Chiapas
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Un real, no name. Cancel Sz114 in blue |
Un real, blue name. San Bartolome Simojovel Sz118AA |
Dos reales, black name. Unused |
Cuatro reales black, blue name. Pichucalco Sz127A |
Chiapas is located in the state of Chiapas. It was the 24th largest postal district, based on the number of stamps used, and 22th by total value of all stamps used. The average cost of the stamps used was 2.09 reales. Tuxtla (Gutierrez) had about 6,500 inhabitants in 1867.
Chiapas had 8 sub-offices: Ciudad de San Cristobal, Comitan, Pichucalco, San Bartolome Simojovel, Tonala, Tuxtla, Villa de Chiapa (Chiapa de Corzo) and Zapote.
| Day | Month | Year | Invoice # | Medio | Un | Dos | Cuatro | Ocho | Comments | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sent | 20 | 4 | 1861 | 141 | 394 | 530 | 1510 | 1680 | 480 | |
| Sent | 28 | 8 | 1861 | 223 | 1200 | 4000 | 1900 | |||
| Sent | 29 | 7 | 1862 | 86 | 600 | San Cristobal | ||||
| Sent | 20 | 10 | 1862 | 125 | 1900 | San Cristobal | ||||
| Sent | 16 | 2 | 1863 | 27 | 600 | 2000 | 1900 | 300 | 180 | San Cristobal |
| Total Sent | 5 | 2194 | 6530 | 7210 | 1980 | 1260 | ||||
| Returned | ||||||||||
| Total Used | 19174 | 5 | 2194 | 6530 | 7210 | 1980 | 1260 | |||
| Distribution | 11.44% | 34.06% | 37.60% | 10.33% | 6.57% | |||||
| Distribution vs. all stamps | 1.13% | 0.80% | 0.78% | 1.90% | 2.00% |
The first two consignments supposedly went to Tuxtla, while the last tree were sent to San Cristobal.
According to Roberto Liera (Mexicana, April 1996, "The High Value Stamps of
the 1861 Issue"), the distribution of the cuatro and ocho reales stamps was
approximately
1,680 cuatro reales black on yellow
300 cuatro reales dull rose on yellow
480 ocho reales black on brown
780 ocho reales green on brown
The stamps are known with and without the overprint. They appear to be found in about equal amounts, meaning that perhaps only half of the stamps were overprinted. The most likely explanation is that the rules of overprinting were ignored during the French Intervention, perhaps from about April or May of 1862.
The Chiapas overprint is approximately 16 by 2 mm, with leading and trailing dots. It's found in both blue and black, and is generally nicely struck. The black overprint is the scarcest of the two.
On average, the stamps have normal margins for the issue.
Forgeries from Chiapas exist. A MEPSI certificate is recommended.
Visit this MEPSI website, or the MEPSI Homepage for more information.
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