Wednesday, June 28, 2023

Portuguese India - Bud's Big Blue

Bud's Big Blue
Bud's Observations

In its heyday, Portuguese India consisted of 22 ports strung around the India’s peninsula like a strand of pearls. Goa, the landing point for Vasco da Gama’s 1498 cape-rounding adventure, was first and primary among these.

Scott # 193, dark blue, the São Gabriel, flagship of Vasco da Gama

By the time Portuguese India’s first stamps were in use (1871), however, only five pearls remained – Goa, the administrative center, and four exclave communities north of Bombay. Bombay (Bom Bahia in Portuguese, good bay) had been part of Portuguese India from 1534 to 1661 but it, like the other pearls, was lost to the English. When Catherine of Braganza married King Charles II of England (1662), Bom Bahia was part of her dowery.

Yellow dots on Van Gelder’s map (below) mark what remained under Portuguese control, 1871-1940.

Map by Gerben van Gelder (2)

Portuguese colonial stamps are monotonously repetitive, as I’ve monotonously repeated in this blog. Although mostly following the same pattern, Portuguese India postage does provide three welcome exceptions to the normal -- a breath of fresh charm for our album pages.

First exception: Portuguese India philately begins with 55 local stamps (1871-1877) used solely within the colony. British postage was required for international mail. Variations in paper quality, perforations, size of letters and numbers, and color tone make these stamps challenging even for specialists. And they’re usually expensive. In 1882 and 1883, the locals were surcharged with new values. Sadly, Big Blue provides no spaces for these.

Scott # 79, vermilion

Second exception: In 1912-13, some older stamps (from 1898-1903) reappeared with new values overprinted and vertical or diagonal perforations. A shortage of lower priced stamps likely provided the occasion for the modifications. Surviving covers usually have both halves. BB accommodates nine of these.
 

Scott #s 260c, 300, 283b, orange, likely a philatelically inspired cover

Third exception: In 1931 Portugal provided its prize India colony with six unique stamps for the exposition of Saint Francis Xavier. 

Left to right: Scott #415, brown, signature of St. Francis

Scott #414, gray green, Monument honoring St. Francis
Scott #416, red violet, St. Francis with staff and crucifix
Scott #417, yellow brown, St. Francis, missionary journey
Scott #419, light red, Tomb of St. Francis
Scott #418, blue, Basilica of Bom Jesus, Goa

In the Catholic tradition, an exposition involves a public display of sacred relics, in this case the mummified body of Xavier in priestly vestments. Xavier was a close companion of Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). They became friends during their college years in Paris and, impressed with Ignatius’s piety, Xavier joined the Jesuits. He was ordained in 1537 and sent to India in 1541. After ten years of evangelistic work in Goa, India, he traveled to Malaya, Macao, Portuguese China, and Japan, where he continued his missionary work.

The 1931 exposition of Xavier’s remains was requested by General Joao Carlos Craveiro Lopes, newly appointed as the 122nd Governor-General of Portuguese India. He sought the saint’s blessing. Such expositions normally occur about every 10 years.

The exposition

The event began 3 December 1931, the day the six stamps were released. A large procession of clergy and the faithful at the basilica of Bom Jesus (Good Jesus) was met by the new governor at the basilica door. The Patriarch of Goa handed the saint’s gold, emerald encrusted staff (previously removed from the coffin) to the Governor.

Basilica of Bom Jesus, Goa

Final ceremonies were held 19 March 1932.

There is a parallel Portugal series, also issued in 1931, but it commemorates Saint Anthony of Lisbon, aka, Saint Anthony of Padua. The stamps in the two issues are the same size and have similar colors. Both saints are noted for their missionary ardor.

Portugal Scott #s 528-533, St. Anthony of Lisbon commemoratives

These three exceptions to the normal repetitive pattern of Portuguese colonial stamps hint at the importance of India’s “pearls” for the mother country, even though their luster had faded by the time stamps made their first appearance. India had been the point of departure for establishing other Portuguese Asian settlements. India had beautiful cloth and spices to trade; the Portuguese held a crown monopoly on pepper. Portuguese settlers were encouraged to marry Indian spouses. And Bom Jesus celebrates an important saint’s remains.

India, using military force, ended all Portuguese control in 1961. Portuguese creole is now spoken by only a few people. The heritage of the first European power to colonize a part of India -- and the last to relinquish control -- slowly fades.

Census: 155 on BB spaces, five tip-ins, 52 on supplement pages.

Scott #520, brown and dark brown, Saint Francis Xavier and his tomb,
commemoration of the 1952 exposition

(1) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license.

(2) From http://www.stampworldhistory.com/country-profiles-2/asia/portuguese-india/

(3) This post has drawn on information provided by Gokak Stamps. Gokak, India, Karnataka State.

