Scan or Photo Courtesy of Argyll Etkin Auctions
Date
1849
Description
Soldiers Letter. 1849 Entire letter to England, headed "From Corporal Quarterman of the Artillery, Regimental Laboratory School" and countersigned by the Captain in charge of the school, prepaid at the 1d soldiers rate with Dum Dum and Calcutta datestamps, red boxed "INDIA / PAID" and a London Paid datestamp. An unusual prepaid soldiers letter, most soldiers letters from India at this period posted unpaid and charged 2d upon arrival. A little staining and strengthened at edges.
Auction
Worldwide Stamps & Postal History Featuring Great Britain Postal History, British Colonial Proofs & Essays, Valentines, Crash Mail, WW2 Far East P.O.W Mail, India, Sweden, Boer War & Zanzibar, Lot 1179, (14 Oct 2021)
Same office
Other recorded marks at DumDum
7 marks7 other pre-1854 postal markings of DumDum are recorded in the census. Compare their figure numbers, dates and colours to identify the mark on your cover.
- DumDum HG 1handstampBlack1825–1836
- DumDum HG 2handstampBlack1835–1837
- DumDum HG 3handstampBlack1843–1847
- DumDum HG 5handstampBlack1838–1845
- DumDum HG 6handstampRed1848
- DumDum HG 7handstampRed1842–1848
+1 more at this office.View all DumDum marks and postal history →
About this DumDum pre stamp cover
COV-4835 is a DumDum pre stamp cover of 1849 bearing the DumDum HG 4 handstamp, struck in red, recorded in the census of DumDum postal history, Bengal Presidency. What is a pre stamp cover?
Soldiers Letter. 1849 Entire letter to England, headed "From Corporal Quarterman of the Artillery, Regimental Laboratory School" and countersigned by the Captain in charge of the school, prepaid at the 1d soldiers rate with Dum Dum and Calcutta datestamps, red boxed "INDIA / PAID" and a London Paid datestamp. An unusual prepaid soldiers letter, most soldiers letters from India at this period posted unpaid and charged 2d upon arrival. A little staining and strengthened at edges.
Its recorded auction history runs through Argyll Etkin Worldwide Stamps & Postal History Featuring Great Britain Postal History, British Colonial Proofs & Essays, Valentines, Crash Mail, WW2 Far East P.O.W Mail, India, Sweden, Boer War & Zanzibar lot 1179 (14 Oct 2021).
3 images of COV-4835 are recorded (front); the DumDum HG 4 mark itself is recorded in use 1841–1854.
Questions about COV-4835
- What is COV-4835?
- COV-4835 is a recorded pre stamp cover of DumDum, Bengal Presidency of 1849, bearing the DumDum HG 4 handstamp in red. Soldiers Letter. 1849 Entire letter to England, headed "From Corporal Quarterman of the Artillery, Regimental Laboratory School" and countersigned by the Captain in charge of the school, prepaid at the 1d soldiers rate with Dum Dum and Calcutta datestamps, red boxed "INDIA / PAID" and a London Paid datestamp. An unusual prepaid soldiers letter, most soldiers letters from India at this period posted unpaid and charged 2d upon arrival. A little staining and strengthened at edges.
- How scarce is the DumDum HG 4 mark on this cover?
- The census grades DumDum HG 4 as common, counted from surviving recorded covers rather than estimated. The mark is recorded in use 1841–1854.
- What is the provenance of COV-4835?
- Its recorded auction history runs through Argyll Etkin Worldwide Stamps & Postal History Featuring Great Britain Postal History, British Colonial Proofs & Essays, Valentines, Crash Mail, WW2 Far East P.O.W Mail, India, Sweden, Boer War & Zanzibar lot 1179 (14 Oct 2021).
- When was COV-4835 posted?
- COV-4835 is dated 1849, within the recorded period of use of DumDum HG 4 (1841–1854).
About this record
This 1849 pre stamp cover of British India bears the DumDum HG 4 handstamp of the Bengal Presidency, a mark graded “Common” in this census — one of 7 surviving covers with this mark recorded. It has appeared at auction with Argyll Etkin, Worldwide Stamps & Postal History Featuring Great Britain Postal History, British Colonial Proofs & Essays, Valentines, Crash Mail, WW2 Far East P.O.W Mail, India, Sweden, Boer War & Zanzibar, lot 1179, (14 Oct 2021).