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1932-38 Imperial Airways covers all delayed by incidents en route with covers from Tanganyika, Kenya (4) or Nyasaland to G.B, South West Africa to Germany, G.B or Germany to Kenya, incidents include delays due to weather or engine troubles, the "City of Arundel" losing its propeller in a sandstorm, the "Horsa" clipping another aircraft when taking off, the "Ceres" striking a floating dock, the "Canopus" diverted from Southampton to Candebec due to fog, and a four day delay at Alexandria due to no connecting aircraft being available. (9). £350-450
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"Boadicea". 1936 (Sep 25) Cover from London to Mauritius, the stamp washed off, repaired with several French Officially Sealed labels, both sides handstamped red "SERVICE POSTAL FRANCAIS / Correspondance retardee par suite / du naufrage d'un Avion / Reconstitue par la Service Francais / NE PAS TAXER", with black boxed "FOUND IN THIS CONDITION" applied upon arrival in Mauritius. Backstamped at Mombasa (Nov 9) and Mauritius (Dec 4). The London to Paris plane disappeared while crossing the Channel and was never found; three mailbags were recovered, this cover being from the first bag which was washed up on the beach at Cucq one month after the plane disappeared. A rare crash, almost certainly unique to Mauritius, the boxed cachet unrecorded by Nierinck. Photo on Page 15. £500-600
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"Boadicea". 1936 (Sep 24) Cover from Leicester to Lusaka, the stamp washed off, with the five line French cachet in red, the reverse with a "Found Open and Officially Closed in the Post Office" label tied by "LUSAKA / 10 NOV 36" c.d.s, from the first bag of recovered mail found on the beach at Cucq late in October, a month after the aircraft disappeared without trace over the English Channel. A very scarce destination for mail from this crash. Photo on Page 17. £350-400
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1937 Cover from Germany to Rio de Janeiro, stained and the stamps washed off, with red "DEUTSCHE LUFTPOST / EUROPA SUDAMERIKA" cachet and handstamped "ACCIDENT D'AVIATION". The Lufthansa flight "D-ALIX" crashed into a swamp in Gambia seven miles from Jeshawang Airport killing all four crew; 20 postal bags were salvaged. £200-250
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"Corsair". 1939 (Mar 14) Cover from Blantyre to Gold Coast bearing Nyasaland 1d pair + 2d, handstamped "Damaged by Water when the / Imperial Airways Aircraft forced / landed near Juba, Sudan". Redirected from Koforidua to Tafo, backstamped at Khartoum (Mar 16), Koforidua and Tafo. The "Corsair" was bound from Durban to G.B but got lost and made a forced landing on the River Dungu in Belgian Congo, hit a rock and sank. One of the rarest of all Imperial Airways crashes, probably unique from Nyasaland. Photo on Page 17. £2,000-2,500
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"Challenger". 1939 (Apr 25) Cover from Berlin to Cape Town franked 60pf, a little stained, with violet bilingual "FLYING BOAT CORRESPONDENCE DAMAGED BY SEAWATER". From the Imperial Airways flying boat "Challenger" which crashed upon landing in Mozambique killing the three crew. £80-100
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1939-41 Covers to South Africa, the first from Madras franked 1/2a, a further stamp washed off, recovered from the flying boat "Challenger" which crashed upon landing in Mozambique, with violet bilingual "FLYING BOAT CORRESPONDENCE DAMAGED BY SEAWATER" and an Officially Sealed label tied by Durban c.d.s; and 1941 (Mar 23) cover from Leopoldville via Luanda showing signs of water and fire damage, apparently from a crash on the Sabena service to Johannesburg with boxed "RETURNED LETTER / OFFICE / G.P.O. CAPE TOWN" backstamp and ambulance envelope, unrecorded by Nierinck. (2). £100-120
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1941 (Nov 17) Cover franked Sudan 5m, posted in Khartoum and addressed locally to the A/Secretary O.E.T.A, apparently dispatched to the main O.E.T.A office in Nairobi, soiled and burnt with violet "DAMAGED IN AIRCRAFT FIRE" applied to both sides, backstamped at F.P.O 214 (Nov 18). Unrecorded by Nierinck. £100-120
