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A History of Postage In India
Rajasee Ray Alagu Chockalingam Pallak Goswamy History of Graphic Design VCD 302
March 2011
Facilitator: Deepta Sateesh
Preface The postal history of India is extremely vast and complex. From primitive systems of communication in ancient time, to the largest postal service in the world today, the development of postage follows an interesting path through history. We have attempted to trace the history of post in India – including how the mail looked, how it was transported and who used it – through this essay. The essay first outlines a concise timeline, summarizing the events that we believe were most important to the history of postage in india. It then continues to follow communication and postage through the ages, starting with ancient India, continuing with Medieva India and then Modern India, till Independence. We have ended with a chronological list of examples of stamps from each decade after independence.
Contents 1. Summarized Timeline of Postage in India
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2. Ancient India – and evidences of complex communication systems.
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2.1 postage in Indian mythology and folklore.
2.2 some examples of elaborate postage systems, eg., Mauryan.
2.3 overland and maritime communication and routes.
3. Medieval India – Pre-Mughal and Mughal postage systems.
*light mail carried by relay of runners.
*political communication between kingdoms.
4. European colonization, and the East India Company.
4.1 Bishop Marks
4.2 Establishing the Indian post office
4.3 Overland route and the Suez canal.
5. The first stamps – The Scinde Dawk and the 1854 stamps with Queen Victoria
5.1 The East India Company postage and Crown Colony stamps
5.2 a reformed mail system - for the benefit of the people and not for the
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purpose of swelling the revenue.
6. India Letter - Packet mail service and ship letters to and from
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7. Stamps and Seals printed and used in the independent Indian States (princely states).
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7.1 convention states
7.2 feaudatory states
7.2.1 Kashmir, a study of feaudatory states
8. India Security Press and different methods for printing.
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9. Gradual introduction of telegraphy – and the telegram
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10. Postcards and photography. 21 11. Independent India and the first stamps.
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12 The Indian Postal Service and a short chronological look at different stamps.
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List of Illustrations and Sources: 1.Timeline: i.Indus Valley Stamp Seals: exoticindiaart.com ii.Homing pigeons: pcbyfast.com iii.Chandragupta Maurya stamps: biographicon.com iv.Allaudin Khilji’s empire: indohistory.com v.Grand Trunk Road: livius.org vi.Calcutta GPO: philatelicdatabase.com vii.Copper marks: webspace.webring.com viii.Scinde Dawk: wikistamps.com ix.Bicolour 4 anna First Issue: stampmagazine.co.uk x.First stamps from India Security Press: en.wikipedia.org xi.First stamp of Independent India: ask.com 2.Ancient India: i.Rock Carving: kamat.com ii.Homing pigeon: navfltsm.addr.com iii.Hanuman and Sita: divineindia.blog.co.in iv.Dak runner: christies.com v.Extent of Mauryan Empire: http://indianhistory-ace.blogspot.com/2010/06/mauryas.html vi.Silk Routes: onsilkway.wordpress.com vii.Postal Influences: worldaffairsboard.com 3.Medieval India: i.Khilji Empire: indohistory.com ii.Sher Shah Suri: uk.ask.com iii.Grand Trunk Road Sign Board: pakistaniat.com iv.Miniature paintings of mounted carriers: pictopia.com
4.European Colonization and East India Company: i.Mumbai GPO: bbc.co.uk ii.Fort ST. George: todaysquiz.in iii.Fort WIlliam: indianetzone.com iv.Bishop Mark: http://www.rpsl.org.uk v.1975 stamp: travelindia-guide.com vi.Dawk wallahs: oldphotosbombay.blogspot.com vii.Mail route between England and India: rpsl.org.uk 5.Scinde Dawk: i.The Scinde Dawk in different colours: wikistamps.com ii.9 and a half arches essay: myphilately.com iii.East India Postage Stamp: british-stamps.com iv.India Postage Stamp: sorenm.com v.4 annas value: myphilately.com vi.half anna and one anna stamps: myphilately.com 6.India Letter: i.Post Paid: rpsl.org.uk ii.Inverness to India: rpsl.org.uk iii.England to India: rpsl.org.uk iv.India Letter handstamp: rpsl.org.uk 7.Princely States: i.stamp of Gwalior: af.ebid.net ii.stamps of Nabha: af.ebid.net iii.stamp of Puttiala: af.ebid.net iv.stamo of Jind: af.ebid.net v.1896 Gwalior stamp: af.ebid.net vi.Uglies from Soruth: stampboards.com
