2016-10-06 Thu

Some rare philatelic beauties from India’s feudatory states were offered for sale at the Stanley Gibbons auction that was held on 6th September in London. Even though India was under the British rule in the 19th century, many parts of the country fell under princely states that were autonomously administered. More than 30 of these princely states issued postage stamps for local use, out of which many do not bear English inscriptions and were produced with a makeshift arrangement. These rare stamps are widely sought after in the world of philately. From 1866, the two states Jammu and Kashmir ruled by the same sovereign issued their own stamps.

Two Kashmir 1a black imperforate 1867 stamps printed in watercolours on native paper were tied to a gray cover with a red circular rare Srinagar postmark. The stamps feature an old squared-oval design with Kashmiri inscriptions. The cover was sold for $8,400, which was almost double its estimated value.

An old stamp from the princely state of Soruth was offered on a fragment of an envelope. The 1a 1868 stamp is roughly separated, printed in red on green paper, tied to the piece by a grid of dots and the Jaitpore postmark. The stamp came with a British Philatelic Association certificate and was sold for $11,475.