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1943 Cover from Teheran to New York bearing four Iran stamps, British and Iranian censor seals and Russian censor cachet, transit datestamps of Baghdad (June 23) and "Egypt Postage Prepaid 102", handstamped violet "SALVAGED MAIL / FROM", from the B.O.A.C crash at Khartoum on June 30th, which killed all 16 people on board. £100-120
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1943 (July 22) Cover from Freetown to London bearing five Sierra Leone 3d stamps, a little singed at one corner, backstamped violet "DAMAGED BY FIRE IN TRANSIT" with 18 Aug recipients cachet. From the B.O.A.C flying boat from Lisbon that crashed into Mount Brandon in Ireland in dense fog on July 28 killing ten people and destroying most of the mail. A scarce Irish crash, with ambulance envelope, unusual from Sierra Leone. Photo on Page 17. £300-400
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B.S.A.A "Star Leader". 1946 (Sep 4) Cover from London to Jamaica franked 3d, two other stamps washed off, from the B.S.A.A plane "Star Leader" which crashed into the sea shortly after taking off from Bathurst. Scarce, most of the mail having been lost, only mails to Balboa and Jamaica having been recovered. Photo on Page 17. £200-250
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"Agnar Viking". 1948 (July 3) Cover from Stockholm to Mombasa, singed on all sides, with G.P.O explanatory slip "The attached mail matter is forwarded with this Departments regret at its condition, which was due to the mail plane having crashed and burnt out", and an explanatory letter from the Mombasa Postmaster "The attached envelope was salvaged from the aeroplane which crashed at Northolt, Middlesex, on the 4th July, 1948". The Swedish aircraft "Agnar Viking" collided with an R.A.F plane in mid air, 39 people being killed. The Mombasa Postmaster letter is very scarce. £160-200
| COMMERCIAL AIR MAIL COVERS OF THE WORLD | The following nine lots have all been selected for their explanatory cachets, showing the air route to be taken, or how far the cover is to be flown by air. Also see lots 211/2, 309-317, 349, 350, 777-791, 1270/1.
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1923-54 Covers from G.B or British Empire countries, including scarce unframed circular "AIR / MAIL" of London, boxed "NO FLIGHT / SENT BY / ORDINARY SERVICE" (2), "BY AIR MAIL / IN UNITED STATES ONLY", "BRITISH GUIANA / TO NEW YORK ONLY / BY AIR MAIL", "BY AIR TO LONDON ONLY", "By Air / From British Guiana / To New York", "EXPERIMENTAL FLIGHT" of Southern Rhodesia (2), "BY AIR TO NEW YORK ONLY / ONWARD BY / SURFACE MAIL TO DESTINATION", etc. (27). £200-240
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Great Britain. 1941-43 Air Mail covers returned to the sender by the censor (5, one to Malaga with "No Service" cachet) or diverted to surface mail (5) all handstamped "POSTAGE REFUNDED", "Air Mail fee refunded" or "NO AIR MAIL SERVICE AVAILABLE / AIR FEE HAS BEEN REFUNDED". (10). £100-120
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Europe & Colonies. 1931-49 Covers from Greece, Russia, Sweden, French Colonies, etc. (also Israel and Iraq), virtually all with cachets giving the air mail routing including boxed "PAR AVION / JUSQU'A -" of Greece (6) and similar "PAR AVION / JUSQU'A PARIS", "Par avion jusqu'a / BERLIN" of Moscow (2), boxed "Mit Luftpost nach Nordamerika / und ab New-York" (3), "By air to the United Kingdom" (2), "VIA CHIASSO 2 / BY "CLIPPER"", "Saigon - Marseille" (2), "Jusqu'a destination", "DE TUNISIE EN FRANCE" (2), "PAR AVION JUSQU' AUX E.U.A / BY AIRMAIL TO USA", etc. (36). £260-300
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Australia. 1940-41 Censored covers to USA franked 4/- (10) or 4/6, or to G.B or Ireland franked 5/10 (8), all handstamped "CALIFORNIA / CLIPPER", one cover with enclosed slip "when opened by the censor the enclosure mentioned was not contained in the envelope, District Censor, Sydney". (19). £300-350
