Séfi & Mortimer’s accounting of the British stamps that were used in Kashmir can be found through this on-site link ►. Their data has been slightly adapted for the table below, which no doubt wants ongoing amendment. The scarcity column refers only to J&K usage, where ‘plentiful’ means more common than ‘common’. Watermarkings are 1854 arms, 1856-64 unwmkd, 1865-78 elephant head, Empire 1883-91 star.
| East India Co. | 1854 | 2a green | rare |
| 1856 | ½a blue | rare | |
| 1860 | 2a dull rose | rare | |
| East India | 1856 | 4a grey-black | scarce |
| 1858 | 2a orange | scarce | |
| 1860 | 8p purple/lilac | scarce | |
| 1864 | 4a green | scarce? | |
| 1865 | ½a blues Die I | common | |
| " | 8p purple | rare | |
| " | 1a browns | common | |
| " | 2a oranges | common | |
| " | 2a yellow | scarce | |
| " | 4a green | common | |
| 1866 | 4a greens Die I | common | |
| 1868 | 8a rose | scarce | |
| 1873 | ½a blue Die II | most plentiful | |
| 1876 | 6a pale brown | rare | |
| 1878 | 4a blue-green Die II | common | |
| Empire | 1883 | ½a blue-green | plentiful |
| " | 9p rose | rare | |
| " | 1a brown-purple | common | |
| " | 2a blues | common | |
| " | 8a dull mauve | scarce | |
| 1885 | 4a olive-green | scarce | |
| 1886 | 4a 6p yellow-green | rare | |
| 1888 | ‘2½’ surch green | rare | |
| 1890 | 3a brown-orange | rare |
Whatever the official rates may have been for overseas mail, an alarming disparity of sums is seen in practice. Discrepant frankings are of interest to some collectors. In normal usage, the early 1868 overseas rate was Native postage of one anna coupled with British postage of six annas (plus discretionary four-anna registration). Later mailings abroad often show Native postage of 1a coupled with the UPU-rate British postage of only 4 annas 6 pies.
Embossed Envelopes
Of the five types of embossed envelopes attested in J&K usage, only two are commonly seen, namely the ½a blue Victoria-head used mainly in the period 1874-83 and the ½a green Victoria-head used thereafter. Late usages in the blue, however, are sufficiently common as to be not exactly anomalous. British postage of any kind is scarce in the J&K mails in the 1892-94 period, i.e., just prior to the British offices commandeering the entire operation. The Séfi & Mortimer listing of this class of postal stationery is as follows:
| 1871 | 1a brown embossment | blue laid | rare |
| 1874 | ½a blue embossment | white laid | plentiful |
| 1877 | 1a brown embossment | white laid | rare |
| 1881 | 4a 6p orange-yellow embossment | wove | scarce |
| 1883 | ½a green embossment | white laid | plentiful |
The ½a blue embossment (1874-type) on white laid paper, here in 1877 Jammu to Amritsar via Sialkot usage with a ½a Jammu-plate oilcolor.
Above left: The 1a brown embossment (1877-type) on white laid paper, as against the more elderly blue paper of 1871. This detail is from a cover dated 13 March 1888, a very rare usage of the embossment in Kashmir. Jaiswal collection.
Above right: The 4a 6p orange-yellow embossment (1881-type). It was the only envelope on wove paper and the only oval embossment. This type was not actually issued for use in Kashmir and is therefore rather scarce. This detail is from an 1887 cover to Wales (image taken from the internet).
There were three British offices from which this envelope was administered for J&K doings, namely Leh, Sialkot, and Kashmir (Srinagar), thus the three shown above in that order. The Sialkot image also shows the Jammu 10-bar known between 1887 and 1890.
New York and a Late-usage Blue: This is the latest use of the embossment in blue that we have seen (noting that the green started to supersede the blue six years earlier in 1883). This letter needed precisely one month (10 Feb to 10 Mar 1889) to travel from Bombay to New York via London.
The blue-colored embossed lion on the flap of the blue Victoria-head
envelopes gave way to an albino version
sometime in 1875, towards the end of the watercolor period. We are looking for an
earliest sighting date for its use in Jammu and Kashmir. Unfortunately for dating
work, the older blue lion persisted in force well into 1876 and occasionally beyond.
It would be good to have a latest date as well. One does not look for green-colored
lions on the flaps of the green Victoria-heads of the post-1883 period,
and more’s the pity.
Postcards
The two types of British postcards are the “EAST INDIA brown” for internal service and the “UPU blue” for overseas service. Both cards appeared later in the doubled-postage “reply” format, which are hardly known:
| 1879 | ¼a brown card | common | |
| 1879 | 1½a blue card | less common | |
| 1884 | ¼a+¼a brown reply card | scarce | |
| 1884 | 1½a+1½a blue reply card | rare |
The 1½a UPU blue card is surprisingly scarce in J&K doings. The Universal Postal Union was founded on 9 Oct 1874, but British India did not assume membership until 1 Jul 1876. Though a dedicated UPU card is often given an 1879 issue-date, we have seen examples in J&K usage only from 1881. The example shown above was despatched on 6 Aug 1881 at “Serinuggur” with 1a in native postage. The Srinagar to Bombay leg of the journey took a full week. As the card took no postal markings upon its arrival in England, we’ll never how long the London to Worcestershire portion took. The message on the card, evidently from a climber, is perhaps interesting enough to copy:
“After having put my house letters in the box I just received yours of the 4th—Alright about going up in June next if you think advisable but I don't think I shall pair. Before I had an idea that if one failed once one could never go up again and I am rejoiced to hear to the contrary. As I shall be acting Adjutant for Lambert when I get back it will be deuced hard working for the Staff College and the mornings and evenings I’m afraid will be the only time but nous venons. Also tell Frank that the meat sacks were most useful going up Huramoor. I leave for Sopoor tomorrow and on the 15th must be wending my way back. SSHB.“
British India ¼a brown postcard, with that postage supplemented by ½a in Native postage. While the issue year of the card is said to be 1879, the earliest attested use of the brown card that we have heard of in J&K usage is April 1880, from Srinagar.
When the ¼a native postcard found its way across the border without British postage,
it was treated as if it were a regular letter on account of its large size,
and would incur 1a levy in postage-due, half as a penalty or
administrative charge, and half for the missing ½a in British postage. There are numerous
cuttings of seals on account of the many destinations.
Foreign residents in Kashmir had a “half-postage privilege” on Native
postage for mail leaving the State. For reasons here unknown, it was a
privilege seldom taken advantage of, at least to judge from the extant record.
Convention Essays
Kashmir was poised to join the Postal Convention. That plan fell through for reasons
here unknown, but a rare set of essays of the proposed overprint exists. The name
“Kashmir” is rendered also
at the top in nagari (no mention of Jammu) and the Kashmir arms are on the lower
right. The idea behind this rather clunky configuration was to avoid printing
over the lady’s dear tête. This b/w image of
the 3a orange, wmkd star, was taken from the Billig Handbook, Vol III, p 265.
Below: More images of these rarities from the Harmers 2004 auction Lot KB364a. Even without the overprint some of these Victorias are not known in postal use in Kashmir, such as the 9p mauve and the 1a 6p sepia below, as well as the 3a orange shown above. It is reported [reference?] that there are 13 in all, of which 12 are accounted for here. So which denomination is missing?