Jim's Observations

1873 Scott 25 20r vermilion "Numeral of Value"
Re-issues; Thin Bluish Toned Paper
Stained "yellow" by the gum

The earlier Issues (1871-1877) were handstamped from a single die, and were intended for local use in the colony. They were rather crudely done, and the perforations are often rough. They can be found on various papers and perforations.The inscriptions are "Servico Postal", and "India Post". The CV is generally in the Tens- Hundreds range. The 1873 issue (six stamps) on thin bluish toned paper - and illustrated here- is actually a re-issue.


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Thursday, June 15, 2023

Recent Stamp Acquisitions: Australia

1932 Scott 132 5sh gray green
"Sydney Harbor Bridge"
Engraved, Perf 11, Unwmk

Into the Deep Blue

The PIPEX stamp show was in Portland, Oregon this May. Good time to bring a want list, right? The pleasant truth about being a WW classical era collector is one never runs out of stamps to acquire. ;-)

I should mention, obviously, if one is purchasing individual stamps (rather than a collection), one will pay more to a dealer. Generally, I paid less than half catalogue for these items.

In part, I picked up some early Kangaroo stamps of Australia, among other selections.

If one is acquiring "'Roo stamps", the particular watermark and type of Die (Die I-Die IV) is an important variable.

I already did an in-depth blog post on this in 2018.

'Roo Stamps of Australia: Watermarks and Dies

To make it easier to follow along as I describe the particular "Kangaroo" stamps I found, I will include scans of Wmk 8, 9, 10 here.

Watermark 8
"Wide Crown and Wide A"
Found with the 1913 "Kangaroo" Issue

A wide "A" is below a wide crown. Note that the orb and cross rests on a horizontal line between two triangles at the top of the crown.

Watermark 9
"Wide Crown and Narrow A"
 Found with the 1915 "Kangaroo" Issue

The watermark 9 stamps have a "Wide Crown" and a "Narrow A". Note the crown has a different shape than the Wmk 8 "Wide Crown". The orb and cross lie in a depression between two peaks of the crown.

Watermark 10
"Narrow Crown and Narrow A"
Found with the 1915-24 "Kangaroo" Issue

Watermark 10 has a "Narrow Crown" and "Narrow A". The crown is significantly thinner than the wider crowns of Wmk 8 & Wmk 9. (I included Wmk 10 here, even though none of my stamps acquired had Wmk 10, as the watermark can be confused - especially with Wmk 8.)

1913 Scott 8 6p ultramarine (II)
"Kangaroo and Map"
Typo, Wmk 8

Picked up a nice Wmk 8 1913 6p ultramarine (CV $30). This can be also found in "blue" (Scott 8a CV $32+), but I think my example is "ultramarine". 

I'm not going to discuss Dies here, as I thoroughly covered the topic in the 2018 post link above.

1913 Scott 9  9p purple
"Kangaroo and Map"
Typo, Wmk 8

A Queensland postmarked 9p purple 1913 Wmk 8 "Kangaroo" stamp was next (CV $37+). Other colors noted in Scott are "violet" (CV $37+) and "deep violet" (CV 37+). ( I should say, unless one has a lot of "Kangaroo" stamps to compare, or one is very good at color tints, take the color designations with a grain of salt.)

1913 Scott 11  2sh brown
"Kangaroo and Map"
Typo, Wmk 8

A Melbourne, Victoria postmarked 2sh brown, a Wmk 8 1913 variety, was found (CV $140). There is also "dark brown" (CV $ 145) listed in Scott. I really like this stamp!

I should mention that, although all of the "Kangaroo" stamps I bought at PIPEX were correctly described by the dealer, it is important to double check the watermark to make sure one has the expected stamp.

1915 Scott 38 2p gray
"Kangaroo and Map"
Typo, Wmk 9

A Wmk 9 1915 issue 2p gray was picked up (CV $16). 

1915 Scott 41 9p violet
"Kangaroo and Map"
Typo, Wmk 9

Finally, a Scott 41 Wmk 9 9p violet (CV $ 52+) was found. 

1914 Scott 18 6p lake brown
"Kookaburra"
Engraved, Perf 11, Unwmk

Yes, I always wanted this stamp, but none of the Australian collections I purchased previously had an example (CV $ 62+).  Nice!

1932 Scott 132 5sh gray green
"Sydney Harbor Bridge"
Engraved, Perf 11, Unwmk

Generally, it is rare for a stamp that was issued after 1930 to have a high CV, but Australia's 5sh gray green "Sydney Harbor Bridge" stamp is quite well known as an exception. I've always wanted one (who doesn't? ;-), especially after seeing the scene for myself when we visited Australia.  The 2020 CV is $275, but I note the 2011 CV was $300, so it has gone down slightly.

Out of the Blue

My Australia collection is a little more complete! :-)

Comments appreciated!

