Scan or Photo Courtesy of Cavendish Philatelic Auctions Ltd
Date
1844
Description
FREE LETTER FROM KANDY TO INDIA; Mar. 1844 EL (separate contents; transcription included) with fine coloured embossed wafer seal from "Pavilion, Kandy" to The Hon. T.H. Maddock at Calcutta "via Hindostan", signed on the front by "C. Campbell" with no Ceylonese mark but bearing a fine red "CALCUTTA/SHIP LETTER/FREE" arrival c.d.s.; scarce thus. Cross Reference: INDIA, SEALS/WAFERS, FREES
Auction
Worldwide & G.B. Stamps & Postal History, Lot 565, (2020)
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-4887 is a Calcutta pre stamp cover of 1844 bearing the Calcutta SD14 handstamp, struck in red, recorded in the census of Calcutta postal history — the office known today as Kolkata, Bengal Presidency. What is a pre stamp cover?
FREE LETTER FROM KANDY TO INDIA; Mar. 1844 EL (separate contents; transcription included) with fine coloured embossed wafer seal from "Pavilion, Kandy" to The Hon. T.H. Maddock at Calcutta "via Hindostan", signed on the front by "C. Campbell" with no Ceylonese mark but bearing a fine red "CALCUTTA/SHIP LETTER/FREE" arrival c.d.s.; scarce thus. Cross Reference: INDIA, SEALS/WAFERS, FREES
Its recorded auction history runs through Cavendish Philatelic Auctions Ltd Worldwide & G.B. Stamps & Postal History lot 565 (2020).
1 image of COV-4887 is recorded; the Calcutta SD14 mark itself is recorded in use 1838–1855.
Questions about COV-4887
- What is COV-4887?
- COV-4887 is a recorded pre stamp cover of Calcutta, Bengal Presidency of 1844, bearing the Calcutta SD14 handstamp in red. FREE LETTER FROM KANDY TO INDIA; Mar. 1844 EL (separate contents; transcription included) with fine coloured embossed wafer seal from "Pavilion, Kandy" to The Hon. T.H. Maddock at Calcutta "via Hindostan", signed on the front by "C. Campbell" with no Ceylonese mark but bearing a fine red "CALCUTTA/SHIP LETTER/FREE" arrival c.d.s.; scarce thus. Cross Reference: INDIA, SEALS/WAFERS, FREES
- How scarce is the Calcutta SD14 mark on this cover?
- The census grades Calcutta SD14 as scarce, counted from surviving recorded covers rather than estimated. The mark is recorded in use 1838–1855.
- What is the provenance of COV-4887?
- Its recorded auction history runs through Cavendish Philatelic Auctions Ltd Worldwide & G.B. Stamps & Postal History lot 565 (2020).
- When was COV-4887 posted?
- COV-4887 is dated 1844, within the recorded period of use of Calcutta SD14 (1838–1855).
About this record
This 1844 pre stamp cover of British India bears the Calcutta SD14 handstamp of the Bengal Presidency, a mark graded “Scarce” in this census — one of 6 surviving covers with this mark recorded. It has appeared at auction with Cavendish Philatelic Auctions Ltd, Worldwide & G.B. Stamps & Postal History, lot 565, (2020).