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India. 1929-54 Covers and cards with various cachets including circular framed "BY / AIR" (7), etc. (17). £100-120
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South & Central America. 1924-52 Covers from various countries, mostly to Europe, nearly all with air mail routing cachets including "AFFRANCHI PAR AVION JUSQU'A / NEW YORK" (6), "PAR AVION JUSQU EN FRANCE", "JUSQU'EN FRANCE" (2), "BY AIR MAIL / until USA", "BY AIR MAIL VIA U.S.A." (4), "AEREO DIRECTO / VIA CRISTOBAL" (3), "AIR MAIL / TO AND IN U.S. ONLY", "TILL GREAT BRITAIN ONLY", etc. (31). £200-250
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USA. 1925-45 Covers with various cachets including "AIR MAIL / First Overnight Flight / Chicago to New York", Via Airmail / Par Avion / FROM LONDON AND IN INDIA", "BY AIR MAIL OVER U.S / Domestic Routes Only", "VIA AIR MAIL IN VENEZUELA", "Insufficiently Prepaid / for Clipper Service", "Received too late for / Air Mail. Despatched by / Train to save delay" or "Received at Chicago, Ill. / too late for air despatch / Forwarded by train", etc. (23). £180-200
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Onward Air Transmission. 1941-52 Covers and a front from South America (9), Canada (7), Australia, India, Ceylon, Belgium, Turkey, Sweden, KUT, Belgian Congo (3), Palestine, Switzerland, Senegal (stamps cut out), Morocco (6), Algeria (2) or Tunisia all with various "O.A.T" handstamps. Also two covers from Hawaii to USA with "Via Air Mail / from Coast Onward to Destination". (40). £500-600
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A.V.2. c.1947-52 Covers from Thailand (4) or Libya (2, one with B.M.A Tripolitania stamps) all handstamped "A.V.2", to USA or various countries in Europe. (6). £120-140
| Air Mail Covers later transferred to Surface Mail | The following seven lots were carried by air mail before being diverted to surface mail, at which point the Air Mail inscriptions or labels have been obliterated, usually with handstamps consisting of parallel bars or a cross.
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1929-45 Covers from 17 various countries including Indo-China (2), Iran (2), USA (3), France (4), Morocco (2), Lebanon (French A.P.O 606 c.d.s), Trinidad, Nigeria, G.B (2), Canal Zone, Netherlands Indies, etc., to USA, Argentina, Uruguay or various destinations in Europe. (26). £220-260
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Australia. 1931-44 Covers to USA (7), Canada (3) or Europe (4), one returned with Perth Dead Letter Office label on reverse. (14). £140-160
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British Africa. 1932-57 Covers from KUT (13), South Africa (8), Northern Rhodesia or Zanzibar, to USA, Canada, Grenada, Argentina or various European destinations. (23). £200-240
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Malaya. 1937-46 Covers from Singapore or Penang to USA (3) or Canada (2), three differing handstamps of parallel bars used to obliterate the air mail labels, one cover to Canada franked at the 16c surface rate unusually with two red bars handstamp applied in error. (5). Photo on Page 17. £100-120
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Egypt/Palestine/Iraq. 1930-42 Covers from Egypt (12), Iraq (4) or Palestine (12), to USA or various European destinations. (28). £200-240
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India/Ceylon/Burma. 1929-57 Covers and cards from India (83), Burma (4) or Ceylon (4), or from G.B to India (4), to USA or various European destinations, many differing handstamps used to cancel out the air mail inscriptions or labels. (95). £500-600
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South & Central America. 1929-42 Covers to Europe from 13 differing countries including Uruguay (2), Colombia (3), Chile (2), Mexico (3), Brazil (2), etc. (20). £200-240
| Crash Mail | |
