Thursday 27 June 2013

Some Labuan crowns


I like the Labuan crowns. They are handsome looking items but unfortunately a whole load were defaced by the 9 bar cancel used to produce CTO sheets at the London offices. I will try to show the various values with different markings or points of interest.

We have what looks like a Jesselton D3 on top of a probable Labuan cds. It would have been an arrival cancellation. However, these stamps would have been eligible for use in NB and vice versa.

A small part Labuan cds with an attractive part fiscal cancel. The letters looks like "Derry" or "Berry". Does anyone have information of a company of that name trading in Labuan at the dawn of the 20th century?
Update J O Keasberry probably a connection of the Keasberries working in NB, one of which was treasurer and then postmaster at Jesselton. In 1902, J P Keasberry was listed as a contractor, builder and agent on Parit Street, Labuan.

This is another Jesselton cancellation. They are not that uncommon on the Labuan crown stamps but seems uncommon for the other town postmarks of North Borneo.   It may have been due to the natural stronger commercial links between these 2 places.

A Singapore postmark would indicate either paquebot use or a cancellation on arrival. It seems to be common on this stamp as I have 2 other similar copies. At the date here of JU 13/1903, to UPU countries, the postcard rate was 4c and for letters 10c. The latter was reduced to 4c as well in August 1905.

The Labuan D6 (1898-1905) would be the most common cds on these used adhesives.

We have part of a not so clear D8 (1910-1913), the Post Office, Labuan cancellation. It would constitute a very late use of this issue as by 1907, Labuan was administrated as part of the Straits Settlements. The crown stamps were overprinted to reflect that.

Another D6 on the 16c stamp. There should be similar stamps with D7 cancellations as well.

This 25c stamp went a long way around the world to the very rare destination of the Falklands. There is a clear part arrival cds with a nice "Maltese" cross in addition to two part Labuan cancellations.
Update This is likely to be the Port Stanley cancellation. There were only 2 stamps with foreign cancellations in a reference collection of Falklands cancellations and they were both GB. The combination of postmarks on this stamp can be regarded as very rare unless it happens to be a Madame Joseph forgery.
Update It is likely to be a forgery, unfortunately.

We have a trio of mint $1 adhesives. The middle one has the normal perf of 14 and on either are perf 15s. The right adhesive was overprinted as part of SS in 1907. The perf 15 SS is a rare and valuable item.

A rarely seen multiple on piece of the 4c stamp. Again, we have D6 but not clear impressions. If these stamps were left on the cover, the value would have been 20 times or more.




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