Post office · Bombay Presidency
KolaporePostal Covers & Pre-1854 Postal History
Kolapore postal covers and handstruck postal markings of pre-1854 British India, recorded in an open census: 4 Kolapore handstamps recorded between 1846 and 1857, Bombay Presidency, with 4 Kolapore covers traced to them.
- Handstamps
- 4
- Recorded
- 1846–1857
- Rare
- 1
Kolhapur is a city on the banks of the Panchganga River in southern Maharashtra, formerly the seat of an important princely state.
Kolapore has 4 pre-1854 hand-struck postal markings dated 1846–1857 recorded in this census. Each figure links to its covers, rarity and provenance.
Brown border = community submission, verified by editors
Kolapore handstamp summary
All recorded markings at a glance — click any row for full details and covers.
Kolapore— postal history & markings
Kolapore's three handstamps, from 1846 to 1857, are struck entirely in red. HG 1A of 1846 is known from a single example, and HG 2 of 1857 is a scarce slide stamp, with the common HG 1 between. Seat of an important princely state on the Panchganga in southern Maharashtra, the town's post served a ruling house of the Deccan. The record is small and uniform in colour, but the single-example HG 1A and the scarce slide stamp give the collector genuine targets — a compact all-red office from a notable state capital.
Frequently asked — Kolapore postal history
- What are the pre stamp covers of Kolapore?
- Pre stamp (pre philatelic) covers of Kolapore are folded letters and envelopes that passed through the Kolapore post office before India's first adhesive stamp of 1854, so postage was shown entirely by hand-struck postal markings and manuscript rates. Kolapore was a post office of the Bombay Presidency, British India, and this census records 4 distinct postal markings used there, dated between 1846 and 1857.
- How many handstamps are recorded for Kolapore?
- 4 hand-struck postal markings are recorded for Kolapore in this census, of which 1 is graded rare or better. Each mark carries its Hammond Giles catalogue figure number, colour, date range, evidence-based rarity grade, and links to every surviving cover recorded with it.
- What is Kolapore called today?
- Kolapore is the colonial-era name of present-day Kolhapur, India. Covers and postmarks are catalogued here under the historical name used on the marks themselves.
- How do I identify a Kolapore postmark or cover?
- Compare your cover against the reference impressions on this page — each figure shows the mark's design, ink colour and recorded date range. If your Kolapore cover bears a mark that matches a figure, open that figure's page to see every recorded example with provenance. If it matches none, it may be unrecorded: submit photographs through the form on this page and the editors will review it for inclusion in the census.
For background on the material itself, see the guides to the handstruck stamps of India, the pre covers of India and the pre stamp covers of India, which explain how marks like those recorded at Kolapore were struck, catalogued and graded for rarity.
Also searched as: Kolapore, Kolhapur, Kolapore HG 1, Kolapore handstruck stamps, Kolapore pre stamp covers, Kolapore postal history.
How to cite
“Kolapore, Bombay Presidency — pre-1854 handstruck stamps & covers,” Hand Struck Stamps, https://handstruckstampsindia.com/bombay/kolapore (accessed 24 September 2026).
Updated: 24 Sept 2026
An unrecorded mark from Kolapore?
If you hold a cover or strike from Kolapore that does not match any figure above, submit it below. Approved additions appear here as new entries in the census — every submission is reviewed first.
Same presidency
Other post offices in the Bombay Presidency
Explore the pre-1854 postal history of other Bombay Presidency post offices — each page lists its recorded handstruck markings, dates and surviving covers.