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USA. 1930-85 Covers and cards including 1930 postcard from Hoboken to Canada with large "SALVAGE" cachet, 1930 Los Angeles crash, 1936 Salt Lake City crash and 1942 Las Vegas crash, 1955 cover from Iowa City to Florida with "DAMAGED IN PLANE CRASH", also 1945 cover from San Antonio to Philadelphia with "DAMAGED BY FLOOD", and 1985 cover from New York to Dallas with violet "DAMAGED IN AN AIR, RAIL, TRUCK OR SHIP / ACCIDENT, BEYOND CONTROL OF THE U.S / POSTAL SERVICE". (7). £130-150
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1937-54 Covers including 1937 "Courtier" crash, 1939 "Challenger" crash, 1943 "Yankee Clipper" crash, 1954 Prestwick crash, and 1947 cover with "AUST ARMY P.O" and "RAFPOST / 11 / JAPAN" datestamps and violet boxed "DAMAGED BY / SEA WATER", recovered from the B.O.A.C flying boat "Portland" which crashed at Bahrain. (5). £160-200
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1946-58 Covers comprising 1946 (Feb 2) Marseille to Algiers flight forced down at Minorca by engine trouble, the mail detained by the Spanish until September (2, to Morocco or Madagascar); 1948 (May) Leopoldville to Brussels flight which crashed at Libenge, Belgian Congo; 1950 (June 7) Hanoi to France cover from Air France crash at Bahrain; 1958 (May 16) Brussels to Belgian Congo cover from the Sabena flight which crashed in Morocco. All covers with explanatory cachets, generally fine. (5). £200-240
| MILITARY & P.O.W MAIL
(Also Lots 226, 238, 254-267, 274, 362-375, 383-394, 459, 463, 523, 542/4, 685-690, 706/8, 724, 1293/6) | |
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Hospital Ships. 1906 Picture postcards, Christmas cards, etc., including 1913 picture postcard from a British Red Cross volunteer in Constantinople during the Balkan Wars mentioning the imminent arrival of the Hospital Ship "Medic", 1918 postcards of Copenhagen endorsed "H.M.H.S Western Australia on Baltic Service" or from the Taastrup Repatriation Camp (but also written on H.S "Western Australia", both with good content), WW1 Christmas postcards of H.S "Garth Castle" (posted Gravesend, 1914), "Oxfordshire", "Asturias", etc. (15). £180-220
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World War One (12) or World War Two (40) covers and cards, various explanatory cachets used on redirected or returned mail including Repatriated, addressee prisoner of war, missing, returned to Canada, returned to UK, etc., also various censors, and a set of 36 pictures of enemy aeroplanes. (53). £300-350
| Boer War
(Also See Lots 584, 593) | |
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Literature. Non philatelic books comprising "The Siege of Mafeking", two large volumes with many illustrations published by The Brenthurst Library, 2001; "South African War Books" by R.G Hackett, privately published, 1994; "South Africa and the Transvaal War" by Louis Creswick, seven volumes, c.1902; and Cassels "History of the Boer War" in two volumes, c.1902, all hardbound and fine. (12). £80-100
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Mafeking. "The Mafeking Mail, Special Siege Edition", single page newspapers published during the siege (29). Also sheet music "The Siege & Relief of Mafeking" depicting Baden Powell, a page from an album bearing a magazine picture of Baden Powell with his signature on piece applied below, and a draft copy of a 1932 letter from Baden Powell to "The Connoisseur" magazine concerning the banknotes of Mafeking, initialled "BP" in pencil. (32). £200-240
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Photos/Ephemera. Various photos of troops, earth statues of animals and people made by Indian natives at the De Aar Remount Depot, towns and villages, etc., some mounted in a modern album, with captions taken from the reverse or from the original pages written below some photos by Kenneth Griffith. Also some ephemera, letters and telegrams including a dinner invitation from Government House, four 1902 telegrams from Kitchener to "O.C. P.PORT" with Army Telegraphs c.d.s code "PP", comic sketches of Australian, Canadian, Rhodesian or British troops (13), etc. (c.150). £180-200
