted for 13 years during which a number of small alterations and improvements were made.Green was adopted as the standard colour for the early Victorian post boxes. Between 1866 and 1879 the hexagonal Penfold post box became the standard design for pillar boxes and it was during this period that red was first adopted as the standard colour to improve visibility(instead of green). The first boxes to be painted red were in London in July 1874, although it would be nearly 10 years before all the boxes had been repainted.

The pillar post box in Upper Penang Road, is it a decorative item or real pillar post box?. It should be the real one as Upper Penang Road is opposite E&O Hotel and a prime area during the colonial Penang.