Scan or Photo Courtesy of Santosh MS
Date
18 August 1851
Description
1851 Rawalpindee – London overland entire via Marseilles route, with Giles 2 "RAWALPINDEE /18.. AUG./WEIGHT TOLA/PAID" hand stamp, date "9" & rate "15" (paid 15A for a letter weighing between ¼ & 1 tolah, travelling over 1400 miles) applied in manuscript. At Bombay, Giles G4 "BOMBAY/AU 21/1851/GPO" & SD6 "INDIA" transit marks applied. On 1st September sent to Suez via EIC steamer AJDAHA, then travelled overland to Alexandria & from there sent to Malta via H.M.'s packet MERLIN, from there sent to Marseilles via H.M.'s packet CARADOC, and later at London "Y/2 OC 2/1851" receipt mark applied. 1s10d bearing postage (comprising 1s5d British rate & 5d French rate, for a letter under ¼ oz.) was collected from the recipient.
Same office
Other recorded marks at Rawalpindee
3 marks3 other pre-1854 postal markings of Rawalpindee are recorded in the census. Compare their figure numbers, dates and colours to identify the mark on your cover.
About this Rawalpindee pre stamp cover
COV-2478 is a Rawalpindee pre stamp cover of 18 August 1851 bearing the Rawalpindee HG 2 handstamp, struck in red, recorded in the census of Rawalpindee postal history — the office known today as Rawalpindi, Punjab. What is a pre stamp cover?
1851 Rawalpindee – London overland entire via Marseilles route, with Giles 2 "RAWALPINDEE /18.. AUG./WEIGHT TOLA/PAID" hand stamp, date "9" & rate "15" (paid 15A for a letter weighing between ¼ & 1 tolah, travelling over 1400 miles) applied in manuscript. At Bombay, Giles G4 "BOMBAY/AU 21/1851/GPO" & SD6 "INDIA" transit marks applied. On 1st September sent to Suez via EIC steamer AJDAHA, then travelled overland to Alexandria & from there sent to Malta via H.M.'s packet MERLIN, from there sent to Marseilles via H.M.'s packet CARADOC, and later at London "Y/2 OC 2/1851" receipt mark applied. 1s10d bearing postage (comprising 1s5d British rate & 5d French rate, for a letter under ¼ oz.) was collected from the recipient.
1 image of COV-2478 is recorded (front); the Rawalpindee HG 2 mark itself is recorded in use 1850–1851.
Questions about COV-2478
- What is COV-2478?
- COV-2478 is a recorded pre stamp cover of Rawalpindee, Punjab of 18 August 1851, bearing the Rawalpindee HG 2 handstamp in red. 1851 Rawalpindee – London overland entire via Marseilles route, with Giles 2 "RAWALPINDEE /18.. AUG./WEIGHT TOLA/PAID" hand stamp, date "9" & rate "15" (paid 15A for a letter weighing between ¼ & 1 tolah, travelling over 1400 miles) applied in manuscript. At Bombay, Giles G4 "BOMBAY/AU 21/1851/GPO" & SD6 "INDIA" transit marks applied. On 1st September sent to Suez via EIC steamer AJDAHA, then travelled overland to Alexandria & from there sent to Malta via H.M.'s packet MERLIN, from there sent to Marseilles via H.M.'s packet CARADOC, and later at London "Y/2 OC 2/1851" receipt mark applied. 1s10d bearing postage (comprising 1s5d British rate & 5d French rate, for a letter under ¼ oz.) was collected from the recipient.
- How scarce is the Rawalpindee HG 2 mark on this cover?
- The census grades Rawalpindee HG 2 as common, counted from surviving recorded covers rather than estimated. The mark is recorded in use 1850–1851.
- When was COV-2478 posted?
- COV-2478 is dated 18 August 1851, within the recorded period of use of Rawalpindee HG 2 (1850–1851).
About this record
This 18 August 1851 pre stamp cover of British India bears the Rawalpindee HG 2 handstamp of the Punjab, a mark graded “Common” in this census — the only surviving cover with this mark recorded so far.