Wednesday, June 7, 2023

Portuguese Guinea - Bud's Big Blue

Portuguese Guinea- Map by Gerben van Gelder
Bud's Big Blue
Bud's Observations

Portuguese Guinea, aka the Overseas Province of Guinea and the State of Guinea, achieved independence as Guinea-Bissau on September 10, 1974. It’s classical era stamps follow uniformly the pattern of Portuguese colonial postage, beginning with overprints on Cape Verde stamps.

Scott #s 10 and 11, green and red

Overprints abound among Portuguese colonial stamps; the asking price for some of them is quite high. A dealer once said to me, as I was considering such a stamp, that he rarely bought an overprint for more than the same stamp without the overprint would cost. Overprints, he continued, are far too easily forged and difficult to detect. In recent years, photocopied overprints have veiled the deceptions even further. Fakery is having a heyday.

Multiple overprints, Scott #s 190 brown, 191 dark blue, and 192 dull blue

That brings me to the recent dustup about artificial intelligence (AI) and the essay-writing chatbots ChatGPT and Bard. Could they fake an article about Portuguese Guinea stamps, for instance, that’s both more accurate and better reading than what I write?

I tried it. Several times. I gave them all the same prompt “Write an essay on the postage stamps of Portuguese Guinea from the year 1881 to 1940.”

All the chatbot essays began with a sweeping banality, such as: “The stamps of Portuguese Guinea are a fascinating and varied collection, reflecting the history and culture of the country.” Of course, Portuguese Guinea stamps reflect none of the history and culture of the colony for the years specified in the prompt. They’re all about what’s happening in Portugal – royalty, regime changes, currency fluctuations, Portugal’s historic notables, and the like. Moreover, the stamps are not particularly fascinating, unless you’re found of overprints.

Following the opening banalities, a series of “facts” are presented, the following two paragraphs being typical:

The first stamps of Portuguese Guinea were issued in 1855. They were simple black and white stamps with the Portuguese coat of arms and the denomination in Portuguese. These stamps were used until 1867, when they were replaced by a new series of stamps with more colorful designs….

…After the overthrow of the monarchy [1910] a new series of stamps was issued with the portrait of President Sidónio Pais. This series was used until 1918, when Pais was assassinated. The next series of stamps, issued in 1919, featured the portrait of President António de Oliveira Salazar. This series was used until 1974, when Portugal granted independence to Guinea-Bissau.

Stamp collectors might beg to disagree with the chatbots’ “facts.” Portuguese Guinea stamps began in 1881, not 1855, as anyone with a decent catalog can easily find out. The first issues, all but one of them, are colorful Cape Verde stamps with “Guiné” overprints, not “simple black and white.” They don’t have a coat of arms. As for the bot-reported 1867 replacements, there couldn’t be any; Guinea didn’t become a colony until 1879.

Scott #1, small Guiné (only this one is black and white)

No portraits of Pais appeared on stamps until 2018 when Portugal (not Guinea-Bissau) commemorated his valor in World War 1. Salazar began his de facto dictatorship in 1932, not 1919, and no stamps bore his image before 1971, a year after his death. Perhaps the chatbots confused the image of Ceres with these two former Portuguese leaders; and likely confused the colony with the mother country.

The chatbots concluded their essays with another round of banalities.

No detectable resemblance in Pais or Salazar. Scott #168, orange on salmon

So, AI has not yet established trustworthiness on matters philatelic. The essays do, however, get high marks for grammar and readability. But stamp collectors are notoriously meticulous. Historical accuracy counts. Specialists regularly certify the credibility of stamps claimed to be genuine. Currently only a small (but growing) portion of philatelic literature can be found online, the source of AI’s “intelligence.” As a result, chatbots work at a considerable disadvantage.

In a year or two from now I’ll try the experiment again and will, no doubt, see improvements. Given AI’s rapid pace of development, I probably shouldn’t wait that long. A few hours might suffice.

Census: 146 in BB spaces, 4 tip-ins, 57 on supplement pages. 

Confused about the many uses of the term Guinea? Here are three good resources:

http://bigblue1840-1940.blogspot.com/2012/08/ClassicalStampsPortugueseGuinea.html

https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2017/09/12/why-the-world-has-so-many-guineas

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guinea_(disambiguation)

Chatbot clip art credit:

https://technologyadvice.com/blog/marketing/chatbots-consumers-want-expect/

Jim's Observations

Guinea is located on the west coast of Africa between Senegal and French Guinea. The Capital was Bissau, and the population was 350,000 in 1940. The colony was about 14,000 square miles in area, and included the Bijagoz archipelago and the island of Bolama.

Between 1877-81, the stamps of Cape Verde, as Guinea was an administrative dependency of the Cape Verde islands, were used.

But in 1879, Guinea became a colony. The reality is, although Portugal claimed considerable interior territory, only the ports of Cacheu and Bissau were actually under Portuguese control.

Then in 1881 overprinted "Guiné" Cape Verde stamps were produced; and so began Guinea's own philatelic history.


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