Malaya - Johore State
Sultan Ibrahim Definitive Issues

Watermarked Multiple Script CA
Updated - March, 2018
 
Thanks to Barry Moerke for the Thin Striated Paper issues,
and to our anonymous donors for supplying the high value images for this article.
 

Johore State is on the extreme south of the Malay Peninsula near the island of Singapore. Thru a series of treaties, Johore became a semi-independent state under the Straits Settlements. Overprinted stamps of the Straits Settlements were issued beginning in 1878 until they were eventually replaced by stamps with the image of Sultan Abubakar in 1891. Upon the death of the Sultan in 1895, Sultan Ibrahim was crowned as the new Sultan. An initial set of stamps using a portrait of Sultan Ibrahim was issued in 1896. This set was replaced in 1904 with a series of stamps using a newer portrait. This portrait was used until 1941 when the Japanese captured the territory. During this time period, paper with four different watermarks was used to print the stamps, effectively creating four different collectable sets all with the same portrait of Sultan Ibrahim.

The 1922 set was printed on paper watermarked with Multiple Script CA. Since this was just a new type of paper with the same design as before, you could really call it an evolution rather than a new set of stamps. As new values were needed they were printed on this new version of the paper. Stamps were printed on paper watermarked Multiple Script CA beginning in 1922 until 1941 when the Japanese overran the Malay peninsula. After the conclusion of World War II, Straits Settlements stamps overprinted BMA were used until a new set with a new portrait of the Sultan was issued in 1949.

You can identify this set by determining the difference between Multiple Crown CA and Multiple Script CA and identifying the Thin Striated paper. The stamps watermarked Multiple Crown CA will have sans serif letters with a crown that is narrow and straight edged. The Multiple Script CA watermark has cursive letters and a crown that is more rounded. See the images of all four watermarks below for reference. They are shown as normally seen from the back.

The stamps from this set were initially printed on chalk paper. Stamps printed in the early 1940's were printed on Thin Striated Paper. According to the Commonwealth Catalogue, Thin Striated paper shows a horizontal ribbing on the surface. It is visible when held at an angle to the light. You can typically see the lines across the back of the stamp when placed against black paper and viewed under a strong lamp. The paper was used for several Colonies including a number of the Malay States during the early 1940's. The best example that you can find for this paper is the Leeward Islands 5/ (CW 11b, SG 112b). This stamp is pretty common and easily identified so it makes a good resource if you are trying to learn how to identify the Thin Striated Paper.

Unlike modern stamps which are issued in the millions, definitive sets from this time period were issued very conservatively. I do not have the quantity printed, but would be interested in adding this information to this page if a fellow collector provides it.

The catalog numbers are from the 2008 Commonwealth King George VI Postage Stamp Catalogue (CW) published by Murray Payne, 2013 Stanley Gibbons Stamp Catalogue (SG) and the 2011 Scott catalog (ST). The historical details, descriptions, and dates are from "The Postage Stamps of the Federated Malay States, Johore, Kedah, Kelantan, Negri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Selangor, Straits Settlements, Sungei Ujong, and Trengganu" by Dr. F. E. Wood. You can access the catalogue publishers using the "Links to British Colonial Stamp Sites" at the bottom of this page.

Since the Commonwealth Catalogue only deals with King George VI issues, some of the stamp are not listed. These are identified with a CW NL listing in the table below.

The images were saved in a larger size and at a higher resolution so you can more easily see the details used in sorting them. Please be patient if it takes a few minutes for this page to load.

Watermark
Single Rosette
Watermark
Multiple Rosettes
Watermark
Multiple Crown CA
Watermark
Multiple Script CA
       
CW X1 - SG 103 - ST 101
1c Dull Purple &
Black
CW NL - SG 104 - ST 102
2c Purple &
Sepia
CW X2 - SG 105 - ST 103
2c Green
CW NL - SG 106 - ST 104
3c Green
       
CW X3 - SG 107 - ST 105
3c Purple &
Sepia
CW X4 - SG 108 - ST 106
4c Purple &
Carmine
CW X5 - SG 109 - ST 107
5c Dull Purple &
Sage-Green
CW X6 - SG 110 - ST 108
6c Dull Purple &
Claret
       
CW NL - SG 111 - ST 109
10c Dull Purple &
Blue
CW X7 - SG 112 - ST 110
10c Dull Purple &
Yellow
Chalk Paper
CW X7a - SG 112a - ST 110
10c Dull Purple &
Yellow
Thin Striated Paper
CW X8 - SG 113 - ST 111
12c Dull Purple &
Blue
       
CW X9 - SG 114 - ST 111A
12c Ultramarine
CW X10 - SG 115 - ST 112
21c Dull Purple &
Orange
CW X11 - SG 116 - ST 113
25c Dull Purple &
Myrtle
CW X12 - SG 117 - ST 114
30c Dull Purple &
Orange
       

CW X13 - SG 118 - ST 115
40c Dull Purple &
Brown
CW X14 - SG 119 - ST 116
50c Dull Purple &
Red
Chalk Paper
CW X14a - SG 119a - ST 116
50c Dull Purple &
Red
Thin Striated Paper
CW X15 - SG 120 - ST 117
$1 Green &
Mauve
Chalk Paper
       

CW X15a - SG 120a - ST 117
$1 Green &
Mauve
Thin Striated Paper
CW X16 - SG 121 - ST 118
$2 Green &
Carmine
Chalk Paper
CW X16a - SG 121a - ST 118
$2 Green &
Carmine
Thin Striated Paper
CW X17 - SG 122 - ST 119
$3 Green &
Blue
       
CW X18 - SG 123 - ST 120
$4 Green &
Brown
CW X19 - SG 124 - ST 121
$5 Green &
Orange
Chalk Paper
CW X19a - SG 124a - ST 121
$5 Green &
Orange
Thin Striated Paper
CW X20 - SG 125 - ST 122
$10 Green &
Black
Chalk Paper
       
CW X20a - SG 125a - ST 122
$10 Green &
Black
Thin Striated Paper
CW X21 - SG 126 - ST 123
$50 Green &
Ultramarine
CW NL - SG 127 - ST 124
$100 Green &
Scarlet
CW NL - SG 128 - ST 125
$500 Blue &
Red
       

This article was written to help you identify your stamps.
Please feel free to ask a question, or include a correction.

Comments or Questions feel free to write
 
Classic Malaya-Johore Stamps for sale based on the identification from this article.
       
Index to KGVI Stamp Description Web Sites
       
Links to British Colonial Stamp Sites