Indian States - Revenue Issues

I have posted a few pictures of Court Fee Stamps. Is there a good reference book that anyone can suggest for identifying items like this?

Backroads, first the good news: yes, there is quite a good book on the subject. It's Court Fee and Revenue Stamps of the Princely States by Koeppel and Manners. Vol. 1, The Adhesive Stamps. However it's out of print, expensive, and the pricing is, let us say, based on what the stamps should sell for, rather than what they do. (You can usually take about 10% of the prices as fair.) A revised version has been under way for some time, by two different authors, but I have no idea when (or even if) it will appear.

Now the warning: The revenue stamps of the Indian States is a truly vast subject. Collectors have been known to enter unwarily, and never be seen again If you think the postage issues are complex ... Only around 40 states issued postage stamps, but way over 500 issued revenues of one sort or another, and they can be fiendishly complex.

To take just one example of many, Barwani issued its Court Fees with the year as part of the design during the '30s and '40s



So you'll need to collect all values for each year, for Court and Writing Fee types ... I once attempted to make sense of one issue of one type of Revenue stamp of Barwani here: http://www.stampboards.com/viewtopi...285&p=662922 which will give you some idea of the deep waters you're entering.

But, don't let me discourage you. It really is enormous fun, it produces fascinating looking items for your collection



and it isn't particularly expensive, given the extreme rarity of many of the stamps.

Go for it

as usual Tony forgot to mention the important news between him and me I dont think there is anything related to india we cant decipher we can even decipher the sea shell ccurrency for you but yes the rev receipts are a blackhole beware !

I am teetering on the edge of the event horizon.

I found a folder with couple hundred assorted "things" at the bottom of one of those large lots (Have I Got A Deal For You! 3 Humungous Cartons! Untouched! As received! Pristine Condition!) which I recently purchased and have an itch to find out something about them. Thanks for the title. I did a quick book search and found two copies, both over $100.00, which may be good for them but definitely not for me. Now, if I stumble across a ratty, dog-eared and annotated version for a greatly discounted rate, I may be on to my next five year plan.

where were you all these posts backroads? we sure missed a few gems :)

Where? Why, here in front of the computer. I joined in January and am a magpie type collector so I have a hoard of odd things that just have to be looked into. That and the fact I tend to blither on a bit. If it were coins, you could blame it on the bright and shiny things but my bits of paper occupy the same place.

so you dont collect coins?

Welll ...... Not really, most of the time, unless ..

go on ...