Qv India Cancels... Fiscal? Parcel?

I've never seen such an odd combination of cancels before, especially the blue cancel. Is this some sort of fiscal or parcel use?

I just thought it was neat from an aesthetic perspective.

Thanks.

I suspect neither. Private marking ? I have what appears to be the exact same cancel on the exact same stamp.

The loop design within the blue circle is different.

I was referring to the Bombay cancel

This is probably a job for Tony Mac :)

I believe you both have security marks, forerunners to perfins. These general devices are common on India of this era.

Some of the examples you will run across look to be dead ringers for fiscal cancels, but if you have a postal cancel, too, then what you have is probably a security mark.

My 2d.

By the way, that block has a lot of eye appeal.

I'm sure this is indeed some sort of private security marking, to prevent theft.

It's worth remembering that 8 Annas was a fair amount of money - a couple of days' pay for an agricultural labourer, and probably a fair proportion of a day's pay for a postman. The temptation was there for the poorly paid minions, who handled the mail along the way, to remove the stamps. That was why so many letter writers in India at the time resorted to devices like company seals.

Theft prevention "B & Co"
Unproven, but maybe "Boustead & Co"

I'm with you all day long on the '& Co.' but there is a 'B' in there? Who knew?

...or maybe "F&Co"?

Black postmark is a duplex type 22 according to the classification of Winter Charles Renouf.

Similar, but different. I'm still thinking it might be something other than a "B" and my first guess is also "F".