Scan or Photo Courtesy of Siegel Auction Galleries
Date
1780
Description
India, Calcutta, 1798, "G.P.O./APR./BSPS" Oval Handstamp (Giles 11a). Bold strike with manuscript "23" date and "5" (annas) rate added on back of 1798 folded outer lettersheet to "Lt. Charles Adam, H.M.S. Victorious" in Madras, cover with some internal tape repairs around the removed seal (just barely affecting postal marking), still Very Fine strike, the recipient Lt. (later Admiral and Sir) Charles Adam (1780-1853) was briefly made Lieutenant on the H.M.S. Victorious in Feb. 1798 and became Commander in May 1798, he had a long and illustrious Naval career which extended over 55 years
Auction
The Magnolia Collection: India Postal History, Part 8 (Sale 9061, 21 October 2026), Lot 10052, (2026)
Same office
Other recorded marks at Calcutta
183 marks183 other pre-1854 postal markings of Calcutta are recorded in the census. Compare their figure numbers, dates and colours to identify the mark on your cover.
- Calcutta HG 1handstampBlack1775–1787
- Calcutta HG 1ahandstampBlack1775–1786
- Calcutta HG 2handstampBlack1775–1787
- Calcutta HG 3handstampBlack1776–1789
- Calcutta HG 4handstampBlack1787
- Calcutta HG 5handstampBlack1788
+177 more at this office.View all Calcutta marks and postal history →
About this Calcutta pre stamp cover
COV-5266 is a Calcutta pre stamp cover of 1780 bearing the Calcutta HG 11a handstamp, struck in black, recorded in the census of Calcutta postal history — the office known today as Kolkata, Bengal Presidency. What is a pre stamp cover?
India, Calcutta, 1798, "G.P.O./APR./BSPS" Oval Handstamp (Giles 11a). Bold strike with manuscript "23" date and "5" (annas) rate added on back of 1798 folded outer lettersheet to "Lt. Charles Adam, H.M.S. Victorious" in Madras, cover with some internal tape repairs around the removed seal (just barely affecting postal marking), still Very Fine strike, the recipient Lt. (later Admiral and Sir) Charles Adam (1780-1853) was briefly made Lieutenant on the H.M.S. Victorious in Feb. 1798 and became Commander in May 1798, he had a long and illustrious Naval career which extended over 55 years
Its recorded auction history runs through Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries The Magnolia Collection: India Postal History, Part 8 (Sale 9061, 21 October 2026) lot 10052 (2026).
2 images of COV-5266 are recorded; the Calcutta HG 11a mark itself is recorded in use 1791–1822.
Questions about COV-5266
- What is COV-5266?
- COV-5266 is a recorded pre stamp cover of Calcutta, Bengal Presidency of 1780, bearing the Calcutta HG 11a handstamp in black. India, Calcutta, 1798, "G.P.O./APR./BSPS" Oval Handstamp (Giles 11a). Bold strike with manuscript "23" date and "5" (annas) rate added on back of 1798 folded outer lettersheet to "Lt. Charles Adam, H.M.S. Victorious" in Madras, cover with some internal tape repairs around the removed seal (just barely affecting postal marking), still Very Fine strike, the recipient Lt. (later Admiral and Sir) Charles Adam (1780-1853) was briefly made Lieutenant on the H.M.S. Victorious in Feb. 1798 and became Commander in May 1798, he had a long and illustrious Naval career which extended over 55 years
- How scarce is the Calcutta HG 11a mark on this cover?
- The census grades Calcutta HG 11a as very common, counted from surviving recorded covers rather than estimated. The mark is recorded in use 1791–1822.
- What is the provenance of COV-5266?
- Its recorded auction history runs through Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries The Magnolia Collection: India Postal History, Part 8 (Sale 9061, 21 October 2026) lot 10052 (2026).
- When was COV-5266 posted?
- COV-5266 is dated 1780, within the recorded period of use of Calcutta HG 11a (1791–1822).
About this record
This 1780 pre stamp cover of British India bears the Calcutta HG 11a handstamp of the Bengal Presidency, a mark graded “Very common” in this census — one of 3 surviving covers with this mark recorded. It has appeared at auction with Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries, The Magnolia Collection: India Postal History, Part 8 (Sale 9061, 21 October 2026), lot 10052, (2026).