Crown Agents Philatelic and Security Printing Archive
Encyclopedia
The Crown Agents Philatelic and Security Printing Archive was deposited with the British Museum
(later becoming the British Library
) from the 1960s, though the first recorded deposit from the Crown Agents was in 1900. The archive consists of a range of philatelic and written material which were the Crown Agents working records. It is the most comprehensive record of British Colonial and Commonwealth issues of the last 100 years.
This is a current archive and is continually receiving deposits, mainly stamps, miniature sheet
s, stamp booklets, and proofs.
Stamps that were never issued include the Malayan Union and Singapore Peace Commemorative stamps of 1946, which were not issued for local political reasons, and the Jamaica 1954 £1 Queen Elizabeth definitive in the design of the earlier King George VI issue.
There are revenue stamp
s from many territories, which because they were often only printed in small quantities, and few survive, are classed amongst the World’s great philatelic rarities. Examples include the Nyasaland 1938 £10 King George VI revenue stamp, and the Swaziland £5 Queen Elizabeth II revenue stamp of 1956.
orders, circa 1921 to 1968, plate issue books for a similar period, and paper issue records from 1940 to the late 1960’s.
The Archive contains examples of postal stationery
, including postal order
s and paper money printed in the United Kingdom mainly for British Commonwealth countries.
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
(later becoming the British Library
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and is the world's largest library in terms of total number of items. The library is a major research library, holding over 150 million items from every country in the world, in virtually all known languages and in many formats,...
) from the 1960s, though the first recorded deposit from the Crown Agents was in 1900. The archive consists of a range of philatelic and written material which were the Crown Agents working records. It is the most comprehensive record of British Colonial and Commonwealth issues of the last 100 years.
This is a current archive and is continually receiving deposits, mainly stamps, miniature sheet
Miniature sheet
A souvenir sheet or miniature sheet is a small group of postage stamps still attached to the sheet on which they were printed. They may be either regular issues that just happen to be printed in small groups , or special issues often commemorating some event, such as a national anniversary,...
s, stamp booklets, and proofs.
Postage stamps
The Archive contains a number of the World’s most notable postage stamp varieties, including for example, the Fiji 1878-99, 2d error of colour, being blue instead of green, and the Gold Coast 1889-94, Queen Victoria 20s. green and red.Stamps that were never issued include the Malayan Union and Singapore Peace Commemorative stamps of 1946, which were not issued for local political reasons, and the Jamaica 1954 £1 Queen Elizabeth definitive in the design of the earlier King George VI issue.
There are revenue stamp
Revenue stamp
A revenue stamp, tax stamp or fiscal stamp is a adhesive label used to collect taxes or fees on documents, tobacco, alcoholic drinks, drugs and medicines, playing cards, hunting licenses, firearm registration, and many other things...
s from many territories, which because they were often only printed in small quantities, and few survive, are classed amongst the World’s great philatelic rarities. Examples include the Nyasaland 1938 £10 King George VI revenue stamp, and the Swaziland £5 Queen Elizabeth II revenue stamp of 1956.
Written records
The written records include requisition books for colonial governmentColonialism
Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is a process whereby the metropole claims sovereignty over the colony and the social structure, government, and economics of the colony are changed by...
orders, circa 1921 to 1968, plate issue books for a similar period, and paper issue records from 1940 to the late 1960’s.
The Archive contains examples of postal stationery
Postal stationery
A piece of postal stationery is a stationery item, such as a stamped envelope, letter sheet, postal card, lettercard, aerogram or wrapper, with an imprinted stamp or inscription indicating that a specific rate of postage or related service has been prepaid...
, including postal order
Postal Order
In the United Kingdom , a Postal Order is used for sending money through the mail. In the United States, this is known as a Postal money order...
s and paper money printed in the United Kingdom mainly for British Commonwealth countries.