vii.Octagonal Seal: http://rpsl.org.uk/kashmir/ viii.Dak Zaruri: http://rpsl.org.uk/kashmir/ ix.Yellow Jammu Issue: http://rpsl.org.uk/kashmir/ x.Red Jammu Issue: http://rpsl.org.uk/kashmir/ xi.Jammu and Kashmir Seals: http://rpsl.org.uk/kashmir/ 8.Gradual Introduction of Telegraphy: i.Early Telegraph network: http://www.asia-europe.uni-heidelberg.de/en/research/b-publicspheres/b9/research-field.html ii.William O’Shaughnessy: reefermadnessmuseum.org iii.Souvenir Sheet for Indian Telegraph Centenary: philamirror.info iv.Telegram to Calcutta: tibetanpost.com v.Telegram with Advertising: musclecars.net 9.Postcards and Photography: i.All postcards sourced from: http://www.harappa.com/ ii.East India Postcards: myphilately.com 10.India Security Press and Different Methods for Printing: i.Lithographed stamps: stampcircuit.com ii.1952 saints and poets stamps: indiastamp.blogspot.com 11.Independent India and the First Stamps: i.1947 stamps: kamat.com ii.1948 stamp: indianstampghar.com iii.1949 stamp: stampdesigns.tumblr.com iv.1950 stamps: uk.ebid.net v.1962 Children’s Day stamp: collectindianstamps.com
vi.The Indian Postal Service and a short chronological look at different stamps: vii.First stamps of India: kamat.com viii.Ultramarine stamps to commemorate first Flight: kamat.com ix.First Anniversary of Independence: indianstampghar.com x.Second Anniversary of Independence: stampdesigns.tumblr.com xi.Commemoration of the Republic of India: uk.ebid.net xii.1960 stamps: http://www.travelindia-guide.com/indian-stamps/collection/ xiii.1962 stamp: http://www.travelindia-guide.com/indian-stamps/collection/ xiv.1970 stamps: http://www.travelindia-guide.com/indian-stamps/collection/ xv.1980 stamps: http://www.travelindia-guide.com/indian-stamps/collection/ xvi.1990 stamps: http://www.travelindia-guide.com/indian-stamps/collection/ xvii.2000 stamps: http://www.travelindia-guide.com/indian-stamps/collection/ 2010 stamps: http://www.travelindia-guide.com/indian-stamps/collection/
1296 A.D.
3300 - 1900 B.C 320 - 298 B.C. iii.Chandragupta Maurya establishes the first official postage system consisting of foot messengers and homing pigeons[3].
1500 - 500 B.C.
1688 A.D.
ii.Evidences of the use of homing pigeons in Vedic India[2].
i.Indus Valley stamp seals used to stamp clay to seal packages[1]of trade goods in Bronze Age Mediterranean societies.
iv.Allaudin Khilji of the Delhi Sultanate sets up a septarate department with its own officials to maintain the postal system. The first Dak Chawkis[4] are recorded.
1774 A.D.
1540 -1545 A.D.
1852 A.D. vii.Warren Hasting makes the postal service available to the general public[7].
vi.The East India Company sets up post offices in Bombay, Calcutta and
1926 A.D.
v.Sher Shah Suri builds the Grand Trunk Road and organizes the postage system[5].
1854 A.D. viii.The Scinde Dawk - the first paper stamps to be introduced in Asia. [8]
21st November 1947
ix.First all-India stamp issues with Queen Victoria’s head[9].
x.India Security Press established at Nasik where all the printing and overprinting of stamps is done. The first stamps commemorated the inauguration of Delhi as the capital.
1. Summarized timeline of Indian Postage information sources on the last page.
xi.The first stamps of independent India are printed[10].
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2. Ancient India – and evidences of complex communication systems. The Indian subcontinent housed one of the oldest civilizations in the world. Even the end of the Indus Valley Civilization marked the rise of Dravidian, Vedic, Arabic and Persian cultures. Maritime and overland trade routes were well-established, writing and communication flourished in India, and messages were sent, left and carried through various mediums - including rock carvings, music and song, pictograms and literature.
i.A rock carving telling a story.
2.1 Postage in Indian Mythology and Folklore Ancient Vedic texts have many evidences of messages and couriers. The Rig Veda, composed in north-western India in the Early Vedic Period, between 1700-1100BC, mentions Sarama, the mother of all dogs, who carried messages for the gods. The Artharvaveda talks about couriers called the Palagala. In the Mahabharata, Hanuman acts as a messenger for both Ram and Sita on various occasions. In the Mahabharata, the Royal Priest was used to dispatch messages. Centuries later, the Brahmini Dak (or post), consisting of well-born Brahmins, reflected the importance that was accorded to trusted messengers. In Chanakya’s Arthashastra and a lot of subsequent Indian folklore, the royal messengers are referred to as ‘doots’, who doubled as spies. The practice of using homing pigeons[2] to relay messages has survived from ancient times - the Orissa State Police still uses such carriers. Mail runners or dak runners were used by kings to dispatch messages – and also merchants for business. The common man in ancient India does not seen to have required such services, however, and mainly relied on traveling relatives or acquaintances.
