Scan or Photo Courtesy of Spink
Date
1851
Description
(x) Sarawak Early Incoming Mail 1851 (19 Dec.) envelope from Calcutta to Sarawak, marked "P paid Calcutta" , showing framed "india" in red and, on reverse, despatch datestamp and light framed "singapore/ship letter / Bearing" h.s. The earliest known example of incoming mail to Sarawak. Photo Subject to 5% tax on Hammer Price in addition to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium.
Auction
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-5724 is a Calcutta pre stamp cover of 1851 bearing the Calcutta SD17 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?
(x) Sarawak Early Incoming Mail 1851 (19 Dec.) envelope from Calcutta to Sarawak, marked "P paid Calcutta" , showing framed "india" in red and, on reverse, despatch datestamp and light framed "singapore/ship letter / Bearing" h.s. The earliest known example of incoming mail to Sarawak. Photo Subject to 5% tax on Hammer Price in addition to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium.
Its recorded auction history runs through Spink The Dr. Jon Higgins Collection of Labuan Queen's Heads & Paul Barsdell Sarawak Collection (Sale 26020) lot 158.
1 image of COV-5724 is recorded; the Calcutta SD17 mark itself is recorded in use 1846–1856.
Questions about COV-5724
- What is COV-5724?
- COV-5724 is a recorded pre stamp cover of Calcutta, Bengal Presidency of 1851, bearing the Calcutta SD17 handstamp in red. (x) Sarawak Early Incoming Mail 1851 (19 Dec.) envelope from Calcutta to Sarawak, marked "P paid Calcutta" , showing framed "india" in red and, on reverse, despatch datestamp and light framed "singapore/ship letter / Bearing" h.s. The earliest known example of incoming mail to Sarawak. Photo Subject to 5% tax on Hammer Price in addition to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium.
- How scarce is the Calcutta SD17 mark on this cover?
- The census grades Calcutta SD17 as common, counted from surviving recorded covers rather than estimated. The mark is recorded in use 1846–1856.
- What is the provenance of COV-5724?
- Its recorded auction history runs through Spink The Dr. Jon Higgins Collection of Labuan Queen's Heads & Paul Barsdell Sarawak Collection (Sale 26020) lot 158.
- When was COV-5724 posted?
- COV-5724 is dated 1851, within the recorded period of use of Calcutta SD17 (1846–1856).
About this record
This 1851 pre stamp cover of British India bears the Calcutta SD17 handstamp of the Bengal Presidency, a mark graded “Common” in this census — one of 20 surviving covers with this mark recorded. It has appeared at auction with Spink, The Dr. Jon Higgins Collection of Labuan Queen's Heads & Paul Barsdell Sarawak Collection (Sale 26020), lot 158.