Post office · Madras Presidency
TellicherryPostal Covers & Pre-1854 Postal History
Tellicherry postal covers and handstruck postal markings of pre-1854 British India, recorded in an open census: 6 Tellicherry handstamps recorded between 1823 and 1858, Madras Presidency, with 7 Tellicherry covers traced to them.
- Handstamps
- 6
- Recorded
- 1823–1858
Tellicherry is in Malabar District, Madras Presidency, 42 miles from Calicut and 457 miles from Madras, situated 11°45' N and 75°29' E. The East India Company established a factory at the end of the 17th century, and a fort was built in 1708. It became the base for the operations above the Ghats in the Mysore Wars.
Tellicherry has 6 pre-1854 hand-struck postal markings dated 1823–1858 recorded in this census. Each figure links to its covers, rarity and provenance.
Tellicherry handstamp summary
All recorded markings at a glance — click any row for full details and covers.
Tellicherry— postal history & markings
Tellicherry's six handstamps, from 1823 to 1858, are split evenly between black and red, and their interest lies in a die change. HG 2 shows a space between the words of 'POST PAID', while HG 3 joins them as 'POSTPAID' — a small but reliable way to separate the two. HG 6 is scarce. The East India Company had established a factory at this Malabar port, and its post traces the correspondence of a west-coast trading town. Beyond the scarce late mark, the record is common use, but the spacing of that 'POST PAID' die is exactly the detail a Malabar collector uses to place a strike.
Frequently asked — Tellicherry postal history
- What are the pre stamp covers of Tellicherry?
- Pre stamp (pre philatelic) covers of Tellicherry are folded letters and envelopes that passed through the Tellicherry post office before India's first adhesive stamp of 1854, so postage was shown entirely by hand-struck postal markings and manuscript rates. Tellicherry was a post office of the Madras Presidency, British India, and this census records 6 distinct postal markings used there, dated between 1823 and 1858.
- How many handstamps are recorded for Tellicherry?
- 6 hand-struck postal markings are recorded for Tellicherry in this census. 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 Tellicherry called today?
- Tellicherry is the colonial-era name of present-day Thalassery, India. Covers and postmarks are catalogued here under the historical name used on the marks themselves.
- How do I identify a Tellicherry 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 Tellicherry 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 Tellicherry were struck, catalogued and graded for rarity.
Also searched as: Tellicherry, Thalassery, Tellicherry HG 1, Tellicherry handstruck stamps, Tellicherry pre stamp covers, Tellicherry postal history.
How to cite
“Tellicherry, Madras Presidency — pre-1854 handstruck stamps & covers,” Hand Struck Stamps, https://handstruckstampsindia.com/madras/tellicherry (accessed 24 September 2026).
Updated: 24 Sept 2026
An unrecorded mark from Tellicherry?
If you hold a cover or strike from Tellicherry 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 Madras Presidency
Explore the pre-1854 postal history of other Madras Presidency post offices — each page lists its recorded handstruck markings, dates and surviving covers.