386th Auction

1854, 1st printing, 4 a. blue and red, horizontal pair, nice fresh colour and full to large  margins, used with diamond of bars and faint adjacent Bombay c.d.s. to reverse of small envelope with frontside boxed "INDIA PAID", to Cairo, Egypt. Very fine. Pairs of the 1st printing on entire are extremely rare, in combination with the exotic destination a great rarity. Signed Enzo Diena with certificate (1983)

3rd printing, 4 a. blue and red, Head Die III, Frame Die I, horizontal pair, nice fresh colour and ample to good margins, tied by diamond of dots and partly red boxed "INDIA" and red French transit mark to part paid lettersheet with part of contents, to Bordeaux, taxed upon arrival with "20" decimes for the postage Alexandria – France. Very fine. Entires with pairs of the 3rd printing are great rarities. Certificate Heddergott BPP (1993)

3rd printing, head die II and frame die I, 4 a. blue and red, touched at top, otherwise ample to good margins, large at right with part of wavy line, showing part of central watermark, cancelled by diamond of dots. Fine and scarce.

Head Die III and frame Die II, 4 a. blue and red, nice fresh colour and large even margins, neatly cancelled by central diamond of dots. Extremely fine. Several signatures, certificate Heddergott BPP (1992)

 

Head Die III and frame Die II, 4 a. blue and red in horizontal pair, nice fresh colour and good to large  even margins, lightly cancelled by diamond of dots. Very fine and scarce. Certificate Heddergott BPP (1992)

 

4th printing, 4 a. blue and red in horizontal pair, nice fresh colour and full to large  margins, tied by diamond of dots to letter sheet endorsed "via Trieste", to Genova, Italy, with frontside transit mark "D.A.a.L" and tax mark "10" (decimes) for the postage from Alexandria to Italy. Very fine and fresh. A very attractive and rare entire. Certificate Heddergott BPP (1993)
 

5th printing, head die III and frame die II, 4 a. blue and red, ample to good margins, showing part of neighbours stamp at right, cancelled by dotted "C 111" PONDICHERRY. Fine.

2 a. green, block of four from the upper right sheet corner with marginal inscription "STAMPS" and frame lines, nice fresh colour and good to large margins, unused. Very faint crease between the horizontal pairs and tiny stain at central base, still very fine and fresh. A rare and most attractive block.

2 a. green, horizontal strip of 5, showing large part of the central watermark design, nice colour and good to large margins, each stamp with clear diamond of dots. A very fine and rare strip. Signed Heddergott BPP with certificate (1992)

2 a. green, horizontal strip of 4, nice deep colour and good to large margins, neatly cancelled by octagonal "B1", very fine

2 a. green, horizontal pair, nice colour and good to large margins, showing full sheet margin at left, tied by numeral "85" to cover with reverse side boxed "BELGAUN Paid" of April 1858, to Annan, England, with arrival mark of May 26. An outstanding entire. Signed Giulio Bolaffi.

2 a. green, horizontal strip of 4, nice colour and good to large margins, tied by diamond of dots to part paid lettersheet from Calcutta to Bordeaux with frontside red "INDIA PAID", text upon arrival for the distance from Alexandria to France. Some rust spots, mostly only affecting reverse and inside of the entire. A fine and rare entire.

1856/64, 1 a, brown and 4 a. black, several copies on 3 covers from the same correspondance, from Calcutta via Southhampton resp. Marseille to Ipswich, all with different rates.

1868, Die II, 8 a. rose, horizontal strip of 4 and ½ a. blue, tied by Tellichery c.d.s. and blue “VIA BOMBAY & BRINDISI”, to envelope to Paris.

1902/11, Edward 3 p. – 25 r., complete including some shades, unused with original gum, some mnh

Edward 25 r. brown orange and blue, fresh colour, unused with o.g., very fine

1948, Gandhi 1½ r. , 8 copies, tied to reverse of commercial air mail cover from Calcutta to London       

1992, Bird of Prey 100r. instead of 200r. and wrong nomenclature "Shahin Kohila" instead of "Macchhlimar", mint never hinged, very fine and rare

“FIRST AERIAL POST U.P. EXHIBITION ALLAHABAD 1911”, good strike in magenta on Edward ½ a. green on local envelope with despatch and arrival mark on reverse, the stamp small imperfections, the envelope few faults, yet and attractive and scarce entire, certificate RPSL (2023)

“FIRST AERIAL POST U.P. EXHIBITION ALLAHABAD 1911”, good strike in magenta on Edward ½ a. green on envelope to Bombay with “ALLAHABAD 18 FE 11” despatch and Bombay arrival on reverse, the latter one enhanced, small tear in the backflap closed with scotch tape, minor toning, otherwise fine and scarce, certificate RPSL (2023)

"FORWARDED BY / GILLANDERS / ARBUTHNOT & Co. / CALCUTTA" , blue handstamp on lettersheet to France with blue "CALCUTTA INDIA UNPAID SE 3 72" on reverse; adjacent blue accountancy mark "GB 1F.66c."

1940, Official envelope "INDIAN POSTS AND TELEGRAPHS DEPARTMENT", sent as registered airmail cover from "BAHRAIN 26 FEB. 40" (on reverse) and register label "BAHRAIN" to England; the envelope with small imperfections. A very rare item, one of 2 registered post department covers recorded

1947, British India postcard HALF ANNA on 9 p. green, overprinted "BAHRAIN" with additional franking 1942/45, 3 p. in horizontal pair, making the correct 1 a. rate, tied by cds. "BAHRAIN 5 OCT. 47", sent to Veraval, India with arrival mark on front partly tying the addtional franking. A very rare item of Bahrain postal history; this is the only recorded example of the Indian provisional postcard overprinted "BAHRAIN"

3 p. (6) and ½ a. (4) tied to reverse of small envelope endorsed "OVERLAND MAIL" to Germany, adjacent double circle "BY AIR" cancelled by pen strokes

1933, George V 3 p., ½ a. (2), 9 p., 1 a. and 2 a. used on cover from "BAHRAIN 6 MAY 34" to England, endorsed in red ink "By overland mail "Bagdad-Haifa"", Basrah transit mark on reverse, very fine