Burma Pt 1 - a closer look

1945 Scott 44 3a6p deep blue & bright blue

"Farmer Plowing Rice Field"

"Mily Admn" overprinted in black

Into the Deep Blue
Stamps of India were used in Burma from 1854 until April 1, 1937. It then became a self governing unit of the British Commonwealth with a constitution. It became totally independent in 1948.

The original blog post and BB checklist for Burma is here.

 Gerben van Gelder's Map of Burma

Stamp World History Site (Presently not available)

The stamp history is interesting enough that I will split the presentation into two parts.

Part 1 (this one) will look at the regular and official British Commonwealth issues of 1937-1940, and 1945-1947.

Part 2 will look at the interesting 1942 Burma Independence Army issues (under Japanese authorization), and the Japanese occupation stamps of 1942-1944. Then we will look at the issues of the independent Republic from 1948-1949.

A closer look
12 Pies = 1 Anna
10 Annas = 1 Rupee

1937 Scott 8 3a6p deep blue "George V"

Stamps of India 1926-36, Overprinted in Black

As noted, Burma came under British administration on April 1, 1937 after having had been a province of India since January 1, 1886.

An 18 stamp issue was released by overprinting "Burma" on 1926-36 stamps of India.

The overprint was on top of all stamps, save for the 3a carmine rose, where the overprint is on the bottom.

The small format 3p-12a denominations (12 stamps) have a modest <$1 CV for 11 stamps.

The 1r-25r denominations (6 stamps) are more CV expensive, ranging from $5+ to $550.

1937 Scott O5 2a vermilion

Official Issue - India 1926-34 OP in Black

Also, during April-June, 1937, officials - an issue of 14 stamps - were produced by using the 1926-1934 stamps of India. The "Burma" and "Service" overprints were either applied separately or together in one operation.

CV ranges from <$1 to $300.

1938 Scott 21 9p yellow green "George VI and Chinthes"

Burma received their own stamps ( with a George VI visage) on November 15, 1938.

The sixteen stamp issue was lithographed by Security Printing Press, Nasik. (Be aware that the 1a brown violet was also typographed: My 1a specimen appears to typographed.)

The eight stamps that were of (mostly) lower denominations had two local motif designs in the frames.

The one as above shows "Chinthes", a lion like creature that guards pagodas and temples.

1938 Scott 26 3a dark violet 

"Elephant Moving Teak Log"

The four middle denominations are pictorials, and in my opinion, the class of the lot.

Look at this image! I wish all British Commonwealth stamps were like this.

1938 Scott 30 1r bright ultramarine & dark violet

"George VI and Peacock"

The four higher denominations were bi-colored.

The 1r shows George VI enveloped in a peacock!

Official 1939 Scott O19 1 1/2a turquoise green

Regular Issue of 1938 overprinted in black

The Official stamps were made by taking stamps from the 1938 issue and overprinting them in black. This 1939 Official issue consists of 13 stamps.

Note the "Nagas", divine serpent beings of Buddhist mythology,  along the frame

1945 Scott 41 2a carmine "George VI and Nagas"

1928-40 Issue stamps overprinted "Mily Admn" in black

From May, 1942 until November 1, 1944, Japanese occupation occurred, with stamps issued by them or their surrogates.

The British Military began plans for liberation in 1943, with operations against the Japanese increasing toward the latter half of 1944.

Postal services for the civilian population started in April, 1945, with Mandalay (June 8) and Rangoon (June 16) opening on the dates noted.

The British Military Administration continued through the end of 1945. The stamp issues of 1938-40  (16 stamps) were overprinted in black "Mily Admn", and released in 1945.

1945 Scott 46 8a slate green 

"Sailboat on Irrawaddy River"

1928-40 Issue stamps overprinted "Mily Admn" in black

CV for the 16 stamp issue ranges from <$1 to $2+.

Irrawaddy River Map

The Irrawaddy flows North-South in Burma (Myanmar), and is still today a very important commercial waterway.

