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BRUNEI

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Note: on my website many of the pictures can not be seen! They are of course present in the catalogue;
contact me if you want to purchase it.

Country on the island of Borneo, situated between Sarawak and Sabah.

1906 Stamps of Labuan overprinted "BRUNEI" in red (provisional issue)

  1 c lilac and black
  3 c brown and black
  8 c red and black

Surcharged

(Reduced sizes)

Reduced sizes

  'TWO CENTS' on 3 c brown and black
  'TWO CENTS' on 8 c red and black
  'FOUR CENTS' on 12 c yellow and black
  'FIVE CENTS' on 16 c brown and green
  'TEN CENTS' on 16 c brown and green
  '25 CENTS' on 16 c brown and green
  'THIRTY CENTS' on 16 c brown and green
  'FIFTY CENTS' on 16 c brown and green
  'ONE DOLLAR' on 8 c red and black

vc = very common
c  = common
*  = not so common
** = uncommon

*** = very uncommon
R   = rare
RR  = very rare
RRR = extremely rare

Forgeries exists, for example the forger Treherne made forgeries of the 1 c stamp (most likely with the black overprint).

1907 Native village with canoe

  1 c green and black
  1 c green (1908)
  1 c black (1926)
  2 c red and black
  2 c brown and black
  2 c brown (1924)
  2 c green (1933)
  3 c brown and black
  3 c red (1908)
  3 c green (1924)
  4 c lilac and black
  4 c red
  4 c brown (1924)
  4 c orange (1929)
  5 c blue and black
  5 c orange and black (1908)
  5 c orange (1916)
  5 c grey (1931)
  5 c brown (1933)
  8 c orange and black
  8 c blue (1908)
  8 c black (1933)
  10 c green and black
  10 c violet on yellow
  25 c yellow and blue
  25 c violet
  30 c black and violet
  30 c orange and lilac
  50 c brown and green
  50 c black on green
  1 $ grey and red
  1 $ red and black on blue
  5 $ red on green
  25 $ black on red

All these stamps have perforation 14. Specialists distinguish two plates of these stamps (value inscription printed in separately or together).

vc = very common
c  = common
*  = not so common
** = uncommon

*** = very uncommon
R   = rare
RR  = very rare
RRR = extremely rare

Nine of these stamps exist with overprint "MALAYA - BORNEO EXHIBITION 1922", example:

Some of these stamps exist with a Japanese overprint (1942-1944), they were issued during the Japanese occupation and were valid in Brunei, Labuan, North Borneo and Sarawak.

Genuine Japanese overprint on a 30 c stamp; this overprint exists on 19 different stamps and is always in violet.

Another Japanese overprint: 3 $ (in Japanese in red ink) on 1 c black; only this value was issued. It is very rare

Forged "SPECIMEN" or "Spécimen" overprints have appeared from a seller from Florida on Ebay; see http://www.geocities.com/cjyuan00/gallery/fake.htm for more information.

1924 River and village

  3 c green
  6 c black
  6 c red
  12 c blue

1949 Sultan's Silver Jubilee

  8 c red and black
  25 c red and lilac
  50 c blue and black

1949 UPU anniversary (design similar to many British colonies)

For stamps in a similar design, but for another British colony, click here

  8 c red
  15 c blue
  25 c lilac
  50 c blue

1952 Portrait of Sultan (cents values) and view of Brunei ($ values)

  1 c black
  2 c orange and black
  3 c brown and black
  4 c green and black
  6 c grey and black
  8 c red and black
  10 c brown and black
  12 c violet and black
  15 c blue and black
  25 c violet and black
  50 c blue and black
  1 $ green and black
  2 $ red and black
  5 $ brown and black

1958 Brunei mosque opening

  8 c green and black
  15 c red and black
  35 c lilac and black

1963 Freedom from hunger (design similar to many British colonies)

For stamps in a similar design, but for a British colony, click here

  12 c brown

1965 ITU (design similar to many British colonies)

For stamps in the same design, but for a British colony, click here

  4 c orange and lilac
  75 c green and orange

1965 International co-operation year

For stamps in the same design, but for a British colony, click here

  4 c blue and brown
  15 c violet and green

1966 Winston Churchill (design similar to many British colonies)

For stamps in a similar design, but for a British colony, click here

  3 c blue, black, gold and red
  10 c green, black, gold and red
  15 c brown, black, gold and red 
  75 c violet, black, gold and red

1966 World Cup Championship England 1966

For stamps in a similar design, but for a British colony, click here.

  4 c lilac, violet, orange and green
  75 c lilac, grey, orange and blue

1966 WHO new headquarters building

  12 c green, blue and black
  25 c lilac, orange and black

1966 20th anniversary of Unesco

  4 c grey, orange and red
  15 c olive, orange and blue
  75 c lilac, black and orange

1967 onwards, not implemented.

Local stamps

1895 Local stamps of Brunei, bay with sailship and star, inscriptions in english and arabic

The following values exits: 
  1/2 c brown
  1 c lilac
  2 c black
  3 c blue
  5 c green
  8 c brown
  10 c orange
  25 c green
  50 c grey
  1 $ green 

Many people initially thought this issue was a bogus issue. It is not believed to be genuine. I have only seen the cancel 'BRUNEI 4 AUG 1895' in a large circle and the above cancel on the 1 $ stamp. Not many of these stamps were issued (1/2 c: 50000, 1 c: 25000, 2 c: 20000, 3 c: 20000, 5 c: 20000, 8 c: 10000, 25 c: 1000, 50 c: 1000 and 1 Dollar: 1000). They could only be used in Brunei and Labuan. For letters to other countries, additional stamps from Labuan were required (up to 1906).

A so-called forged 'Madame Joseph' cancel 'KUCHING 12 MAR 1906' on a block of four 1 c stamps

Covers addressed to F.R.Parker and C.D.Pead were made under philatelic influence (the two gentlemen were stamp dealers).

A Parker envelope.

Literature: Brunei 1895 Star and Crescent Issue by Robson Lowe 1973, (33 pages). (I haven't seen this book, so I can't give any comments).

Bogus stamp

Bogus Brunei stamp with Queen Victoria; 4 p red.

Copyright by Evert Klaseboer