A MILITARY museum was astonished to be told its logo was too ‘offensive’ or ‘embarrassing’ to go on letters because it depicts a British Soldier holding a weapon.

The Royal Signals Museum at Blandford had been told it couldn’t use its logo on its franking machine.

But the Royal Mail has now reversed that decision after they were contacted by the Echo.

The image is a silhouette taken from a photograph showing an armed Royal Signals soldier in Iraq protecting a communications satellite, and has been used by the museum for a number of years.

But its request to use it on its franked mail stamps was refused as, according to the museum, it was judged to be either ‘offensive’ to Royal Mail employees or ‘embarrassing’ for them to deliver. Royal Mail has now apologised for the “mix up”.

Brigadier Cedric Burton, chairman of the Royal Signals Museum, described the original judgement as “perverse”. He added: “At this time when the sacrifice of British Soldiers is highlighted daily in the press, it seems outrageous for the Royal Mail, another public body, to imply that the museum’s logo is somehow offensive to the people of this country.”

A Royal Mail spokesman: “We have spoken to the Royal Signals Museum to make clear that we are very willing to approve the museum’s logo on its franked mail, and we are of course apologising for any mix-up as Royal Mail is very proud to support in a wide variety of ways the UK’s Armed Services and the organisations that support them.”

l The Royal Mail Scheme for Franking Letters and Parcels 2008 states that a franking mark must not contain anything which “in Royal Mail’s judgement might offend Royal Mail or post office employees, make it embarrassing or difficult for Royal Mail to convey the letter in the post, which might give rise to complaints from the public, or cause Royal Mail operational or technical difficulties.”