Sudan's First Stamps

Sudan used stamps of Egypt until 1897, when she issued her first set. These are stamps of Egypt originally issued in 1881 and 1888, overprinted bilingually in French and Arabic.

The Stanley Gibbons catalogue says that "There are six varieties of the overprint on each value" but rather unhelpfully doesn't give any more details. This short presentation gives you all the details SG don't want to tell you.

Great post Tim.
Well done you.

My only overprint, and Rick Scott's commentary.

See Tony Mac's contribution.

https://goscf.com/t/12129&whichpage=2#110059

Rod, thanks for the thread. It's jogged the memory banks to make a note and get the B&K catalogue some time.

My only overprint, and Rick Scott's commentary.
Dear Rod222,
Regrettably, the TEL overprint on a 3 mil Egyptian Provisional is a forgery. The SOUDAN overprint is also suspect, but difficult to be sure unless I can see it up close. The postmark is an ARMY TELEGRAPH and appears genuine, suggesting that the SOUDAN overprint is genuine as well.

It is believed that all TEL overprints were performed in a central location, probably Khartoum, using the same rubber stamp(s). Thus, it stands to reason that all TEL overprints would be the same. It in generally accepted that leg of the 'T' extends lower than the adjacent E and L. This is illustrated in the 5 mil value shown below your 3 mil value.

Thank you for your very interesting posts.

Thank you wlb,
no regrets here, It is nice to have a correct Identification.

I'll add your commentary to my Album Page, alongside the forgery.

That is a truly amazing collection and presentation. Reminds me a bit of how the info was presented in Stagg's 1977 monograph, long out of print. I've accumulated some of those stamps but some values are very scarce and difficult to locate in good condition. Some are also quite expensive, so you kind of have to know what you're getting vs. accumulating stamps blindly by mail order for future sorting. So to have found such high quality examples in strips showing the settings is at least for me, stunning. Breathtaking.

There was actually a reprint of Stagg's book by Peter Feltus, a prominent Egypt and Sudan author, study group leader (for 50 years!), and stamp seller out of California who passed away in 2012. Although Peter did not get permission from the Stagg family to reprint the monograph (despite trying he could not locate any family members), the preface to the book promised royalties for any sales if someone from the Stagg family came forward. I don't think Peter actually made any money on the book anyway but I felt lucky to have learned some things from Stagg's book.

Great post and I am very impressed with your stamps and presentation.

I really like your presentation, and you know the stamps of this period well. Any chance you are part of the SSG? If not, you should be.

My main interest is S Africa and Rhodesia, so I'm a member of SACS and RSC. Contemplating joining the East African Study Circle too...

I live in South Africa and Kenya for over 10 years. I have amassed a significant Union of South Africa Revenue collection. I also lived in Sudan for 5 years. The Sudan postal history is a fascinating subject. You should think seriously about adding the SSG to your list.

I'm guessing my 10 piastres (as well as a few others) are forgeries .

The 2 piastre seems suspect.

Agree - I don't like that one either. It has a Cairo cancel which must be wrong for this stamp ...

Most of these stamps appear to be Genuine, but there are very good forgeries that require a closer examination before they can be certified as 'Genuine'. Regrettably, it is the higher values that are most commonly forged.

wlbarclay Thank you very much! I greatly appreciate confirmation of the forgeries.

wlbarclay, I would agree with you, possibly adding the second 2 mme value as a bit suspect. There's something about the first 'S' in SOUDAN that makes me a little uneasy.