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I need help indentifying the Stamps of India printed by Lithography and Typography: SG 233-233c, 269c-269b and 271a-271.
Any help will be appreciated.

Thanks
Jack

Jack, if you have a copy of Gibbons Part 1, it shows the differences between the George V 9 Pies, SG 233. I don't have specimens of the India 1½ Anna, SG 269b, but I can show you them overprinted for Gwalior.

This is the offset-litho version:



and this is the typographed version:



I find the tip of the king's nose the most obvious point of differentiation. In the offset-litho version, it's clean and sharp; in the typographed version, it's a bit splayed. More generally, the offset-litho printings are cleaner and sharper than the typographed, with fewer blemishes in the tablets.

The 3 Anna, SG 271, isn't quite as clear-cut, but the same rules basically apply. The offset-litho printing is sharper than the typographed:

Offset-litho:



Typographed:



Sorry I can only show used copies of some of these, but Gwalior (and India, for that matter) isn't really my bag.

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'First I'll steal all the money, then I'll kill everybody, and then I'll go away', Père Ubu

Thanks Tonymacg

I enlarged the stamps I have and identified 9/10 as lithographed and one as Typographed. NowI have to find a copy of SG in my area.

Jack

Jack, if you're going to take India seriously enough to want to split the typo and offset printings, you really do need a copy of Gibbons Part 1 or the one-volume India. Here is the note in Gibbons on the George V 9 Pies:



You should also be aware that the George V 1 Anna 3 Pies was reprinted in 1942, to meet an increase in postage rates. Although Gibbons doesn't distinguish between the two types, the Bridger & Kay Commonwealth Five Reigns catalogue does. Here is a copy of the relevant section from my ancient (1980) copy:

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'First I'll steal all the money, then I'll kill everybody, and then I'll go away', Père Ubu

Tony, I have asked misses Santa for Gibbons India for Christmas, don't know if she found it yet. I gave her two places to try.

Good luck - and keep on at her!

Incidentally, if you're interested in India, why not look at joining the India Study Circle ( http://www.indiastudycircle.org/index.html )? There are several members here on Stampboards, and it's a great resource for just about anything relating to Indian region philately.

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'First I'll steal all the money, then I'll kill everybody, and then I'll go away', Père Ubu

Jack: DO consider joining the India Study Circle, you'll open a whole new door on collecting and find a field ripe for "newbies" to discover rare things no longer available to those who limit themselves to "classic" stamps of the U.S., G.B. France and all the other major collections. Really!

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Jim M.

Santa did not bring the SG India but I found a copy on Ebay for $29 US shipping included, about half the dealer prices without shipping. I will look in to the India study ircle.

Looks like you did almost as well, Jack! Enjoy yourself among those Indian printings: I suspect that Gibbons will have a lot more detail than Scott - which you may be able to turn to your advantage.

If there's anything else I can help illustrate - from the overprints on India, probably - just ask.

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'First I'll steal all the money, then I'll kill everybody, and then I'll go away', Père Ubu

Found this 1963 article on identifying the litho vs typo stamps:

http://indianpostagestamps.com/articles/King_George_VI.pdf

also was able identify the the typo and litho 9 pies in my collection.

Thanks for all your help.

Gog Horsman who wrote the article was (I don't think he's still with us) a prolific writer and illustrator of Indian stamps. He contributed a great deal to the India Study Circle, too.

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'First I'll steal all the money, then I'll kill everybody, and then I'll go away', Père Ubu

Ask and ask again!

Tony, AFAIK, the 1980 was the last edition. This is another catalogue I've been looking to add to my shelf.

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Always looking for KGV British Commonwealth, mint, used, covers, anything

Just had a look at the Bridger & Kay Web site (www.bridgerkay.com), and they refer to their catalogue in passing, but don't seem to be selling it, so the 1980 might well be the last edition. Great shame if it was: the catalogue has a lot of stuff missing from Gibbons (including the note that the Indian second type George V SERVICE overprints exist typo and offset-litho as well. They don't explain how to separate the overprints, but I'd guess that should be fairly obvious under magnification.)

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'First I'll steal all the money, then I'll kill everybody, and then I'll go away', Père Ubu

I have sent an enquiry to Bridger and Kay asking if the Commonwealth Five Reigns catalogue is still available and awaiting a reply. I will post reply here when recieved.

Thanks! It was a handy catalogue. Who knows? If there's enough of a push, they might revive it. I'd buy it, for one.

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'First I'll steal all the money, then I'll kill everybody, and then I'll go away', Père Ubu

The 1980 edition was the last.

Mark Alan
Coral Springs, FL USA

Talking of the 1 Anna 3 Pies reprint of 1941, required by the postage rate rise, I've just received this cover with Jind SG 88 - the JIND STATE overprint on India:





and detail of the stamp:



It's the original 1932 printing: evidently, there were still sufficient stocks of the stamp, in October 1941 anyway, not to require the use of the reprint.

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'First I'll steal all the money, then I'll kill everybody, and then I'll go away', Père Ubu

I checked with Bridger & Kay. The indeed have a copy of the 5 Reigns catalogue for sale. It available for GBP 15 + postage. Click on http://www.bridgerkay.com/countrys/24?page=3

Tony - Wanted to check.....is this catalogue worth buying? Does it have as great deal of extra information on British India stamps and especially for the 1854 issues?

Abhishek

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A little learning is a dangerous thing; Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring - Alexander Pope

India and States especially Lithos/British Period. Philatelic Literature.

Abhishek, the Five Reigns catalogue coverage was patchy. It didn't always cover all five reigns, and it didn't for India. It started with the Edward VII issues. On the other hand, it lists some varieties that aren't in Gibbons.

Is it worth it? Impossible to say. That assessment will vary from person to person. I'd buy a new edition, but if your interest is principally in the 1854s, you probably wouldn't find the catalogue useful.

Incidentally, why not take a few moments to introduce yourself, on this thread: viewtopic.php?f=1&t=10277

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'First I'll steal all the money, then I'll kill everybody, and then I'll go away', Père Ubu

I want to join it.. Can anyone give more details???

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Phila India
http://groups.google.com/group/phila-india

I picked these litho and typo blocks of the 'one and a half anna' from Bridger Kay a couple of years back, thought it'd be useful as a reference here

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to reflect on God's creation is very fruitful meditation, and to reflect on Man's beauty of a creation - stamps - is no less either!

Thanks, Safi. It's useful to see them side by side like this. The differences are obvious.

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'First I'll steal all the money, then I'll kill everybody, and then I'll go away', Père Ubu

Here's another set of blocks of the same that I received just now...

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to reflect on God's creation is very fruitful meditation, and to reflect on Man's beauty of a creation - stamps - is no less either!

Yes, if one is looking to go deeper at a specialist level when it comes to collecting Commonwealth, then the Five Reigns catalogue from Bridger Kay gives you an edge. If you go through some of their specialist material listings at their online store, you'd see certain material with the shades variety that you cannot find mentioned anywhere in the Stanley Gibbons catalogue.

For me, as I like to collect variety with the normal/basic examples together, having catalogues like the Bridger Kay 5 Reigns, Murray Payne's King George VI Commonwealth catalogue or even the Robson Lowe handbooks come in very handy, besides the SG Part I on the British Empire. Together, you get to cover it all, and when it comes to coming across new variety that I'm not aware of, one of these books solves the mystery for me, lending good scope for further learning and study.

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to reflect on God's creation is very fruitful meditation, and to reflect on Man's beauty of a creation - stamps - is no less either!