Sangeeta Deogawanka, ‘A Postal History of India
ii.A homing pigeon in flight.
iii.Hanuman as Rama’s messenger to Sita.in the Ramayana. iv.A hircurrah (Dak runner) delivering a letter to Hindu shroffs (bankers)from Shikarpur, Sind
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2.2 The Mauryan Postage System During the reign of Chandragupta Maurya, 322-298 BC, an elaborate postal system was established using foot messengers[3]. The vast kingdom used regular messengers, ‘doots’ and homing pigeons to communicate between the capital and the outlining provinces. Ashoka also established a similar system during his reign - and during this time camels were also used in some parts of India, like Jaipur.
2.3 Overland and Maritime Communication Routes Trade was very important in ancient India - and there were well established trade routes, including the first silk routes developed centuries before the first European travelers came to India. The Indus Valley civilization itself placed huge importance on maritime trade, and the seals that were used have become the most famous artifacts to be associated with the civilization. Trade was carried on with different kingdoms within the subcontinent, as well as Afghanistan, Persia, Mesopotamia, and later even Egypt. Overland routes were rough paths used by travelers between lands, although in later ages, the larger kingdoms, like the Mauryan kingdom, established good roads for communication between different parts of India. Sangeeta Deogawanka writes, “A historical review of the early postal systems in India reveal an element of anachronism. Well-laid out routes and messenger systems emerged from the trade movements and the dissemination of Buddhism, in the Northern and NorthWestern frontiers. An efficient communication system with the principal country was spurred by subsequent foreign invasions from the west. In retrograde, we find that the early and subsequent development of the mail systems in India were influenced by the Persians, Greeks, Arabs and later, the Mongols.”
v.Mauryan empire
vi. trade routes
vii.Buddhists,Persians,Greeks,Arabs and Mongols influenced the development of postage systems in india.
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3. Pre-Mughal Postage Systems The rulers of the Delhi Sultanate (1206-1526) had very well-established postal systems for communication. There were closely stationed post houses with special horse couriers and foot runners. Under Allaudin Khilji, a separate postal department called ‘Mahakamai-Barid’ was established under the supervision of two postal officers. Most of the information that traveled through this system was latest military news - and some of the prices of commodities. This is why a high level of integrity was demanded of these officials, and they were consequently well-paid. The first dak chawkis - or post houses - were recorded during this period[11].
3. Mughal Period The genesis of the Imperial Post lay in the Central Postal Department of the Mughal period. The parallel post practices that existed in the neighboring kingdoms and European trade centers would subsequently fuse with the Mughal system and become the basis of the Imperial systems. Sher Shah Suri (1540-1545), of the Pashtun Suri dynasty, established a postal system that was a turning point in the history of Indian post.His system was the first official post that was used for non-state purposes, i.e. trade and business communications. He built a 3000 mile communication system, and is also credited with the establishment of the famous Grand Trunk Road, which has been used extensively down the centuries. Serais or rest houses were created, along with an increased number of dak chawkis
[11] Sangeeta Deogawanka , ‘Postal Systems in Pre-Mughal Period’
i. Khilji empire
ii.Sher Shah Suri built the Grand Trunk Road
iii.Grand Trunk Road sign board
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The Mughal systems used runners, mounted couriers as well as carriages drawn by fast stallions, for urgent deliveries. News gathering was a very important feature of these postal systems, and the vast kindgoms of the Mughal rulers depended greatly on the post for news. Postal runners carried signed and sealed permits from the Darogah or the officer in charge of the dak chawki. Under the reign of Akbar, and subsequent emperors, the lowest rank of the postal officers was that of the dak harkara, the footmen who transported letters within a gilded box, carried on the head. The news system was somewhat separated from the postal system. Parcels containing documents, records, and sometimes personal requirements were part of the mail. Business men sometimes ran parallel private posts during this period[12].
