Jal Cooper

Jal Manekji Cooper FRGS (29 March 1905[1] – 2 August 1972) in Mumbai, was an Indian philatelist, and an expert and authenticator[2] of the postage stamps and postal history of India.

Cooper was also a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and the author of several philatelic handbooks.

He was both a stamp dealer[3] and a collector and was associated with philatelists like C. D. Desai,[4] N. D. Cooper, and Robson Lowe.

Cooper is occasionally but erroneously credited with having discovered the Inverted Head 4 Annas.

[5] The Jal Cooper Philatelic Society, in Varanasi, India, is named after him and India Post issued a 10 rupees commemorative stamp in 1997 depicting Cooper and Indian postmarks, on the occasion of INDEPEX 97.

Cooper on a 1997 stamp of India. The postage stamp on Jal cooper is an important source to understand his signature contribution to this field