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| 1913, Ceres |
This a Post Independence stamp of PORTUGUESE INDIA, Ceres 6 Ries brown 1913
PORTUGUESE INDIA, Ceres 6 Ries brown 1913
- Motive: Ceres brown 1913
- Year: 1913
- Text: INDIA, 6 Rs CORREIO REPVBLICA PORTUGUESA
- Watermark:
- Perforation:
- Condition: Ø = used/cancelled
- Keywords: PORTUGUESE INDIA, Ceres 6 Ries brown 1913
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The currency used on stamps was Rupia, Tanga & Reis
A brief monetary history:
- Rupia = 16 Tanga = 960 Reis, 1881- 1958
- Escudo (6 Escudo = 1 Rupia) =100 Centavos, 1958-1962
The Portuguese Viceroyalty of India (Portuguese: Vice-Reino da Índia Portuguesa), later the Portuguese State of India(Portuguese: Estado Português da Índia), was the aggregate of Portugal's colonial holdings in India.
The government started in 1505, six years after the discovery of a sea route to India by Vasco da Gama, with the nomination of the first Viceroy Francisco de Almeida, then settled at Cochin. Until 1752, the "State of India" included all Portuguese possessions in the Indian Ocean, from southern Africa to Southeast Asia, governed by either a Viceroy or a Governor from headquarters established in Goa since 1510. In 1752 Mozambique got its own government and in 1844 the Portuguese Government of India stopped administering the territory of Macau, Solor and Timor, being then confined to Malabar.
At the time of British India's independence in 1947, Portuguese Indiaincluded a number of enclaves on India's western coast, including Goa proper, as well as the coastal enclaves of Daman (Port: Damão) and Diu, and the enclaves of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, which lie inland from Daman. The territories of Portuguese India were sometimes referred to collectively as Goa. Portugal lost the last two enclaves in 1954, and finally the remaining three in December 1961, when they were taken back by India after military action (although Portugal only recognized Indian control in 1975, after the Carnation Revolution and the fall of the Estado Novo regime).
Ceres series (Portugal)
The Ceres series of Portuguese postage stamps is a definitive series depicting the Romangoddess Ceres that was issued between 1912 and 1945 in Portugal and its colonies.
The Ceres stamps were the first issued after the proclamation of the Portuguese Republic, superseding stamps figuring king Manuel II that had been overprinted with the word "República" 1910-1911.
Drawn by Constantino de Sobral Fernandes and engraved by José Sérgio de Carvalho e Silva, the design represents the goddess Ceres, standing and looking forward, holding abillhook in one hand and a sheaf of grain in the other. The inscriptions are "REPUBLICA PORTUGUESA" and "CORREIO" (for Portuguese Republic and Post). It was printed in typography by the Portuguese mint, Casa da Moeda.
The series were issued between February 16, 1912 and 1931. During their period of issue, they went through several changes:
§ 1918-1919 - overprint with new denominations
§ 1929 - overprint "Revalidado"
§ 1930 - re-engraving by Arnoldo Fragoso
The 1926 series was printed in lithography, engraved by Eufénio Carlo Alberto Merondi and printed by the British firm De La Rue. The author's names are not printed on this series.
The Ceres stamps were declared obsolete September 30, 1945, having been superseded in 1943 by the Caravel series of definitives.
Ceres stamps were issued in the Portuguese colonies as well, in a key plate design with the denominations and name of the colony printed in black.
However, in the Azores and Madeira Islands, the Ceres stamps in use were Portuguese ones overprinted with the archipelago's name. In 1928, Madeira received intaglio printed stamps with typographic denominations; they were made by Perkins BaconinLondon.
Postage stamps and postal history
Main article: Postage stamps and postal history of Portuguese India
Early postal history of the colony is obscure, but regular mail is known to have been exchanged with Lisbon from 1825 on. Portugal had a postal convention with Great Britain, so much mail was probably routed through Bombay and carried on British packets. Portuguese postmarks are known from 1854, when a post office was opened in Goa. An extraterritorial British post office also was located in Damaun, selling British Indian postage stamps, between 1854 and November, 1883. British Indian stamps were available from the Portuguese post office at Goa, as well, from 1854 until 1877. A Portuguese post office opened at Diu in 1880.[15]
The first postage stamps of Portuguese India were issued 1 October 1871 for local use.[16] These were issued for local use within the colony. Portugal had a postal convention with Great Britain, so mail was routed through Bombay and carried on British packets. Stamps of British India were required for overseas mail.