[12] Sangeeta Deogawanka, Postal Systems in Mughal Period
iv.Miniature painting of mounted couriers from the mughal period
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4. European colonisation and the East India Company The British East India Company brought into existence a British administrative system over most of India, with a need to establish and maintain both official and commercial mail systems. In keeping with this, they opened a post office in Bombay(1688) followed by similar ones in Calcutta and Madras. Lord Clive further expanded the services in 1766, and in 1774, Warren Hastings made the services available to the general public[13]. The common man could send a letter a distance of 100 miles for a 2 annas. Copper Tokens were minted for this and could be used for posting a letter. The letter was hand stamped “post paid” if it was paid for, else it was stamped “post unpaid” or “bearing”[14].
i.Mumbai GPO - established by the East India Company.
ii & iii.Fort St.George and Fort William the sites of the post offices established by the East India Company in Madras and Calcutta respectively.
4.1 Bishop Marks – postage before stamps The fee charged was two annas per 100 miles. The postmarks applied on these letters are very rare and are named ‘Indian Bishop Marks’ after Colonel Henry Bishop, the Postmaster General of the United Kingdom who introduced this practice in Britain[15]. Hand struck Bishop Marks were applied on letters at Calcutta. These are known as the Indian Bishop Marks and they differ from the foreign Bishop Marks in that the months are printed in three letters, such as JAN, FEB, and so, whereas the foreign ones have the months in two[16].
iv.example of a Bishop mark
[13] Pg 29, Datta et al. (2009). Rare stamps of the World.
[14] Project Report on Study of Indian Postal Services, Mrigendra Kumar Srivastava and Mohanish Kumar Singh
[15] Pg 29, Datta et al. (2009). Rare stamps of the World.
[16] http://pphsphilately.00go.com/custom3.html
v.1975 Stamp commemorating Bishop marks
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4.2 Establishing the Indian post office After 1793, when Cornwallis introduced the Regulation of the Permanent Settlement, the financial responsibility for maintaining the official posts rested with the zamindars. Alongside these, private dawkmail systems sprang up for the commercial conveyance of messages using hired runners. The runners were paid according to the distance they travelled and the weight of their letters. The Post Office Act XVII of 1837 provided that the Governor-General of India in Council had the exclusive right of conveying letters by post for hire within the territories of the East India Company. On this basis the Indian Post Office was established on October 1, 1837[17].
4.3 Overland route and the suez canal
The urgent European mails were carried overland via Egypt at the isthmus of Suez. This route, pioneered by Thomas Waghorn,http://www.enotes.com/topic/Postage_stamps_ and_postal_history_of_India - cite_note-5 linked the Red Sea with the Mediterranean, and thence by steamer via Marseilles, Brindisi or Trieste to European destinations. The Suez Canal did not open until much later (17 November 1869). The time in transit for letters using the Overland Mail route was dramatically reduced. Waghorn’s route reduced the journey from 16,000 miles via the Cape of Good Hope to 6,000 miles; and reduced the time in transit from three months to between 35 and 45 days[18].
vi.Dawk wallahs carrying mail.
The Indian postal system developed into an extensive, dependable and robust network providing connectivity to almost all parts of India, Burma, the Straits Settlements and other areas controlled by the British East India Company (EIC). Based on the model postal system introduced in England by the reformer, Rowland Hill[19], efficient postal services were provided at a low cost and enabled the smooth commercial, military and administrative functioning of the EIC and its successor, the British Raj.
vii.Mail route between england and India, via the suez canal and via the cape of good hope [17] Robson Lowe, Encyclopedia of British Empire Postage Stamps, v. III London, Robson Lowe, Ltd. (1951) p. 134 [18] John K. Sidebottom, The Overland Mail: A Postal Historical Study of the Mail Route to India, London: G. Allen and Unwin (1948)
[19] Rowland Hill (1795-1879): Post Office Reform, its Importance and Practicability
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5. The Scinde Dawks
i.The scinde dawk as a seal and in red , green and blue
The first Indian stamps, known as the Scinde District Dawks were issued by the Commissioner of Sind, Sir Bartle Frere. He authorized the use of half-anna stamps in his district. These stamps were first introduced as red on vermillion wafers but they were soon discarded. A new issue came out in July 1852, embossed in white on white, which was later changed to a bluish wave, unevenly spaced on sheets of three inches by six inches. Sir Bartle Frere was not satisfied with the local printing, so he sent the design to his friends in England, and asked them to print the stamps in blue. Sir Bartle Frere withdrew them on the release of the All India Postage stamps[20].
