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| Conch Shell issues of Travancore Anchal 6 cash watermark MNH 1911 |
1911, Conch Shell issues of Travancore Anchal India 6 cash watermark .MNH
Text: Travancore Anchal 6
Condition: MNH
Title: Conch
Shell
Face value: 6
Stamp Currency: Cash
Country/area: India - Travancore
Year: 1911
Set: 1911
Conch Shell
Stamp number in set: 1
Basic colour: Red
Exact colour: Red brown
Usage:
Franking
Type: Stamp
Theme: Shell
Stamp subject: Conch Shell
Michel number:
Yvert number:
Scott number: 13
Stanley Gibbons number:
Printing office:
Perforation: 12½
Watermark: conch shell watermark
Paper:
hand-made pape
Buy Now: Bid Now:
The currency used on stamps was Rupee, chuckrams & cash
This represented the currency arrangements during the transition period upto the establishment of the Indian Republic. The Monetary System remained unchanged at One Rupee consisting of 448 cash .
1 Rupee = 28 CHUCKRAMS (ch)
1 CHUCKRAMS = 16 cash (c)
Introduction
The early postage stamps of Travancore,
from the first issue in October 1888, had a chank or "Indian conch"
shell as the central feature of their design. They were used in large numbers
and are among the commonest of the Indian States stamps, second only to those
of Hyderabad. This was no doubt on account of the high literacy rate in that
state as, during the period of the conch shell issues, Travancore surpassed
British India as well as all other Princely States in both male and female
education. Despite the abundance of these issues, they have been unpopular with
collectors because their exact identification is complicated by the number of
different printings in different shades and on different papers with different
watermarks. Furthermore, many of the stamps were surcharged or overprinted (or
both) in various styles and sizes of fonts, and numerous errors of missing or
inverted letters are listed in the catalogues. Most dealers cannot be bothered
to separate the different printings and it is sometimes possible to purchase a
job lot very cheaply, offering a chance to discover a few scarce items among
the commoner ones.
The stamps of Travancore were also valid
for use on mail to Cochin. The currency of Travancore at this time was the
chuckram (ch), divided into 16 cash (c); there were 28 chuckrams to the rupee.
The conch shell stamps were issued in 14 denominations: 4c, 5c, 6c, ½ch (= 8c),
10c, ¾ch (= 12c), 1ch, 1¼ch, 1½ch, 2ch, 4ch, 7ch and 14ch (½ rupee).
With changes in postal rates in 1906 new
denominations of ¼ch (4 cash) and 3/8ch (6 cash) were required. The new values
were surcharged in large figures on various printings of the ½ch stamp until
new definitive stamps were issued, the 4c in 1908 and the 6c in 1910. More
provisionals were issued in March 1921, 1c on the 4c and 5c, in red, on the
1ch. A 5c definitive was issued in October 1921 but no stamp was issued to
replace the 1c provisional.
The official stamps, first issued in
August 1911, were overprinted "On / S S" or, from 1939,
"SERVICE". In some case special printings of the postage stamps were
made for official use, so some combinations of shades and watermarks do not
occur without the overprint. Most of the official stamps were issued ungummed,
with the exception of the first printing of the 1ch, 2ch, 3ch and 4ch values
and a few others which were overprinted on stamps which had been intended for
ordinary postal use; this was an economy measure due to the scarcity and high
cost of good quality gum during the 1914-18 war.
Indian princely states
Before the Partition of India in 1947, hundreds
of Princely States, also called Native States, existed in India which were not
part of British India. These were the parts of the Indian subcontinent which
had not been conquered or annexed by the British or even have any interference
from British India.
Things moved quickly after the partition
of British India in 1947. By the end of 1949, all of the states except Sikkim
had chosen to accede to one of the newly independent states of India orPakistan
or else had been annexed.
In principle, the princely states had
internal autonomy, while by treaty the British had suzerainty and were
responsible for their external affairs. In practice, while the states were
indeed ruled by potentates with a variety of titles, such as Raja, Maharaja,
Nawab, Khan or Nizam, the British had considerable influence.
By the time of the departure of the
colonial power in 1947, only four of the largest of the states still had their
own BritishResident, a diplomatic title for advisors present in the states'
capitals, while most of the others were grouped together into Agencies, such as
the Central India Agency, the Deccan States Agency, and the Rajputana Agency.
From 1920, the states were represented in
the Chamber of Princes, which held its meetings in New Delhi.
The most important states were ranked
among the salute states.
By the Indian Independence Act 1947, the
British gave up their suzerainty of the states and left each of them free to
choose whether to join one of the newly independent countries of India and
Pakistan. For a short time, some of the rulers explored the possibility of a
federation of the states separate from either, but this came to nothing. Most
of the states then decided to accede to India or to Pakistan, while others
which held out for the possibility of independence were later annexed by India,
such asJunagadh (1947–1948), Hyderabad on 18 September 1948, Bilaspur on 12
October 1948, and Bhopal on 1 May 1949.Dewan of Travancore chose to remain an
independent country.
In Jammu and Kashmir, a state with a
Muslim majority but a Hindu ruler, the Maharaja hoped to remain independent but
acceded to India on 27 October 1947 at the outset of the invasion of Jammu and
Kashmir by Pakistan - leading to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947.
On 31 March 1948, Kalat acceded to
Pakistan, although the brother of the Khan led a rebellion against this
decision.
The last remaining independent state,
Sikkim, was incorporated into India on 16 May 1975, following a referendum in
which people of Sikkim overwhelmingly voted for this.
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