These stamps were issued to be used in the special Post Office (actually a
tent) established in Ross Dependency by Sir Edmund Hillary as part of the
Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition. The stamps were intended to help
support New Zealand's claim of sovereignty over the
Dependency.
The stamps continued in use and were decimalised in the
1967 Ross Dependency
Decimal Pictorials issue with the same designs.

The 8 penny stamp is
available in two varieties with differing shades of blue - in this
illustration Cerulean blue (101c2) is on the left and Ultramarine blue
(101c1) is on the right.