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Machadodorp Cards. 1900 Machadodorp 1d postal stationery cards used from Machadodorp, Barberton, Waterval Onder (2) or Kaapsche Hoop (3) at various dates in August 1900, two with messages, all addressed to or written by Dr G. Molengraaf who worked for the Dutch Ambulance, one with a message signed by Molengraaf and addressed to "Dr MacLeod, Nederl. Ambulance, Nooitgedacht". (7). Photo on Page 17. £250-300
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1899-1901 Covers and cards with stampless Velddienst cover from Volksrust; cover endorsed "From P.K Lightfoot 10th Hussars, Prisoner of War, Pretoria" with oval "WATERVAL KRYGSGEVANGENIS / 18 APR 1900 / COMMANDANT VAN DE WACHT" and a London Paid c.d.s, a little stained but scarce; fancy boxed datestamps of Middelburg and Standerton; cover with O.F.S 1d (3) tied by Colesberg squared circles, sent during the Boer invasion of the Cape, O.F.S and British censors; oval O.F.S censor cachet; Boer censor seal type 4 tied by Machadodorp c.d.s (26 JUN 00), etc., most with some faults though an unusual selection with some scarce items. (14). £300-350
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1900-01 British forces covers with Army Post Office circular rubber datestamps without code (3), codes A, AD, C, 3MB (2), 7B, 8B, or for Barberton (3), Komatipoort, Machadodorp or Volksrust (5), and larger Field Post Office rubber datestamps without code or code 92 (2) or 93 (used on Midland T.P.O), fourteen registered, also part Parcel Post label with G.B 1/- green and carmine (4) each with "FPO / 43" parcel cancel, a few faults but the majority of the covers fine with some scarce cancels. (25). £380-450
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1900 Cover with Transvaal 1d tied by F.P.O 12 c.d.s, endorsed from "Trooper E.G Smith, E.P Horse", and 1901 covers both with G.B 1d lilacs tied by F.P.O 16 or 26 c.d.s, addressed to Trooper Smith, "Eastern Provinces Horse, Johannesburg" or "c/o Nesbitts Horse under Col. Gorringes Flying Column, Graaf Reinet" both redirected to Grahamstown. (3). £70-80
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Canadian Contingent. 1900 Long stampless cover to Toronto, posted by a member of the First Canadian Contingent whilst en route to Cape Town on the S.S "Laurentian", both sides with a superb strike of the oval "CANADIAN CONTINGENT / EN ROUTE / JAN 30 1900 / SOUTH AFRICA" cachet in purple, handstamped "T" with manuscript "12c", backstamped in Toronto (Feb. 16). The "Laurentian" carried 265 Officers and men from "D" and "E" Batteries of the Royal Canadian Field Artillery, the "En Route" cachet being used on the day before the ship reached St. Vincent in the Cape Verde Islands. The cover shortened at left edge upon opening by about 1cm with a vertical fold 2cm from the edge, otherwise fine and undoubtedly one of the best examples known of this rare "En Route" cachet. Photo on Page 17. £1,400-1,600
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Canadian Contingent. 1900-01 Covers (2) and a card comprising 1900 (Feb 27) stampless O.A.S cover to Toronto with a Maple Leaf and "CANADIAN CONTINGENT / 1899-1900" printed on the flap, F.P.O B.O c.d.s (Feb 17), "T" handstamp obliterated "FB" with a London Paid c.d.s; 1901 cover from F.P.O 50 to "2671 Pte W. O'Connell, Canadian Mtd Rifles, Germiston"; and 1900 Transvaal 1/2d postcard from a soldier in the Royal Canadian Artillery at Krokodilpoort cancelled blue Army P.O 55 c.d.s, to another Canadian Gunner in hospital at Waterval Onder redirected to "No. 2 General Hospital Pretoria" with octagonal A.P.O 81 Natal Field Force datestamp. (3) £250-300
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Hospital Ship "Princess of Wales". Silver plated dessert spoon with "PRINCESS OF WALES" within a scroll well engraved on the handle, imitation hall marks include the maker "E&Co", wear at the end, otherwise fine and an unusual memento from this hospital ship which was purchased and financed by Princess Alexandria at a personal cost of £10,000, and served as a hospital ship between December 1899 and December 1900, making two return voyages between Britain and South Africa, and various trips around the coast of Natal and the Cape. £100-120
