Bhubaneswar, May 16 -- Two rare pre-stamp postal covers from Odisha have fetched record prices at a recent auction conducted by the US-based Siegel Auction Gallery, philately experts said.
The covers, part of the prestigious Magnolia Collection of Indian Postal Stationery, belong to the pre-stamp era when postage stamps had not yet been introduced and postal charges were prepaid by the sender.
One of the covers, an official folded letter posted from Puri on May 2, 1838, was sold for USD 950 (around Rs 1.2 lakh). The cover, addressed to P. DaCosta, bears an oval hand stamp reading "POOREE/FREE", reflecting the spelling used during the East India Company period.
Another rare cover posted from Sambalpur on September 3, 1850 and addressed to...