Early Postage Stamps of Hong Kong
Hong Kong must rank as one of the most philatelically conservative countries in the world. Adhesive stamps were adopted in 1862 and, for forty years, had the same design, with a profile of Queen Victoria in a simple frame inscribed in Chinese and English. The stamps were typographed by De La Rue who held the Hong Kong contracts, with one exception for exactly a century. The Victorian series went through variations of watermark – 1863 and 1882 – and countless nuances of shade, but it was the plethora of provisional surcharges, which relieved what might otherwise have been a very monotonous period.
Hong Kong was one of the earliest British colonies to release a commemorative series. The 2c definitive stamp was issued in January 1891 with a four-line overprint to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the British occupation. Apart from double overprints, examples with misshapen letters have been recorded. The overprint was applied to one row of stamps at a time and thus there are twelve varieties differing in minor details.
For the definitive series depicting King Edward VII, De La Rue abandoned the Victorian design and adopted a more elaborate style of frame and vignette. Printing the frame and vignette in different colours enlivened many of the stamps, though single working plates were used between 1907 and 1911. The first printings were on single watermarked paper but the multiple watermarks were introduced in 1904.
De La Rue modified the Edwardian series in 1912 to show a profile of King George V. At the same time, the inscriptions were redrawn and in some cases, the numerals of value were placed in the lower corners, replacing the ‘swastika’ shaped ornaments of the previous series. The original series, released between 1912 and 1921, was printed on multiple Crown CA paper.
De La Rue revived the Victorian design for the definitive series of 1938 portraying King George VI. The frame was modified to include two small crowns in the upper corners but otherwise the design was unchanged. A number of stamps were issued with new perforations in 1941. An increase in postal rates led to the introduction of the 8c denomination in November 1941. A month later, the Japanese invaded Hong Kong and British colonial stamps were withdrawn. The Georgian series was re-introduced after World War II and, with various changes of colour, was issued up to 1952.
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