British India, 1854 (four annas)
A young queen’s head in blue inside a red octagonal frame.
Illustration of a historical stamp for learning, shown at screen size. Not valid for postage.
How to read it
INDIA at the top and FOUR ANNAS at the bottom of the octagon.
- 1INDIA
- 2FOUR ANNAS
- Inscription
- INDIA · FOUR ANNAS
- Meaning
- An anna was one sixteenth of a rupee.
- Issued by
- British India (East India Company)
- Today
- India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar
- Year
- 1854. 1854 issue, printed in Calcutta.
- Made by
- Captain Henry Thuillier, Deputy Surveyor-General, Survey Office (preparation / production supervision)
One fact
The four annas of 1854 was printed in two colours, a blue head in a red frame, and many were cut out in this octagon shape.
Source and public-domain rule
India, Government work published more than 60 years ago. Prepared by the government’s Survey Office in Calcutta and published 1854. Commons names Bartle Frere as author; Clarke’s 1921 history credits Captain Thuillier and the Survey Office, so the Government-work rule is used, not a personal life term. Copyright in a Government work, where the Government is the first owner, lasts sixty years from the beginning of the year after first publication. Indian postage stamps are made by or under the direction of the Government. Legal sources: Copyright Act 1957, s. 28 (Government works.
Scan: Stamp-India 4 Annas 1854.jpg on Wikimedia Commons (revision 1002297803), licence templates {{PD-old-100-expired}} (a public-domain reason different from ours; both are recorded). Downloaded 2026-10-21, sha256 7f23efdf9de7…; cropped and cleaned for this site. Facts checked 2026-10-22 against source 1 and source 2. Research record, not legal advice; a second check of these rights by a person is planned, and a stamp that turns out not to be free to use will be removed. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
