Editing East India Company (section)

=== Merchant mark ===
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File:Symbols on a Blue Scinde Dawk.jpg|HEIC [[Merchant's mark]] on a Blue [[Scinde Dawk]] postage stamp (1852)
File:1 Pice copper coin of the Bombay Presidency.jpg|1 Pice ({{frac|1|64}} Rupee) copper coin of the [[Bombay Presidency]] with bale mark (1821)
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When the East India Company was chartered in 1600, it was still customary for individual merchants or members of companies such as the [[Company of Merchant Adventurers of London|Company of Merchant Adventurers]] to have a distinguishing [[merchant's mark]] which often included the mystical [[Merchant's mark#The East India Company's Merchant's Mark|"Sign of Four"]] and served as a trademark. The East India Company's merchant mark consisted of a "Sign of Four" atop a heart within which was a [[saltire]] between the lower arms of which were the initials "EIC". This mark was a central motif of the East India Company's coinage<ref>East India Company coin 1791, half pice, as illustrated.</ref> and forms the central emblem displayed on the [[Scinde Dawk]] postage stamps.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.geocities.com/mjshah.geo/scinde/scinde.html|title=Scinde District Dawks|date=27 October 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091027143019/http://www.geocities.com/mjshah.geo/scinde/scinde.html|archive-date=27 October 2009}}</ref>