1946 Scott 53 9p dull green

Types of 1938

On January 1,1946,  a "Types of 1938" issue, namely in different colors than the 1938 issue but using the same designs, was released. The issue consisted of 14 lithographic stamps, with the 15th stamp (1a deep blue) printed using typography.

1946 Scott 58 3a blue violet "Burma Teak"

Types of 1938

The issue has a CV ranging from <$1 to $25.

Note the fabulous blue violet color on this three annas! Normally, I'm not much of a fan of lithography during the classical era compared to engraving (tends to lack detail,  have a dull washed out look, and subject to easy forging), but this design/execution/printing is great!

Official 1946 Scott O34 4a rose lilac

1946 "Types of 1938" regular issue

Overprinted in Black

Official stamp were produced using the 1946 regular issue by overprinting "service" in black.

A thirteen stamp Official issue was released in 1946.

Official 1946 Scott O38 8a deep magenta

1946 "Types of 1938" regular issue

Overprinted in Black

CV for the 1946 Official issue ranges from <$1 to $20.

1946 Scott 69 3a6p ultramarine

"Elephant Hauling Teak"

Victory of Allied Nations in WWII

On May 2, 1946, a four stamp issue was published celebrating the victory of the Allies.

This would prove to be the last issue for the British administration.

1947 Scott 74 1 1/2a salmon

1946 Issue Overprinted in Black

On October 1, 1947, a 15 stamp issue was released with a Burmese inscription overprint "Interim (Burmese) Government".

The overprint was applied to the 1936 regular issue.

1947 Scott 76 2a6p greenish blue "Royal Barge'

1946 Issue Overprinted in Black

CV ranges from <$1 to $8+.

1947 Scott 82 2r salmon & red brown

1946 Issue Overprinted in Black

The higher denominations still show George VI, but with an overprint applied.  British Rule had seen better days.

Official 1947 Scott O46 1a deep blue

Regular 1947 overprinted issue with

Additional "Service" OP in Black

Likewise, "Service" stamps were created.

Official 1947 Scott O55 10r dark violet & carmine

Regular 1947 overprinted issue with

Additional "Service" OP in Black

The 13 stamp Official issue of 1947 has a CV of <$1-$20+.

Note the "Nats" (Spirits), which are worshiped as part of Buddhism, depicted along the stamp frame here. Nats consist of 37 Great Nats (human beings who met violet death ("green death"), and the rest (spirit of trees, water etc).

Deep Blue

Burma 1946 Official Issue

Regular Issue of 1946 Overprinted

Deep Blue (Steiner)  has nine pages for the 1937-47 stamps issued by the British administration. All of the Scott major numbers have a space.

1946 Scott 59 3a6p ultramarine & gray black

"Farmer Plowing Rice Field"

Types of 1938

Out of the Blue
Burma (and Myanmar) are fascinating countries made more so by their self imposed isolation. The stamps likewise.

Next post: Burma Part 2 -  Japanese occupation stamps of 1942-1944, and the issues of the independent Republic from 1948-1949.

Note: "Irrawaddy" Map appears to be in the public domain.
Burma Map - Stamp World History: Through prior correspondence, I had obtained general permission from Gerben to use his maps.

Links
Burma - Bud's Big Blue

Comments appreciated!

Hejaz - Bud's Big Blue

Currently available for £5000 or, for T. E. Lawrence’s personal copy, £30,000¹

Bud's Big Blue
Bud's Observations

A recipe for Hejaz stamps:

·         mix equal measures of romance, mystery and intrigue;

·         add a gutsy British hero astride a camel in the Arabian desert who, among other daring-dos, designs stamps;

·         season with liberal dashes of World War I skullduggery and chicanery;

·         serve with arabesque flourishes to the Grand Sherif of Mecca, aspiring King of all Arabs, in a full-color hand-sewn pamphlet.

