COV-2101
30 September 1799 Calcutta Cover
Scan or Photo Courtesy of Cavendish Philatelic Auctions Ltd
Date
30 September 1799
Description
MIRZAPORE/CALCUTTA - 1st-YEAR USAGE OVAL “Bengal/G.P.O/SEP: [30]/POST PAID” ALONE ON COVER TO G.B.; Fine 9 Sept. 1799 EL (family letter from a judge on circuit) from “Mirzapoor” to London with no postal marks at all except for a very fine large oval-framed “Bengal/G.P.O/SEP: [30]/POST PAID” nicely placed on the top flap; this is HG SD2 which is rare pre-1800. [Presumably the writer and addressee had influence with the East India Company ship’s Captain and so the letter avoided the P.O. system in London.] Exhibition Quality
Auction
Lot 45, (Sept. 2015)
Provenance
Michael Manning
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-2101 is a Calcutta pre stamp cover of 30 September 1799 bearing the Calcutta SD2 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?
MIRZAPORE/CALCUTTA - 1st-YEAR USAGE OVAL “Bengal/G.P.O/SEP: [30]/POST PAID” ALONE ON COVER TO G.B.; Fine 9 Sept. 1799 EL (family letter from a judge on circuit) from “Mirzapoor” to London with no postal marks at all except for a very fine large oval-framed “Bengal/G.P.O/SEP: [30]/POST PAID” nicely placed on the top flap; this is HG SD2 which is rare pre-1800. [Presumably the writer and addressee had influence with the East India Company ship’s Captain and so the letter avoided the P.O. system in London.] Exhibition Quality
Its recorded auction history runs through Cavendish Philatelic Auctions Ltd lot 45 (Sept. 2015).
1 image of COV-2101 is recorded; the Calcutta SD2 mark itself is recorded in use 1799–1816.
Questions about COV-2101
- What is COV-2101?
- COV-2101 is a recorded pre stamp cover of Calcutta, Bengal Presidency of 30 September 1799, bearing the Calcutta SD2 handstamp in black. MIRZAPORE/CALCUTTA - 1st-YEAR USAGE OVAL “Bengal/G.P.O/SEP: [30]/POST PAID” ALONE ON COVER TO G.B.; Fine 9 Sept. 1799 EL (family letter from a judge on circuit) from “Mirzapoor” to London with no postal marks at all except for a very fine large oval-framed “Bengal/G.P.O/SEP: [30]/POST PAID” nicely placed on the top flap; this is HG SD2 which is rare pre-1800. [Presumably the writer and addressee had influence with the East India Company ship’s Captain and so the letter avoided the P.O. system in London.] Exhibition Quality
- How scarce is the Calcutta SD2 mark on this cover?
- The census grades Calcutta SD2 as very common, counted from surviving recorded covers rather than estimated. The mark is recorded in use 1799–1816.
- What is the provenance of COV-2101?
- Its recorded auction history runs through Cavendish Philatelic Auctions Ltd lot 45 (Sept. 2015).
- When was COV-2101 posted?
- COV-2101 is dated 30 September 1799, within the recorded period of use of Calcutta SD2 (1799–1816).
About this record
This 30 September 1799 pre stamp cover of British India bears the Calcutta SD2 handstamp of the Bengal Presidency, a mark graded “Very common” in this census — one of 27 surviving covers with this mark recorded. It has appeared at auction with Cavendish Philatelic Auctions Ltd, lot 45, (Sept. 2015).