5.1 The East India Company postage and Crown Colony stamps The Court of Directors of the East India Company were keen that stamps should be printed in India. The East India Company already had attempted a 1/2 anna vermilion stamp in 1854, known as the “9½ arches essay”. This could not be produced in quantity because it required an expensive vermilion pigment not readily available from England, and the substituted Indian pigment destroyed the printing stones. After some trials and experiments, stamps in the denominations of one anna and four annas were released[21]. From 1855 to 1926, A new design for stamps, with Queen Victoria in an oval vignette inside a rectangular frame, was inscribed “EAST INDIA POSTAGE”. These stamps were recess printed by De La Rue in England (who produced all the subsequent issues of British India until 1925). The first of these became available in 1855. They continued in use well after the British government took over the administration of India in 1858, following the 1857 Rebellion against the East India Company’s rule. From 1865 the Indian stamps were printed on paper watermarked with an elephant’s head. In 1877, when Queen Victoria assumed the title of Empress of India, the inscription was changed to India Postage[23].
ii.Vermilion - 9 and a half arches essay
(above)iii.1855 to 1926, A new design fort stamps, with Queen Victoria in an oval vignette inside a rectangular frame, was inscribed “EAST INDIA POSTAGE”. (left) iv.When Queen Victoria assumed the title of Empress of India, the inscription was changed to India Postage.
[20] H.D.S. Haverbeck, “The Sind District Dawk,” The Collectors Club Philatelist v. 44 no. 2 (March, 1965) pp. 79–85. [23] http://wikipedia.org, POstage Stamps and Postal History of India, Reforms of 1854 and First Issues
[22] http://pphsphilately.00go.com/custom3.html
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5.2 1854 Reforms v.The 4 annas value (illustrated) was one of the world’s first bicolored stamps, preceded only by the Basel Dove, a beautiful local issue
In the opinion of Geoffrey Clarke, the reformed system was to be maintained “for the benefit of the people of India and not for the purpose of swelling the revenue.”[24] The Commissioners voted to abolish the earlier practice of conveying official letters free of postage (“franking”). The new system was recommended by the Governor-General, Lord Dalhousie and adopted by the East India Company’s Court of Directors. It introduced “low and uniform” rates for sending mail efficiently throughout the country within the jurisdiction of the East India Company. The first stamps - issued following a Commission of Inquiry which had carefully studied the postal systems of Europe and America - valid for postage throughout India were placed on sale in October, 1854 with four values: 1/2 anna, 1 anna, 2 annas, and 4 annas[25]. Featuring a youthful profile of Queen Victoria aet. 15 years, all four values were designed and printed in Calcutta. All were lithographed except for the 2 annas green, which was produced by typography from copper clichés or from electrotyped plates. These were issued without perforations or gum.
[24] Geoffrey Clarke, The Post Office of India and its Story, (1920)
vi.the half anna and one anna stamps issued.
[25] “India (East India Company)”, First Issues Collectors Club
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6. India Letter - packet mail service and ship letters to and from India. The packet service (the heavier letters were called packets) to india was set up using private ships of the East India Company that provided monthly sailings to Madras and Calcutta, with a service to Bombay when possible. An Act of Parliament, in 1819, provided for special sea-postage rates for “India Letters” which were cheaper than the ordinary Ship Letter rate. This necessitated special “INDIA LETTER” handstamps to be struck on each letter at the port of arrival, so that letters could be distinguished from other ship letters and the correct sea and inland rates charged. A great variety of handstamps are known, both framed and unframed and usually in two lines, with the port of entry in the upper or lower line. Stamps are commonly struck in black or red, but are occasionally found in blue and green.
ii.Ship Letter - Inverness to India
i.The ‘POST PAID’ in a rounded rectangle was applied in Madras with the double letter packet rate of 7s marked at the side. The INDIA/PACKET LETTER/PAID TO/LONDON mark was probably applied in London. Only four examples are known of which one was used on a letter from Calcutta[26].
iv.Examples of ship letters bearing the India letter handstamp. iii.Ship Letter - England to India
[26] http://catalogue.postalheritage.org.uk/dserve/bpma_docs/indialetters.html
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7. Stamps and Seals used in the independent Indian States (Princely states). The princely states of India were kingdoms with their own politics and boundaries, which were subjugated by war or diplomacy by the British. In terms of postage there were two kinds of states. Convention states had an agreement with British India regarding the post, whereas Feudatory states ran their own posts and printed their own stamps, which could be used only within their borders.