The Grand Sherif was Sayyid Hussein bin Ali and the hero was the legendary Lawrence of Arabia. Lawrence meant these first stamps to promote the new nation of Hejaz that resulted from Hussein’s “Great Arab Revolt” (1916) and to celebrate its escape from Ottoman and German clutches.

Alas, the fortunes of kings and heroes abate. Hussein’s Nejdi neighbors (the house of Saud) took offence at his proclaiming himself to be King of all Arabs, so they drove him out in 1925. Hejaz stamps, both the ones Lawrence designed and those with elaborate Arabic tracery and colored overprints that followed (see supplement pages), became worthless, except to us collectors.

Lawrence, while remaining enormously popular, fell into disgrace of a sort, too. After he died in a motorcycle accident in 1935, disputes arose about his final resting place. His elaborate sarcophagus ended up in tiny Saint Martin’s Church, Dorset. The church warden said of it, "The effigy was actually made for St Paul’s Cathedral in London. I think the political unrest surrounding his death meant that they wouldn't accept him. He was then offered to Westminster Abbey and they wouldn't accept him. Then he was offered to Salisbury Cathedral and they wouldn't accept him. That's why he came to St Martin's. They had to put him somewhere." ²

Curiously, the Royal Mail has commemorated a movie about Lawrence, but not Lawrence himself. Saudi Arabia, no surprise, has done neither.

¹A Short Note on the Design and Issue of Postage Stamps. Prepared by the Survey of Egypt for His Highness Husein. Emir & Sherif of Mecca & King of the Hejaz. With a brief introduction, unsigned, but by Sir Henry MacMahon, and an account of the technical and political history of the issue. Offered by Maggs Bros., Limited, Rare Books and Manuscripts (GB).

² Quoted by Mike Perry. http://www.67notout.com/2012/01/te-lawrence-and-law-of-oppulence.html

Jim's Observations
Of interest, the 1947 Scott catalogue maintained separate Hejaz and Nejd sections, because of the dual character of the Kingdoms. The '41/'47 Big Blues also have dual entries for Hejaz and Nejd. By 1969, Big Blue had shrunk the Hejaz section from one page to two lines, and renamed the Nejd section "Saudi Arabia".

The 2011 Scott Classic Specialized catalogue has all the iterations of the Kingdoms under "Saudi Arabia", and so the blog post (link below) covers all the stamp issues beginning in 1916.

Hejaz (Saudi Arabia) Blog Post and BB Checklist

Page 1

Supplements
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Page 2

Comments appreciated!

Lawrence of Arabia Sarcophagus

Saint Martin's Church, Dorset

Hawaii - Bud's Big Blue

Missionary Stamp

Bud's Big Blue
Bud's Observations

Hawaii stamps have become a philatelic obsession. The tonnage of printers’ ink lavished on articles about them no doubt exceeds the Kilauea’s output. “Post Office in Paradise,” a web site, gives helpful guidance for anyone exploring this immense literature (http://www.hawaiianstamps.com).

First prize in any Hawaii collection goes to the “missionary stamps.” Alas, I have none, although a few tattered earlies top the supplement page, including Koloa star and paquebot cancels. 

The missionary stamps are so called because they were issued by/for American and British missionaries who were introducing Hawaiian natives to Christianity. First came the New England congregationalists, shortly to be followed by others. Their pious efforts took root. The original congregational churches are still there, now affiliated with the United Church of Christ. Some were founded by Hawaiian royalty and some still conduct services in the native language.

Not able to afford a real missionary (they cost more than a rock-star evangelist’s salary), I’ll someday settle for some five-buck forgeries, perhaps one by the Spiro Brothers.

Census: 33 in BB spaces, one tip-in, 22 on the supplement page.

Jim's Observations
Of Polynesian settlement, Hawaii were first called the "Sandwich Islands" after the British explorer James Cook named them as such in 1778.

The inhabited islands all became under the ruler King Kamehameha in 1810, and the House of Kamehameha ruled the kingdom until 1872.