The design of the 1871 stamps simply consisted of a denomination in the centre, with an oval band containing the inscriptions "SERVIÇO POSTAL" and "INDIA POST". In 1877, Portugal included India in its standard "crown" issue and from 1886 on, the pattern of regular stamp issues followed closely that of the other Portuguese colonies, the main exception being a series of surcharges in 1912 produced by perforating existing stamps vertically through the middle and overprinting a new value on each side.
During the World War I Portugal joined the Allies, which resulted in confiscating 6 merchant vessels (5 German and 1 Austrian) anchored in Marmugao port in Goa. The sailors were provided the status of "War Internees" and were allowed to correspond with their families via postal mail system, with a caveat of censorship of mails, both ways. These "War Internee" covers (Mid 1916 up to end of 1919) bearing censorship marks of Portuguese and French military authorities are considered Portuguese India philatelists' delight.
The last regular issue for Portuguese India was on 25 June 1960, for the 500th anniversary of the death of Prince Henry the Navigator. Stamps of India were first used 29 December 1961, although the old stamps were accepted until 5 January 1962. Portugal continued to issue stamps for the lost colony but none were offered for sale in the colony's post offices, so they are not considered valid stamps.
Dual franking was tolerated from December 22, 1961 until January 4, 1962. Colonial (Portuguese) postmarks were tolerated until May 1962. Portuguese India stamps were available for sale up to December 28, thus the period up to January 4 was an attempt to use up stocks in private hands. After January 4, Portuguese India stamps were completely invalid or demonetised.
Outstanding stocks of charity tax stamps were overprinted for fiscal use, but not used. Portuguese India fiscals were overprinted in early 1962 in paisa and rupees and extensively used.
One of the prominent citizens from Panaji, Mr. Carvalho created several combination covers, using low face value definitives of Union of India and Portuguese India, on each of the days up to January 4 including Christmas Day 1961. Most were readdressed to his daughter in pen. Due to the absence of back-stamps or circular date stamps (CDSs) denoting their arrival, it's unlikely that any of these went through the mail. Several unaddressed envelopes are to be found with similar combinations of Portuguese India and Union of India stamps in this time frame, the challenge being to obtain a postmark from each of the different days. Obtaining covers from late January to May 1962 with Portuguese India postmarks has proved to be quite difficult. These covers are scarce, but they don't command high prices, which is good for the collector, but not for the speculator. Much more scarce are the Prisoner Of War (PoW) covers sent by Portuguese civilian internees from Goa to Portugal between late December 1961 and March 1962. These were free franked covers with appropriate markings and command a high premium.
Portuguese India philately started with combination covers (British India) and ended with combination covers (Sovereign India).
Portuguese Stamp
Portugal's national stamp and postal systems went through a profound series of changes during the 1850s. Portuguese stamp collectors should familiarize themselves with the following terms. The words ''stamp'' in Portuguese is ''selo.'' The word ''collection'' in Portuguese is ''colecao.'' People who collect Portuguese cover stamps should also familiarize themselves with the concept of ''usados'' stamps.During its heyday as a minor European colonial power, Portugal maintained governmental authority over dozens of nations and micro-nations throughout the world. The home government set up postal bureaucracies in these countries, but, unsurprisingly, Portuguese stamp forgeries and corruption abounded. A very good book on the subject of postal malfeasances throughout the Portuguese empire is ''Forgeries of Portugal and Its Colonies,'' a well researched treatise published in 2002 by a man named D. J. Davies.Consider the Azores, one of Portugal's most treasured island possessions. Some of the most interesting postal stamps from the Azores are the ''Vasco da Gama,'' which was printed in 1898 and the ''King Manual'' and ''King Carlos'' issues, which went into printing in the early 20th-century. Azores stamp collectors should be aware that there are three main postal districts which printed stamps during the late 1800s.These three districts sold stamps for approximately 25 reis during the 1890s and early 1900s. You can tell stamps from these districts apart because each stamp series features a unique coloration. Look for the overprinted ''continente'' to tell these districts stamps apart from continental Portuguese stamps. In 1980, the Azores postal service released its first unique set in decades.