7.1 Convention States:
Postal union by a state was considered a sign of greater fealty to the British Empire. The states which had previously been feudatory had to render their own stamps and post invalid before joining the postal convention. The stamps of convention states were the same stamps used in British India, with the name of the state overprinted in black ink (except the earliest ones, e.g. Puttialla in red[27] ) on them. The monetary value of the stamp usually remained the same[28]. The postage stamps were produced by the British Raj following due bureaucratic process. Most of the stamps are monarch heads as pictorial commemoratives had not been brought into use till the 1920s. Proofs were produced by the Govt Central Press, Calcutta, on orders of the Director of the General Post Office. The initial proofs were sent to the princely state concerned for approval. Sometimes, as in the case of Jindh, the state desired that a representation of the coat of the arms also be included; however the proposals fell through on grounds of economy as they represented considerable additional expense to the state. Following the approval, printing of issues was carried out. The typescript changed often and various type faces are found for each convention state. Though the stamps were produced under close supervision, the manual processes of printing introduced a variety of errors and misprints which are today of considerable value[29]. “The surcharging is done in Calcutta at the Government of India Central Printing Press, under conditions of supervision etc., which make underhand dealings impossible... “All work done by human beings is liable to a want of accuracy. This is specially the case when the human beings are Orientals not sufficiently educated to have lost the queer belief that want of accuracy is absolutely essential to avert the dreaded “Evil Eye.”
i.stamps of convention states, gwalior and nabha with the name of the state stamped over the stamps used in British India.
ii.Puttiala state stamped in red over the stamp.
iii.The Jind State stamp.
iv.An error in Devanagari script on an 1896 Victoria head of Gwalior state.
[27] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Postage_stamps_and_postal_history_of_the_postal_convention_states_of_India, Patiala [28] Indrajeet Chatterjee, http://stampsofindia.blogspot.com, ‘LIterature: Convention State Essays’ [29] Stewart Wilson, Vol I. (1897)
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Further, the chance of error which occurs in one setting of type is greatly increased when that type has to be set 240 times, as it has to be for every supply of surcharged star-watermarked stamps. And when we remember that these 240 settings have to be made not once, but often and at varying intervals of time, it is hardly wonderful that mistakes do occur. There are some mistakes which will occur, no matter what care is taken. Type will break while in use, and minute portions of a letter will now and then take up too much or too little ink....” —Sir Charles Stewart-Wilson, British Indian Adhesive Stamps surcharged for Native States, Vol I. v.“the uglies’-soruthSG goa 1864
7.2 Feudatory States
Many of the feudatory states of India had their own postage systems and printed their own stamps. The first issues of these stamps were printed locally, using primitive methods(mostly typography). These stamps are called “uglies” because of their very basic design and printing[30]. Many of the stamps were imperforate and without gum, as issued. Many varieties of type, paper, inks and dies are not listed in the standard catalogs. The stamps of each Feudatory State were valid only within that State, so letters sent outside that State needed additional British India postage[31].
7.2.1 Kashmir, A study of Feudatory Postage
Between 1861 and 1866, following the establishment of a regular postal service between Srinagar and Jammu, and before postage stamps were issued, the state used octagonal frank seals. The Dak Zaruri was an express stamp used as a seal for urgent letters, passed from runner to runner, by night and day. It was hand-stamped in red watercolor on native paper. 1866 onwards, circular stamps were used, first hand-printed from single dies, engraved in brass at the Printing Works of Jammu City. Except for some later prints in oil colors, these were water colored on Kashmiri native paper. Red (and related shades, notably orange) became the standard colour for Jammu from 1869 until the introduction of the oil colour printings in 1877. Since Jammu, unlike the Kashmir Valley, experiences the heavy monsoons of the Indian plains, the watercolours of the Jammu stamps showed a tendency [30 ]http://www.stampboards.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=8480&hilit=uglies
vi.example of an octagonal seal
vii.The Dak Zaruri one of the worlds rarest stamps, only 2 are known.
[31] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Postage_stamps_and_postal_history_of_India, Postal History of Indian States
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to drip in the wet climate. In an attempt to solve this problem, Jammu abandoned the watercolours in July 1877, in favour of more permanent pigments, the oil colours. The square Jammu postal seal, struck in red, was momentarily used as a handstruck postage stamp - and then as an adhesive stamp for a few years from 1873. Now and then, the postage system also experimented shortly with European paper. Many stamps were issued subsequently, in various shapes: circular and square and color: blue, red and black. Perforated issues were introduced in 1878. All black ink was used for stamps intended for official as opposed to public use[32].
viii.Issue for Jammu - ½a - Yellow (1878)- Oil Colours on European laid paper
x.Issue for Jammu - ½a. 1a. 4a. Red (July 1877-May 1878 - Oil Colours on Native paper [32] Wolfgang Hellrigl, Jammu and Kashmir, The Royal Philatelic Society, London
ix.Issue for Jammu ½a - 4a.- Sage Green (February 1878)Oil Colours on European laid paper
xi.The early postal seals of jammu and kashmir.