But the death of King Kamehameha V, who did not have an heir, lead to the passing of governance to the House of Kalakaua in 1874.

However, King David Kalakaua was forced to sign the "Bayonet Constitution" in 1887, so called because of the threat of violence, which eliminated much of the King's authority.

After his death in 1891, his sister, Queen Liluokalani, ascended the throne.  But a group of pro-American business leaders and residents overthrew the Kingdom in 1893, and proposed annexation to the United States. As one can imagine, this is still a sore point with many Hawaiians.

A Provisional Government was set up in 1893, and applied for annexation. But President Grover Cleveland and others were reluctant, as many held the belief that the overthrow was illegal.

The Republic of Hawaii was formed on July 4, 1894 , a not coincidental date.  After McKinley became president in 1896, annexation was again proposed. In 1898, the islands became the Territory of Hawaii.

Hawaii Blog Post and BB Checklist

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1a

1b

1c

1d

Supplements
Page 1

Comments appreciated!

Errors, Freaks, and Oddities Collecting

Error Vertical Perforation Cut on

1914 Mexico Scott 369 5c gray green "Coat of Arms'

Redrawn, Perf 12

Into the Deep Blue
Every collector comes across a stamp, at times, that does not look ordinary, or has something "different" about it. It looks "odd", or freakish, or might even appear to be an error.

Something clearly went wrong in the production of the stamp.

You might become curious as to what happened. You might wonder if it is "worth" anything. Are there other collectors that like this kind of thing too? You might even consider becoming an EFO collector.

Welcome to the world of Errors, Freaks, and Oddities!

There is even a long established stamp society for this: The Errors, Freaks, and Oddities Collectors Club.

1909 Liberia 119a 15c indigo & black

"Vai Woman Spinning Cotton"

Center Inverted

Perhaps, for most collectors, the most interesting error that comes to  mind are the center inverts. This can occur when a stamp goes through the printing process twice: once for the frame, and once for the center vignette/scene, and the center or frame plate is inverted.

1911 Guatemala 142a 5p red & black

"President Manuel Estrada Cabrera"

Center Inverted

Quite spectacular.

In truth, inverts are fairly rare (and valuable- think "Inverted Jenny" of 1918), at least among philatelic nations with high quality control.

Among other nations where philatelic shenanigans are tolerated,  perhaps not so much.. ;-)

In reality, I think of inverted center stamps as part of mainstream philately, and not just for EFO fanatics.

1855 Sweden Tri-Skilling Yellow Color error

From the Internet - not mine!

A genuine color error on a stamp - not just a shade or changeling- is also rare and valuable. This can occur when a color intended for another denomination is used by mistake.

November 16, 1962 USA Scott 1204 4c black, brown, & yellow

"Dag Hammarskjold" Special Printing Issue

Yellow Inverted and Shifted to the Right

Color mistakes (errors) can be found on late 20th century stamps too, here the USA 1962 "Dag Hammarskjold", printed by the Giori press on October 23, 1962. The yellow color is inverted, and shifted to the right.

After discovery, a deliberate "mistake" special printing was released November 16, 1962. The original 10-23-1962 "mistake" stamps can only be authenticated if on cover with a postal date prior to 11-16-1962.

I remember the excitement in the philatelic community, and even the general public!, when the original error stamps were discovered (Front page news!). And what a "downer" it was when deliberate error stamps were produced. 

1956 Russia Scott 1860 40k emerald "Makhmed Alazov"

Two lines in 148 panel (TII) rather than three lines (TI)

Errors sometime occur when the printing on the stamp is found not correct, and a subsequent corrective stamp is then issued.

Here, the "error" stamp had two lines of Cyrillic script in the "148" panel, while the corrective stamp has three lines. The Scott catalogue lists these variations as Type II and Type I respectively.

1959 USA  Scott J89 1c carmine rose

Wildly off-center, no?

