Scan or Photo Courtesy of Grosvenor Auctions
Date
1838
Description
India: Postal History and Covers: 1838 (July 24) entire letter (faults), datelined at Dum Dum to Co. Westmeath, Ireland, from Gunner John Keegan, 1st Battalion Artillery, addressed according to regulation and countersigned by Major J. Manfield commanding officer of the battalion, handstamped with very fine strike of “INDIA SOLDIERS/LIVERPOOL/3”, backstamped Dum Dum and Calcutta with contents “There was not a finer looking soldier in the 4th company 1st Battalion than my dear brother James the day I joined the Company and he had that complaint in his left side it is the.....lump and he lived until it brocke [sic] and that was 5 months.....”. Ex Robertson. Photo.
Auction
GPA 174: British Empire & Foreign Countries, Lot 1388
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 4handstampRed1841–1854
- DumDum HG 5handstampBlack1838–1845
- DumDum HG 6handstampRed1848
+1 more at this office.View all DumDum marks and postal history →
About this DumDum pre stamp cover
COV-5399 is a DumDum pre stamp cover of 1838 bearing the DumDum HG 7 handstamp, struck in red, recorded in the census of DumDum postal history, Bengal Presidency. What is a pre stamp cover?
India: Postal History and Covers: 1838 (July 24) entire letter (faults), datelined at Dum Dum to Co. Westmeath, Ireland, from Gunner John Keegan, 1st Battalion Artillery, addressed according to regulation and countersigned by Major J. Manfield commanding officer of the battalion, handstamped with very fine strike of “INDIA SOLDIERS/LIVERPOOL/3”, backstamped Dum Dum and Calcutta with contents “There was not a finer looking soldier in the 4th company 1st Battalion than my dear brother James the day I joined the Company and he had that complaint in his left side it is the.....lump and he lived until it brocke [sic] and that was 5 months.....”. Ex Robertson. Photo.
Its recorded auction history runs through Grosvenor Philatelic Auctions GPA 174: British Empire & Foreign Countries lot 1388.
1 image of COV-5399 is recorded; the DumDum HG 7 mark itself is recorded in use 1842–1848.
Questions about COV-5399
- What is COV-5399?
- COV-5399 is a recorded pre stamp cover of DumDum, Bengal Presidency of 1838, bearing the DumDum HG 7 handstamp in red. India: Postal History and Covers: 1838 (July 24) entire letter (faults), datelined at Dum Dum to Co. Westmeath, Ireland, from Gunner John Keegan, 1st Battalion Artillery, addressed according to regulation and countersigned by Major J. Manfield commanding officer of the battalion, handstamped with very fine strike of “INDIA SOLDIERS/LIVERPOOL/3”, backstamped Dum Dum and Calcutta with contents “There was not a finer looking soldier in the 4th company 1st Battalion than my dear brother James the day I joined the Company and he had that complaint in his left side it is the.....lump and he lived until it brocke [sic] and that was 5 months.....”. Ex Robertson. Photo.
- How scarce is the DumDum HG 7 mark on this cover?
- The census grades DumDum HG 7 as scarce, counted from surviving recorded covers rather than estimated. The mark is recorded in use 1842–1848.
- What is the provenance of COV-5399?
- Its recorded auction history runs through Grosvenor Philatelic Auctions GPA 174: British Empire & Foreign Countries lot 1388.
- When was COV-5399 posted?
- COV-5399 is dated 1838, within the recorded period of use of DumDum HG 7 (1842–1848).
About this record
This 1838 pre stamp cover of British India bears the DumDum HG 7 handstamp of the Bengal Presidency, a mark graded “Scarce” in this census — one of 7 surviving covers with this mark recorded. It has appeared at auction with Grosvenor Philatelic Auctions, GPA 174: British Empire & Foreign Countries, lot 1388.