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8. India Security Press and different methods for printing From 1st January, 1926, all the printing and overprinting of Indian postage stamps were done at the India Security Press, a newly established press at Nasik that was set up for printing court fee, fiscal, postal, non-postal stamps, postal stationery items and currency notes in 1925. The first stamps were printed at the press in 1925. These were the definitive series of George V, printed using typography plates brought over from England. The new press had a new watermark - multiple stars[33].
Lithography
This method of printing was re-introduced in the India Security Press, although it was reserved for the most important commemorative issues, the first being the Air Mail series of 1929, and the next being the 1931 series commemorating the inauguration of Delhi as the new seat of governance[34].Lithography is done using an image drawn in wax or some other oily substance on smooth stone(lithographic limestone) or a metal plate, which is then used to transfer ink onto the printed sheet. This technique was invented in Bohemia in 1796.
i.lithographed stamps printed by the india security press.
Photogravure
The new technique of photogravure printing was installed in 1952. The October 1952 series of six values on the theme of Saints and Poets was the first to be so produced. However, these were not the first photogravure stamps of India, having been preceded by the first Gandhi series of 1948, which were printed by Courvoisier of Geneva using the photogravure technique. Since then, photogravure has been used to produce all Indian stamps; typography and lithography being reserved only for service labels. This technique uses light sensitive gelatin tissue previously exposed to a film positive and then used to coat a copper plate, which is subsequently etched, producing the detail that can be achieved with a photograph[35]. ii.1952 stamp series on saints and poets produced using the photogravure technique.
[33] & [34] Saksena, V. (1989), pp. 86–8.
[35] “Direct to Plate Photogravure: Catching Up With the Past.� Stone, Nick.
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9. Gradual introduction of telegraphy – and the telegram Since 1850. Indian communication changed in 1850, when William Brooke O’Shaughnessy was appointed by the Company to string up the country’s—and indeed Asia’s—first telegraph line between Calcutta and Diamond Harbour in the city’s suburbs. At a length of just 27 miles (43.5km), the line might seem like a humble beginning. But remarkably,the “official” Kolkata-Diamond Harbour line had been preceded, a decade earlier, by O’Shaughnessy’s own private and experimental line of 21 miles. Sitting in a corner of the country, thousands of miles away from Samuel Morse in the US and English telegraph pioneers William Cooke and Charles Wheatstone, the doctor had developed a telegraphy system of his own. O’Shaughnessy’s initial designs were unique and called for messages to be received by imparting a series of electrical shocks to the operator—thankfully, he would import and adopt more conventional methods in time. But it would take 10 years and the patronage of governor general Lord Dalhousie before his ideas were taken seriously. By 1856, the network had expanded to 46 receiving stations. The First War of Independence in 1857 failed because of this telegraph technology. Lord Dalhousie once said that the telegraph saved India. The technology of underwater telegraph cables hurried in the completion of telegraph lines from Britain to India in 1870. After the war in 1857, and even after the telephone system was launched in India in 1882, the telegraph remained the most popular system of communication, because it was cheap.
i.early telegraph network
ii.William Brooke O’Shaughnessy, The Father of Indian Telegraph.
iii.On the occasion of Indian Telegraph Centenary Celebrations, the Post & Telegraphs Department issued a Souvenir Sheet showing five obsolete telegraph stamps.
iv.Telegram to Calcutta
By 1939, India had 100,000 miles of telegraph lines carrying 17 million telegraphic messages a year. While the system was adopted early on by the colonial military, by the early twentieth century neither government officials nor nationalist politicians seemed able to function without a daily diet of telegrams. Therefore, in the early years after Independence, India had already developed into a powerhouse in terms of telegraph traffic. A telegram was visually very different from a letter. The handwritten form was essentially a form, with spaces left to write in - and the received telegram a sheet with printed letters. Some of the forms even had advertising along the borders.
http://www.sify.com/itihaas/fullstory.php?id=13375024
v.telegram with advertising on the borders
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10. Postcards and photography. The first postcards of British India were paintings of people and places, exhibiting Indian culture for Europeans “back at home.” Among the many postcard publishers that appeared when illustrated postcards first did around 1898 was the Austrian firm of Joseph Heim. They published a series of “Artists Postcards” by the painter Joseph Hoffmann in Vienna in April 1898. The advertisement [below] in Die Illustrierte Postkarte, a new magazine in its second issue, noted that the postcards were printed in the finest Aquarell. Three of the postcards are of Benares, two are of Jaipur, and one each of Gwalior, Bombay and Hyderabad.When photography gained popularity, postcards re-emerged with newer vigor. Many cities and towns were dominated by single photographic studio, like Mela-Ram from NWFP.Gobindram Oodeyram in Jaipur studio, 1880-1970, was another such studio. The postcards were strong in images of people from all sectors of society. Certain cards, like those of the Maharajah and his family, were lightly hand-colored.