The stamp itself is printed by rotary press. But the denomination for the stamp is added by using rubber plates in an operation similar to precanceling.

If I was a mainstream collector, I would want a nicely centered specimen. An EFO collector might like this.

1928 Canada Scott 154 8c blue "King George V"

Right "8" with "black holes"?

Much of EFO collecting is sorting through specimens looking for production errors. Here, the left "8" has three black marks. Looks intriguing, but I think those marks were left by the cancel - an oddity. If it was a production error, it could be a one-off (a freak), or a repetitive error on one or more stamps of the sheet. If the latter, then the Scott catalogue might be interested!!, and you  might have a find!

India Hyderabad 1934 Scott O50  4A ultramarine

"Reservoir for City Hyderabad'

Engraved; "4 Annas" improperly printed

Plate wear can lead to "errors". Here the "4 Annas" on the left side panel is not well printed. This might be of interest to a specialist, or an EFO collector.

1903 USA Scott 304 5c blue "Lincoln"

Most of us look for well centered stamps.  But sometimes the stamp is so badly centered, it becomes interesting.

1967 USA Scott 1294 $1 dull purple 

"Eugene O'Neil'

So bad that it is good from an EFO point of view.

1882 USA Scott 1950 20c blue

"Franklin Delano Roosevelt"

I wonder if this is printer's waste? Probably not, but not a good day for "quality control" at the post office.

1932 Lithuania Scott 265 bister & orange brown

"Vytautas Fleeing from Prison"

Now this is probably printer's waste. Many "shenanigan" countries do seem to get stuff like this out into the philatelic community.

1882 New Zealand Scott 61 1p rose "Victoria"

Imprint gutter - or not

This was labeled in the album as showing an "imprint gutter". I don't think so - looks like the frame of the next stamp.

1935 Paraguay Scott O98 2.50p violet

Imperf rather than Perf 11

The Paraguay Scott O98 is only catalogued as Perf 11. This imperf specimen is either printer's waste, or unauthorized, - or possibly a cover/envelope stamp? (Scott doesn't cover envelope stamps for non-USA countries.)

1928 Guatemala Scott 230a 1/2c on 2p orange

"National Observatory"

Blue  & Inverted Surcharge

Lots of EFO hunting among overprints/surcharged stamps, as that is a fruitful area for production errors.

This is an example of an inverted surcharge. Inverted printing/surcharges can at times be rare, but more commonly, it is so frequent that there is no or very little added value.

1903 Panama Scott 79 10c yellow

"Map of Panama"

Overprint in Red: Part of "P"(right) and "M"(left) missing

Close inspection reveals lacunae among the overprint.

British Guiana 1890 Scott 150 1c on $3 green & black

Red Surcharge: Broken "C" on Surcharge

The broken "C": a freak or a repetitive error on part of the sheet?

Not listed in Stanley Gibbons, so probably a one-off.

1902-03 Iceland Scott O22 5a brown

"02-03" Op in Black: Here "02" appears to be "09"

OP looks like a "09"? 

1917 Trinidad & Tobago Scott MR5 1p scarlet

Part of "A" in "TAX' missing

Missing part of "A" in "TAX". A freak (one-off).

1948 Jordan Palestine Scott N6 4m deep yellow green

"Amir Abdullah ibn Hussein"

Red OP, Part of "Palestine" OP missing

Not well printed.

1882 Switzerland Scott 84 40c gray "Helvetia"

Large Numerals, "Two Crosses" !!

Here is an oddity: Two crosses! Actually, the second cross is part of the cancel.

Liberia 111a $1 rose & gray "Mercury"

Center Inverted

Out of the Blue

Does EFO collecting excite you or bore you to tears?

I admit it does a little of both for me.

Note: The scan of the Sweden Tri-Skilling yellow, which is unique and a great rarity ($3,000,000), is obviously from the internet, and the scan appears to be part of the public domain.

Comments appreciated!