India Convention States Overprinted Postage Stamp

India · 1884 · Various

This stamp is an example from the Indian Convention States, which were princely states that had postal conventions with British India. Stamps of British India, typically featuring Queen Victoria, were overprinted with the name of the specific state, such as Gwalior, Patiala, or Jind, for use within that territory. The overprints were applied locally, leading to variations in type and placement.

From 1884 to 1950, several princely states under British suzerainty maintained their own postal systems for internal mail but used overprinted British India stamps for mail outside their borders, as per their postal conventions.