Selangor State lies on the West coast of the Malay Peninsula. British influence began in 1874 when Sultan Abdulsamad signed over control to the Governor of the Straits Settlements after numerous problems with piracy, robbery, battle and murder.

Stamps from Selangor initially were overprinted Straits Settlements stamps which were issued beginning in 1881. Numerous states of the overprint exist and can form a very interesting study. In 1892, specific stamps were issued which used the keyplates used by the other Malay States featuring a sideways tiger, and later a front facing tiger. Numerous overprints were created to deal with shortages as they occurred. The 1935 set features the image of a mosque for the values up to 50c and Sultan Suleiman for the higher values. The Sultan died in 1938, so his portrait was replaced with the portrait of his successor Sultan Alam Shah beginning in 1940.

The key to identifying the varieties found in this set of stamps lies in the paper types, sorting a few color variations on the 3c, 15c and 50c values, and one perforation difference for the 2c Orange. There were three types used: Chalk Paper was used for the original printings in 1935, Ordinary (also called Substitute) Paper was used for a couple of printings in 1941, and Thin Striated Paper was used also in 1941. The Japanese invaded Malaya in December, 1941, so some stamps were never issued. This includes the 8c Red and the new $5 value with the portrait of Sultan Alam Shah. Subsequently the stock of stamps was overprinted for use during the occupation.

Identifying the paper types is fairly easy if you have something to compare. Luckily most of the stamps were printed on chalk paper, so use any of the chalk paper printings as a comparison. I place the stamps on black paper under a strong light to compare them. The chalk papers will look thick compared to the other two papers when seen from the back. Use the 2c Orange as a comparison for the Ordinary Paper, and the 25c or the 30c if you can find them as a comparison for the Striated Paper issues. (They are fairly common compared to many striated paper issues.) Look for the subtle lines on the back of the stamp to identify the 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. The revenue stamp listings are from British Commonwealth Revenues by J. Barefoot and A. Hall. My copy was published in 1990, but there are newer versions available. You can access the catalogue publishers using the "Links to British Colonial Stamp Sites" at the bottom of this page.

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