Why collect North Borneo Stamps?
A brief survey of its stamps from 1883 to 1931
By Liau Fah Onn
North Borneo was a little known British territory in the northern part of Borneo which is the third largest island in the world. It is now known as Sabah after it became part of Malaysia in 1963. This exotic land was unusually governed by a British Company under Royal Charter. So it was run like a business and this was a very significant factor in the issuances, overprints and designs of North Borneo stamps.
Collectors would undoubtedly be fascinated by the originality and variety of the very visually appealing stamps which are available. Many of the stamps would also provide a strong thematic interest.
The History
Not a lot was known about North Borneo prior to the 19th century. The impression was that it was a land of very dense jungle and mangrove swamps which was inhabited by fierce natives, many who were head hunters and an abundance of exotic wildlife and plants. The west coast was dominated by a tall mysterious mountain, which according to beliefs of a Chinese origin, was guarded at the summit by a dragon. Meanwhile, the seas around North Borneo were thought to be full of marauding pirates.
The history of British rule began with the landing of a company resident on the remote island of Timbang within Sandakan Bay in January 1878. This was an abandoned settlement formerly used by German adventurers and traders. It was known as Germantown but the natives referred to it as Sandakan.
The resident was William Pryer, a truly remarkable individual who through empathy and respect of native culture and beliefs was able to command the trust of the natives and administer the large region around Sandakan singlehandedly until it was fully established. However, after a fire in 1879, Sandakan was moved to its present location near to the entrance of the bay. Sandakan was the capital from 1883 to 1946.
The Stamps
The first issue of stamps followed the establishment of post offices in 1883. This 2c. value was a simple and yet sophisticated design based on the coat of arms of the British North Borneo Company, most unusually with the three locally recognised written scripts of Jawi, Chinese and English.
The issues up until 1894 together with the high values were printed in lithograph by Blades, East and Blades, London.
The first stamp of 2c. brown was soon overprined to the value of eight cents for mail beyond North Borneo. The initial overprint of 8 cents was very soon replaced by a clearer overprint of EIGHT CENTS. There are many forgeries. Genuine mint and used copies of these two stamps are uncommon to very rare.
These are the first two high value stamps issued in 1883. Used copies are very rare. The usage was mostly fiscal even though a small proportion were used for parcel post. The design is again based on the coat of arms. A large part of the printing was cancelled-to-order with a 14 bar obliterate cancellation to satisfy the philatelic market at low prices.
Some varieties, errors and rarities
This is the 1886 overprint showing a pair of the 4c. pink value with the “smaller” or “antique” 3 variety on the left. The 1886 issue has a series of six low value stamps all based on the design of the first stamp except for the value tablets.
The 1886-87 issue consisted of both low and high values up to two dollars. This strip of three of the 4c. stamp has the error with the tablet values of the 1c. stamp in the middle. This issue has Postage located below the coat of arms.
Most of the early stamps also exist in the form of proofs and colour trials. The paper used could be different or they could be without gum. This is a pair of imperforated plate proofs of the 1889 $10 high value. The stamp on the left has the TEN DOLLAPS error towards the bottom. They were cancelled with bars to prevent fraudulent usage.
On 1 January 1891, North Borneo became a member of the Universal Postal Union (UPU). From April to June of that year, a 6c. stamp was required for postcards travelling to Great Britain and some other countries. Only 1 sheet of 50 stamps of the 1886 8c. green was overprinted. Less than half of these survived to this day, making it one of the most desired and expensive stamps of North Borneo. The example shown has the typical postal bar cancellation which was used until 1894.
The Stamps from 1894
From 1894, the printers were Waterlow & Sons, even though the high values issue of 1894 was still printed by Blades. The subsequent issues until 1963 were mostly sourced from Waterlow & Sons. Instead of the lithographic process used by Blades, Waterlow recess printed the frame and the vignette or centre of the stamp separately in different colours. Recess printed or line engraved stamps are characterised by slightly raised ink and crisp detail. Moreover, the engravers at Waterlow were also able to produce outstanding and beautiful designs.
This beautiful set of stamps had a mixed reception because the designs were most unusual in comparison to other stamps of that period. It was a break with tradition in which colonial stamps of this period only portrayed the Sovereign’s features. Three engravers from Waterloo worked on these nine stamps. They were Joseph Rapkin Senior, Joseph Rapkin Junior and James Bain. They broke with tradition by letting the vignette design breaking the frame line as seen on the 5c. and 12c. stamps.
Previously, the convention was to maintain an intact rigid frame line. The tail feathers of the vignette of the 5c. Great Argus pheasant cut into the upper frame line. Similarly on the 12c. Estuarine Crocodile, the fearsome tail is not constricted and breaks into the frame line on the left. This was most unprecedented. The renowned British philatelic writer, L. Norman Williams described this 1894 set as the ‘forerunner of modern pictorial stamps.’
Due to oversight, the 1894 set left out the Chinese and Jawi language tablets. This was rectified by the 1897-1902 issue which also expanded to a set of 12 values. The original designs were retained with some changes as can be seen above in the 12c. and 18c. values. The additional attractive designs were again executed to a very high standard as seen above on the 10c. Sun Bear and 16c. Train stamps. This set was later subjected to various surcharges and overprints and the reasons for doing so were unclear.
The 1909 pictorial set of twelve values follow a more conventional line. The designs of the frame and vignette are more rigid and relatively lacking in ingenuity. They were supposed to depict local scenes, flora and fauna.
However, the designers exceed their remit by including fauna which were not indigenous to North Borneo. For example, the Tapir on the 1c. stamp is found in Malaya and not North Borneo. Similarly, the 12c. Palm Cockatoo is native to New Guinea and Australia. The small Asiatic Elephant on the 5c. stamp is now endangered and exists in small numbers. The Rhinoceros Hornbill on the 16c. is also found in the other parts of Borneo.
Later in 1909, a set of high values from 25c. to $10 was issued, again prepared and printed by Waterlow & Sons. These are some of the most beautiful stamps with designs based on the coat of arms of North Borneo with particular praise for the $5 and $10 values. The vignettes are in black and the surrounding in various attractive colours. Different colour shades and gauged perforations also exist.
Both the 1909 pictorials and high values were surcharged and overprinted variously and to a certain extent in subsequent years to aid the WWI effort and also to commemorate the great exhibition in London in 1922.
Shown on the left are 1916 Maltese Cross overprints in bright vermillion and dull carmine. They were in aid of the Red Cross and St. John Ambulance during WWI. The Bornean Rhinoceros shown on this 6c. stamp was a subspecies of the Sumatran Rhinoceros is unfortunately extinct in the wild from 2015 after being pushed out by modern agricultural practices.
In 1918, two different surcharges were used on the 1909 pictorials and high values. The initial surcharge of two cents was in black and the subsequent four cents surcharge was in red. This $10 stamp in brick red colour is one of the most beautiful stamps of North Borneo.
In 1922, North Borneo together with Brunei, Straits Settlements and some Malayan states issued overprints to commemorate the Malaya-Borneo Exhibition held at Singapore between 31 March to 17 April 1922. The North Borneo 1909 values up to 50c. were used.
There were a variety of printing errors particularly with the North Borneo overprints. The pair of the 1c. stamps shown here has the overprint error of EXHBITICN. and BORNEQ respectively. Some of the stamps were overprinted in blue and the others in red. The 1c. with the overprint error colour in blue and the 16c. with the error red overprint are particularly rare and expensive.
Between 1925 and 1928, the designs of the 1909 were used in another issue with a perforation of 12.5 instead of 13.75. There was a change of colour of the 2c. from green to claret and the 3c. from rose lake to green. Some of the higher denominated values are very uncommon in used condition as few, if any, were sent to North Borneo for genuine postage as stocks of the previous 1909 issue were still plentiful.
1931 was a special year in the hisory of North Borneo. It marked 50 years of the Royal Charter granted in 1881 to the British North Borneo Company. Three years beforehand, the stamp designs were prepared by Waterlow & Sons. Care was taken to ensure that these designs truly represented North Borneo unlike the mistakes that were made in the previous 1909 issue and subsequent 1925 pictorial reprints.
This resulted in an eight stamp issue with exceptionally beautiful engraved designs. And also the printing was so precise that this was the first issue since the beginning of 1883 which has no errors or varieties due to perforation, different colours or printing plate defects.
Most collectors of this issue would have their particular favourites. The $5 value is particularly popular as is the 25c. value with the clouded leopard. Although the 3c. value showing indigenous Murut is the most widely available stamp of this issue, it is my personal favourite. It is an enigmatic and iconic design based on a real photograph which genuinely represented North Borneo.
This short account is obviously not the full story. North Borneo continued to issue stamps until 1964 even though it became a partner in the Malaysia Federation in 1963. The philatelic history before, during and after WWII was quite complex especially where postal history is concerned. Postal history can be inadequately described as the collecting of covers and post marks. It is yet another fascinating and rewarding aspect of collecting this country. In addition, numerous postage due overprints were issued between 1895 and 1939, mainly to meet the needs of the company coffers and the philatelic market. Nonetheless, I hope this article has provided some insight to the pleasure and enjoyment of collecting the stamps of North Borneo.
About the Author
Dr. Liau Fah Onn is a renowned collector specialising in the postal history of North Borneo, Labuan, and Sabah. A longtime member of the Borneo Philatelic Society, he enjoys an excellent reputation among fellow collectors and philatelic enthusiasts, with regular contributions of high-quality articles in the Sarawak Journal. He also runs a blog titled My North Borneo Stamps, which has become a key resource for enthusiasts studying North Borneo philately.
The Borneo Philatelic Society (BPS) fosters a global community of collectors passionate about the stamps and postal history of Brunei, Labuan, North Borneo (Sabah), and Sarawak. New members are warmly welcomed to join the Society regardless of their level of experience. Find out more about joining the Society.
