The Indian Post Office was established in 1837. However, Asia's first adhesive stamp, the Scinde Dawk was introduced on 01 July 1852 by Sir Bartle Frere, the East India Company's administrator of Sind. They were used till October 1854 and then suppressed. The Imperial Posts coexisted in various Indian states. The India postal system developed into an extensive network of India, Burma and the Straits Settlement.
The first stamps valid for postage throughout India were placed on sale in October 1854 with four values, half anna, one anna, two annas and four annas stamps. The four annas value was one of the world's first bicoloured stamps.
A new design for stamps, with Queen Victoria-inscribed 'EAST INDIA POSTAGE', was printed in England by De La Rue (who produced the subsequent issues of British India till 1925). The first of these was available in 1855.
One of my entries (out of three), 'The Journey of Indian Stamps', was sent for Stanley Gibbons' Blue Competition (in the Master category) in May 2020. The theme of the competition was 'to show in a single sheet, how the item opens a window into a significant historical moment'.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Any inputs or feedback is welcome!