ii.Various postcards depicting India.
i.The east india postcards were a cheap method of communication. “lightly hand-colored[]” [] http://www.harappa.com/
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11. Independent India and the First Stamps With independence, the postage system continued to function on a countrywide basis. But a new country needed new stamps, and ones that proclaimed the pride of a nation that had just emerged from a successful freedom struggle. -
i.The first stamp of Independent India shows the Indian flag and the slogan 'Jai Hind'. It was issued on 21st November, 1947 and valued at 3.5 annas.
ii.The second stamp in the same series depicts the national emblem, the Ashokan pillar.
iii.And the third stamp shows a Douglas C-4 aircraft, meant for foreign air
iv.This was followed by the photogravure of Gandhi, issued on the first anniversary of Independence.
v.One year later a definitive series depicting India's cultural heritage followed. vii.The inscription 'India Postage' that was used so far was replaced in 1962 with 'bharat(in hindi) INDIA'[38].
vi.On the 26th January, 1950, a commemoration of the inauguration of the Republic of India was issued[37].
[36] http://www.collectindianstamps.com/2011/03/first-stamps-of-independent-india.html [39] Saksena, V. (1989) pp. 86-8
India has printed stamps and postal stationery for Burma, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Portugal and Ethiopia[39]. [37] India Postage Stamps 1947-1988. Philately branch, Department of Posts, India. [38] Saksena, V. (1989), pp. 84
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21st November 1947 15th December 1947
15th August, 1948.
ix.First anniversary of Independance.
15th August, 1949
8th June, 1948 viii.First stamps of India.
Ultramarine stamp to commemorate first flight to the United Kingdom.
26th January 1950 x.second anniversary of Independance.
1962
xii. 1960 xi.Commemoration of the Republic of India
1990
xvi. 2000
1980
1970
xiii.India postage is replaced with just ‘Bharat India’
xiv.
xv. xvii.
12.The Indian Postal Service and a short chronological look at different stamps.
The most widely distributed system in the world, the Indian Postal Service operate 2010 from 155,000 post offices, as a result of the unification after independence, of many disparate postal systems.The stamps issued by the Indian Postal Service continue xviii. to feature historic personalities, with Gandhi being the most frequently used especially in the decades just after independence.Stamps are issued to commemorate culture, places, people and events[40].Today the Indian Postal Service serves the public from 155,000 post offices.India is believed to have the most widely distributed system in the world (China has 57,000, Russia 41,000 and the United States 38,000 offices). This proliferation of offices results from India’s long tradition of having many disparate postal systems[41], eventually unified in the Indian Union after Independence.With its far-flung reach and its presence in remote areas, the Indian postal service provides many services such as small savings banking and financial services. [40] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Postage_stamps_and_postal_history_of_India, The Indian Postal Service Today
[41] Rosalind Ezhil K, “Messaging over the years,”
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Conclusion From carved messages on stone, to our little 50p postcards dropped into mailboxes, postage has grown and changed in so many ways. But there are so many little things that have remained through the centuries of development, even through the coming of the technological age, and the use of telephones, faxes and emails - like the form of postboxes - or what goes into a postcard - or even recurring stamps, that make one feel that although systems and forms have evolved, the idea of post - the idea of human communication, has perhaps, remained as integral to our lives as it always was.
List of information sources for the timeline: A summarised timeline of Indian postage [1]K.K.Hirst, ‘Indus Seals and the Indus Civilization Script” [2] Sangeeta Deogawanka, ‘Advent of Postal Communications in Ancient India’ [3] Sangeeta Deogawanka, ‘Advent of Postal Communications in Ancient India’ [4] Sangeeta Deogawanka , ‘Postal Systems in Pre-Mughal Period, Under Allaudin Khilji [5] Sangeeta Deogawanka, ‘Postal Systems in Mughal India – A Wrap Up’ [6] ‘Postal History of India,’ http://pphsphilately.00go.com/custom3.html [7] Pg 29, Datta et al. (2009). Rare stamps of the World. [8] “Scinde, India”, First Issues Collectors Club [9] “India (East India Company)”, First Issues Collectors Club [10] http://indianpostagestamps.com/ Medieval India: