Page 35 - Standing Display

stained both sides of the paper. It therefore seems clear that the pale coloured stamps discussed
earlier, such as the 2A grey green and the 1A pale orange loose stamps, are genuine colours from
the poorly controlled printing methods used.

II C THE FOUR ANNAS STAMPS

In the Catalogue by Koeppel and Manners of 1983, they make the following introduction to the four annas
stamps “1884-85. 46mm x 43mm. Imperf. Vertical laid paper. Shades of all values, with minor design changes.
The four annas, blue on wove paper was used exclusively as a receipt stamp and does not bear the signature
of the stamp officer.”

The exhibitor has discovered many inaccuracies in these statements:

(1) All stamps used on receipts or accounts that are between private citizens can bear any of the colours.
(2) They are no different from the stamps used on documents with signatures of the stamp officers.
(3) Since the authors believed that revenue documents were introduced in 1896 and they were
introduced in 1871, means that the earliest dated documents they studied were from 1896. The set of
stamps being considered in this section of the exhibit are stated as issued 1884-85. The second set of
somewhat smaller revenue stamps were issued in 1895, which is substantiated by documents in my
collection, which will be shown later. Hence the datable stamps they examined are late printings.
(4) The 4 annas stamps are relatively uncommon. I have examples of the 4 annas orange from 1886, the
dull orange and deep blue from 1888, but other colors in my collection date from the early 1890s.
Many earlier documents that could have used a 4 annas stamp, have two of the 2 anna pinks or a
combination of one and two anna stamps.
(5) Mint examples of revenue stamps have never been available for study. All single stamps still have the
document paper attached and they have been “cut square’. The larger blocks of these early issues in
my collection show no sign of being laid paper. All are on a relatively good quality “wove” paper. Even
the revenue documents and other privately produced papers used are not “laid” paper, although they
sometimes show occasional groups of aligned drying creases and even streaks of some sort of surface
treatment. So the catalogue entries of laid paper stamps need to be ignored.

II Ca THE 4 ANNAS BLUE PRINTINGS

This colour is uncommon and four shades have been found by the exhibitor.

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