Great Britain and British Commonwealth Postal History - Destination Mail
Sale No: 3
Lot No: 2462
Symbol: C
ARGENTINA: 1949 (July 28) airmail to Berazategui with 1/6d Hermes tied Hurstville (NSW) machine cancel underpaying the 2/3d rate for 'all-the-way' airmail, taxed with Sydney shield-shaped 'T / ["72"] / CENTIMES' h/s in violet, a few blemishes. [This item was apparently forwarded by airmail from Australia even though underpaid, when in fact the sender may have simply over-paid the 1/1d rate for surface mail to the USA and onwards air transmission; perhaps that is why no postage due was collected]
CANAL ZONE: 1913 (4 April) cover to Empire with combination franking NSW ½d green and Kangaroos First Wmk 2d grey tied 'ST PETERS/AP4/1913/NSW' cds, re-directed to USA with partial 'EMPIRE,CZ/MAY8/CZ' cds on the face, slightly shortened at left.
CEYLON: 1939 (Jan 7) Anderson & Hickling envelope sent to "Passenger, SS Orcades, c/- Orient Line Agents, Colombo" with QE 1d green and KGVI 2d red pair tied Melbourne d/s underpaying the 7d Empire Air Mail Scheme rate which applied for Ceylon, and taxed with hexagonal 'T/40C' h/s, nevertheless carried by airmail with 'COLOMBO/18 JA/39/POSTE RESTANTE' arrival b/s where apparently both the 'AMOUNT TO BE/COLLECTED ["24cts"]' boxed h/s and 'SURCHARGE ["5"] PLEASE PAY AT LETTER BUREAU' cachet in violet on face were applied, couple of minor blemishes. [The EAMS rate from Australia was 5d per oz to all participating countries except Ceylon, Hong Kong & Malta, which did not lie directly on the major Imperial Airways routes and therefore required an additional 2d payment; the sender was apparently unaware of these exceptions]
CEYLON: 1942 (Jan 22) commercial airmail cover to Elpitiya with QM 1d purple-brown, KGVI 1½d green & '2½d' on 2d x5 tied by Melbourne cancels, minor blemishes & creasing. [The rate was 1/3d per ½oz]
CHINA: 1940 (Feb 13) commercial airmail cover to Tientsin with Lyrebird 1/- paying the all-up rate tied by superb Sydney cds, Hong Kong transit & three different Tientsin arrival b/s, light vertical fold.
CHINA: 1947 (Jan 10) to "The Head Office, The Bank, Shanghai" with Peace 3½d 'solo' paying 3d foreign letter rate plus ½d war tax, '11.3.47/SHANGHAI' bi-lingual arrival b/s where boxed 'Address incomplete' cachet in violet applied, returned to sender with 'Pointing Finger' h/s in red, couple of minor blemishes. [In May 1949 the Communists defeated the Nationalist forces holding Shanghai, and in October 1949 the People's Republic of China was formally proclaimed]
CYPRUS: 1949 (June 17) airmail to Nicosia with ½d Kangaroo and KGVI 2d purple tied Sydney machine cancel underpaying 1/6d rate, airmail ettiqutte crossed out with red pencil and boxed 'INSUFFICIENTLY PAID' h/s added in Sydney, carried by surface mail via Egypt with arabic censor marking on face, 'NICOSIA/3AU/49/CYPRUS' arrival b/s.
CZECHOSLOVAK GOVERNMENT-IN-EXILE: 1941 (Feb 10) double-rate consular airmail cover with a magnificent strike of the impressive cachet of the Czech Consul-Gerneral in Sydney across the flap & certified there as on Czech government business, to London with 1/6d pair & KGVI 3d blue Die III tied by Sydney cds, blue/white R label. An exceptional origin/destination cover. [The consular endorsement exempted the letter from being censored]
CZECHOSLOVAKIA: 1932 (Oct 7) to Gablonz endorsed "Per RMS Baradine via Fremantle/Adelaide-Perth and Karachi-London Airmail" and with 'LATE FEE' cachet in violet alongside West Australian Airways 'TRANS-AUSTRALIAN AIR-MAIL' label, franked with KGV 1d green (torn before affixing) and Airmail 6d x2 tied 'LATE FEE/SPENCER ST VIC' cds paying 3d foreign letter rate, 3d internal airmail surcharge and 6d Karachi-London airmail fee plus 1d late fee, Athens transit and Gablonz '-2 XI 32' bi-lingual arrival b/s. Scarce destination with a wonderful array of supplementary charges.