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Ships. 1900-01 Covers comprising 1900 cover from G.B to Major J. Corbet Yale, 2nd West Yorks Regt., S.A.F.F redirected to "Hospital Ship Trojan"; Transvaal registration envelope to a P.O.W at Green Point redirected to "Kildonan Castle, Cape Town", and cover with 1d lilac tied F.P.O c.d.s, also to a P.O.W at Green Point redirected to S.S "Mongolian" then endorsed "since been transferred to Kildonan Castle", both with circular Green Point P.O.W censor and "CENSOR / PRISONERS OF WAR" endorsed "The Castle" and dated in January 1901; and covers to S.S "Orcana" Transport No. 40, S.S "Manchester Merchant" at Cape Town, or redirected to S.S "Mongolian" at Simons Town. (6). £200-250
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Rhodesia/Bechuanaland. 1900 Cover from Bechuanaland Protectorate to Cape Colony bearing Bechuanaland Protectorate 1d lilac pairs (2) + block of four paying the 8d double rate, sent north to Bulawayo and then east to Beira due to the usual southern route being blocked by Boer forces who were then besieging Mafeking, endorsed "via Beira and Port Elizabeth" with the stamps cancelled in transit at Bulawayo (Feb 1), backstamped at Bulawayo, Port Elizabeth (Feb 28) and Grahamstown. A few minor perf stains, otherwise fine and scarce. Photo on Page 22. £500-600
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Rhodesia - Marshall Hole Currency Card, with oval "ADMINISTRATOR'S OFFICE / BULAWAYO." cachet (stop after "Bulawayo"), reverse bearing 1896 issue 10/-. The top denomination found on these currency cards, very fine and an extremely scarce value. Photo on Page 38. £400-500
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Ceylon P.O.W Mail - Hambantota. 1901 (Nov 29) Printed card address label removed from a parcel, printed heading "From H.W Cave Co, Colombo", addressed to "The Camp Commandant, Boer Camp, Hambantota, for Mr C Botha, Parcel Post" bearing Ceylon 15c + 30c each with "CAVE" handstamp, tied by Colombo duplexs and handstamped violet oval "P.O.W / PASSED / CENSOR / HAMBANTOTA". Several edge holes where the card was affixed to a parcel, otherwise fine. The small parole camp at Hambantota opened in September 1901, this uncommon censor cachet being used until June 1902. Photo on Page 22. £240-280
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Ceylon P.O.W Mail - Hambantota. 1902 (May 31) Ceylon 6c stationery envelope to Holland uprated 4c and 5c, all tied by "HAMBANTOTA" c.d.s, return address of a Boer Officer in the parole camp at Hambantota, with violet oval "P.O.W / PASSED / CENSOR / HAMBANTOTA", very fine. Photo on Page 22. £280-320
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Ceylon P.O.W Mail - Welikada. 1901 Stampless cover with Diyatalawa Camp c.d.s and censor cachet, endorsed "From Prisoner of War" and addressed to "T. J Curran, Prisoner of War, Welikada Gaol, Colombo", handstamped "T" and rated "10", endorsed "Try again m.s", presumably because Curran refused to pay or had no money to do so. Curran was sent to Welikada in March 1901 following attempts to escape from both Diyatalawa and Ragama Camps. Very few P.O.Ws were sent to Welikada and mail to the camp is scarce. An unusual item. Photo on Page 22. £200-250
| World War One | |
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British/Indian Forces Mail. 1918-20 Stampless O.A.S covers and cards with British A.P.O R26 used at Varna, P.B.1 used at Murmansk, S.14 used at Istanbul (2), F.P.O C14 used at Aleppo (2) or Indian F.P.O 76 used at Qasr-I Shirin in Persia; cover franked G.B 2d tied by Indian F.P.O 400 at Chanak; 1920 stampless postcard of Libau with London Received from H.M. Ship machine; 1917 O.A.S cover endorsed "from Louis Cohen, Serbian Relief Fund" with Serbian c.d.s of Bitoli; 1919 cover with enclosed letter written by an Indian native soldier in Germany with F.P.O T29 (faults but the only recorded item from an Indian soldier in occupied Germany); also a 1935 cover with G.B 1/2d + 1d each tied by F.P.O 10 c.d.s at Saar. A scarce group. (12). £240-280
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