NandgaonFirst Postage Stamp

If it looks fake, it's probably real

The tiny feudatory state of Nandgaon in Central India produced a first issue that sometimes catches collectors off guard. The set consists of two values: the ½ anna blue shown here and the 2 annas rose. Lithographed on white wove paper, they were imperforate and issued without gum. At first glance, this unusually large stamp has a rather bare design, with the state's name inside an oval and inscriptions in English and Hindi. For stamps more than 130 years old, genuine examples can look surprisingly fresh. Their bright paper, lack of gum and crude printing can easily raise doubts, but that stark appearance is exactly what you would expect. The exact date of Nandgaon’s first issue is not entirely settled, with references placing it in 1891 or 1892. I've taken the 1891 side of the debate, a date also used by several major catalogues and auction houses. Forgeries do exist. One common type replaces the expected "CP" (Central Provinces) with "OP", while the well-known stamp dealer and forger François Fournier is also reported to have reproduced this issue. Nandgaon's first stamps are not particularly rare unused, but genuinely postally used examples, especially on cover, are a different story.