CZECHOSLOVAKIA: 1950 usage of KGVI 8½d Registration Envelope to Prag with KGVI 2½d, Crocodile 2/- & Arms 5/- added tied Bairnsdale (Vic) cds with blue R label alongside paying 1/6d per ½oz Europe airmail rate x5 plus 6d registration fee, damaged in transit and repaired with 'POSTOVNI URAD/PRAHA 26' green on white labels, Czech customs label attached on back charging "6"[korunas] fee and Postage Dues 3k red pair affixed on face tied Prag cds, a few bends from bulky contents & edge faults as to be expected.
CZECHOSLOVAKIA: 1951 (July 6) commercial airmail usage of a PPC to Prerov with Platypus 9d tied by Melbourne cds. Written in Czech. [Prerov is today in the Czech Republic. On 1.5.1945, a Czech uprising against the Germans began in Prerov]
EGYPT: 1959 (Jan 16) private usage of formular aerogramme Permit No 15 for Perkins Pty Ltd (Melbourne) to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchy in Alexandria with QEII 10d tied by Melbourne machine, Cairo machine transit on the reverse & superb censor cachet on the face, two filing holes that don't affect the address panel. [The letter written in Greek]
ESTONIA: 1930 (Oct 30) postcard 'View from Macquarie Street, Sydney' to Tallinn with KGV Small Mult Wmk Perf 13½x12½ 2d red 'solo' tied North Sydney machine cancel, 'TALLINN/9.XII/1930/EESTI' arrival alongside.
FRENCH INDOCHINA: 1940 (July 30) censored airmail cover to a member of the Military Headquarters staff in Saigon with KGVI 2d pair + AIF 1d 2d & 3d tied by Sydney cds, 'SAIGON-CENTRAL/COCHINCHINE' arrival b/s, minor opening fault at U/L. [The rate was 9d airmail to Singapore + 1d for surface to destination]
GREECE: 1945 (Apr 6) usage of 2d Postal Card with 3d purple-brown & 4d Koala makjng up the 9d rate tied by superb 'ST KILDA/VIC' cds, censor cachets of Melbourne & Cairo plus Athens arrival cds, a bit knocked-about. Very scarce prior to the end of WWII. [The message is in French]
GREECE: 1946 (May 24) commercial airmail cover to "RAF/British Forces in Greece/MEF" with ½d Kangaroo, 1d QM, 6d Kookaburra & Peace 5½d pair (rarely seen multiple on cover) tied by Sydney cds, minor creasing due to the thick letter, which is enclosed.
HAWAII: 1941 (Jan 2) commercial airmail cover to Honolulu with Kangaroos 2/- maroon & Ram 5d pair tied Sydney cds paying 2/10d per ½oz airmail rate for carriage by TEAL to New Zealand and onwards by PanAm Trans-Pacific Clipper service, 'CALIFORNIA /CLIPPER' h/s on face, censored with Sydney label & cachet, couple of minor blemishes. [The 2/10d rate was a reduced 'partial Trans-Pacific crossing' rate and applied only for airmail to Hawaii. The PanAm Clipper rate to the continental USA was 4/- per ½oz]
HONG KONG: 1941 (Mar 19) commercial airmail cover sealed with Lady Gowrie Red Cross label, to Hong Kong with KGVI 2d & 9d Platypus tied by Goulburn (NSW) slogan cancel, censored at Sydney, fine strike of the scarce 'E22'-in-circle postman's handstamp on the face
HUNGARY: 1939 (Nov 3) to Budapest with 5d Ram and 1/6d Hermes tied Sydney 'AIR MAIL/SECTION/G.P.O.' machine cancel paying 1/11d rate for 'all-the-way' airmail service via Greece, censored with early Sydney label 'OPENED BY CENSOR' in one line only and cachet on face, 'BUDAPEST/ - XI.19.10' arrival b/s where black 'X' (35mm) jusq'ua marking applied - unnecessarily - on face, couple of minor blemishes. [Hungary did not formally join the Axis powers until November 1940]
LIBYA: 1962 (Apr 17) commercial airmail cover to England with QEII 3d & Flower 2/- tied by Melbourne machine, 'BILLINGSHURST' machine arrival b/s, redirected to "Tripoli/LIBYA", light vertical fold. [Libya was the Iraq of Africa. Following WWII, the British held sway in the region & supported Libya becoming a kingdom in 1951, with Emir Idris of Cyrenaica becoming king. In 1969, the King was overthrown in a military coup lead by Muammar Ghadafi, and went into exile in Egypt where he died in 1983, aged 94]
MALAYA UNDER JAPANESE OCCUPATION: 1945 (July 20) airmail cover to an Australian POW officer with Ram 5d tied by Brisbane machine cancel, sent first to Melbourne for censorship, endorsed "RTA" (= Returned to Australia). [The Japanese surrendered on 3.9.1945 and repatriation of POWs began soon after. Mail in transit to POWs was returned to the senders]
MALTA: 1929 (July 4) to Birchakara endorsed "Per Air Mail Only" with Canberra 1½d and 3d Airmail tied 'MT GAMBIER/STH AUST' cds paying 1½d British Empire letter rate plus 3d internal airmail surcharge for carriage from Adelaide to Perth and onwards by ship, 'VALETTA/AU 7/29/MALTA' arrival b/s, couple of minor blemishes.
