Portuguese India – Other Stamps Issued Between 1952 and 1955

On 4th December 1952, the First Philatelic Exhibition was held in Goa. It coincided with the 400th Death Anniversary of St. Francis Xavier. The government issued a se-tenant set of stamps to commemorate the event.

The stamps consisted of a tête-bêche pair of stamps with a label in between. The first stamp was a replica of the 10 reis Nativos, while the second carried a portrait of St. Francis Xavier. The stamps were designed by Alberto de Sousa and printed on enamel paper at Litografia Nacional S.A., Porto.

The Missionary Art Exhibition held in Goa in 1953 was organised in Old Goa to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the death of St. Francis Xavier (he died in 1552). It was called the Exposição de Arte Missionária (Exhibition of Missionary Art). The exhibition reflected Portugal’s effort to showcase its historic role in spreading Christianity and culture globally, especially as colonialism was beginning to be questioned more strongly around the world.

The centenary of the first Portuguese adhesive stamp was commemorated by the issue (government order no. 14560, dated 3rd October 1953) of a postage stamp depicting a central portrait of Queen Maria I in the first postal stamp of Portugal and the coat of arms of eight Portuguese provinces around. The design omitted the use of the prevalent term INDIA PORTUGUESA and used the earlier term ESTADO DA INDIA instead. 

In 1954, a set of stamps was issued to commemorate the birth centenary of Dr. Claudio Gama Pinto, a famous ophthalmologist of his time and one of the most eminent personalities of Goa. Two stamps of denominations 3 Reis and 2 Tanga and carrying a portrait of Dr. Pinto were issued on April 10th 1954. 

On 2nd October 1954, a stamp was issued to commemorate 400 years. of the city of Sao Paulo. The stamp, designed and printed at Casa da Moeda de Portugal, carried a portrait of Father Manuel Da Nobrega and a view of the Sao Paulo city. 

A commemorative stamp (order no. 15170, dated 18th December 1954) was issued to celebrate the centenary of Lyceum Alfonso do Albuquerque, the first public school of Goa. The stamp was designed by José de Moura and printed at Casa da Moeda de Portugal.

Monsignor Sebastião Rodolfo Dalgado (1855–1922) was a distinguished Goan Catholic priest, linguist, and scholar renowned for his extensive contributions to the study of Indo-Portuguese languages and the Konkani language. Born in Assagão, Goa, during Portuguese rule, Dalgado pursued theological studies at the Rachol Seminary and furthered his education in Rome, earning doctorates in Canon and Roman Law. His missionary work across India, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh allowed him to immerse himself in various linguistic communities, mastering languages such as Marathi, Kannada, Bengali, Tamil, Sinhalese, and Sanskrit.