MONACO: 1932 (2 Sept) to "Monaco Ville, France Sud" endorsed "Air Mail via Adelaide Perth" with KGV 1d green & Airmail 6d tied 'LATE FEE RIALTO/VIC.' cds paying 3d foreign surface rate, 3d domestic airmail surcharge plus 1d late fee, 'MONACO-CONDAMINE/1-10/32/PRINTE DE MONACO' arrival b/s, a couple of minor blemishes. Attractive internal airmail acceleration on cover to unusual destination.
NEPAL: 1986 (Dec 11) usage of 45c Galahs & Magpie aerogramme with Sydney 'CHRISTMAS GREETINGS/ FROM/AUSTRALIA POST' slogan (unintentionally inappropriate on mail to a predominantly-Hindu country), Indian-pattern '.../16DEC86/GPO KATHMANDU' arrival b/s, light vertical fold. [The social message is in English]
SAMOA: 1919 cover to Samoa with Kangaroo 2½d indigo tied by Sydney 'HELP REPATRIATION/BUY/WAR SAVINGS CERTIFICATES' slogan, repaired opening tear well clear of the stamp.
SAUDI ARABIA: 1959 (July 22) commercial airmail cover to "Aramco/Aliquaq/Dhahran" with QEII 4d booklet stamp x3 + Kookaburra 6d x2 tied by Sydney slogan cancel, minor blemishes. [The Arabian-American Oil Company (ARAMCO) began exploration on the Arabian Peninsula in 1931. The first successful Saudi well was at Dhahran in 1938. The company was effectively nationalised in 1974]
SOUTH AFRICA: 1941 (Sept 14) to Johannesburg with QE 1d green, KGVI 2d red and 5d Ram strip of 3 tied Brisbane machine cancel paying the 1/6d rate for African countries directly served by the Imperial Airways Horseshoe route, censored with Brisbane label & cachet, couple of minor blemishes.
STRAITS SETTLEMENTS: 1938 (July 18) to Singapore with Kangaroos CofA Wmk 9d violet 'solo' tied Sydney 'AIR MAIL/SECTION/G.P.O.' machine cancel paying the South-East Asia rate, couple of minor blemishes.
Sale No: 3
Lot No: 2493
Symbol: C
Cat No: Collection
SWEDEN: 1915 (Feb) to Stockholm with KGV 1d red x2 tied Bunbury, Western Australia cds underpaying 2½d foreign letter rate, another KGV 1d red added and tied by Perth 'killer' bars where boxed 'C.M.F.[=Citizens' Military Force]/RELEASED/BY CENSOR' h/s applied alongside in violet, '25.3.15' arrival b/s, a few blemishes.
SWEDEN: 1944 (May 5) to Eskilstuna with KGVI 2d violet and 2½d red pair tied Sydney cancel paying the 7d rate for carriage by ship to Great Britain and onwards by airmail, censored with Sydney label & cachet at left and British label at right partly covering oval 'O.A.T.' cachet in violet applied at London to signify "Onwards Air Transmission", a couple of minor blemishes. [This special rate was introduced as mail could not be carried by surface to neutral Sweden due to the German presence in the North Sea; the mail was carried by RAF planes transporting war supplies between Sweden and the UK]
YUGOSLAVIA: 1940 (Mar 3) commercial airmail cover to "Beograd" (Belgrade) with KGVI 3d Die II & Hermes 1/6d, with enclosed letter written in German (?). A very scarce WWII destination because service was suspended on 10.6.1940 when Italy ended the war.
