AUSTRALIAN: 1912 Kinsey cover to Christchurch with New Zealand 1d Dominion 'VICTORIA/LAND' overprint affixed at U/R tied by 'BRIT ANTARCTIC EXPD/3MR/12' cds and Tasmania 1d Pictorial affixed at L/L tied by 'HOBART/25MR13/TASMANIA' cds, 'LOOSE SHIP'S LETTER/POSTED IN/ANTARCTICA/[penguin]/SY AURORA/AAE' cachet at U/L partly overstruck by ''AUSTRALIAN ANTARCTIC/EXPEDITION 1911/COMMANDER OF SHIP' cachet with signature "JK Davis", a couple of very minor aging marks otherwise very fine. A similar cover - without the additional handstamp & signature of the ship's commander - sold for £1320 at a London auction in March 2020.
John King Davis - Douglas Mawson's deputy - purchased the ship in 1910. In late-1911 Aurora transported Mawson and his party to Macquarie Island and then to Cape Denison, which became base camp for the Expedition. She returned in late-1912 with fresh supplies and left a party to wait for Mawson who was overdue from a sledging trip. In late-1913, 'Aurora' finally picked up Mawson and the party and returned them to Hobart in February 1914.
AUSTRALIAN: c.1930 philatelic cover with 1½d Sturt tied by superb strike of the undated 'BANZ/1930 [penguin] -31/ANTARCTIC RESEARCH EXP' cachet. Superb!
AUSTRALIAN: c.1930 philatelic cover with 1½d Canberra tied by superb strike of the undated 'BANZ/1930 [penguin] -31/ANTARCTIC RESEARCH EXP' cachet, plus almost as fine a strike in violet across the flap. Superb!
AUSTRALIAN: 1948 (July 21) commercial cover to Perth with Lyrebird 1/- tied by Macquarie Island cds, makeshift registration cachet, transit b/s of Sydney, 'RAAF PO RATHMINES/NSW-AUST' & Perth and 'COTTESLOE' arrival b/s. The lengthy social letter refers to carriage on "the first Antarctic airmail" and also states "...It is not a bad sort of place...suppose you heard about our tragedy last week...we have not found the body yet...It is so rugged that a couple of miles a day is a good trip..." [On 4.7.1948, engineer Charles Henry Scoble died in a skiing accident when ice on a lake gave way under his weight. A replacement engineer was flown in by the RAAF and this cover was carried on the return flight]
(Qty 2 items)
AUSTRALIAN: 1960 PMG's Department generic FDC for the 2/- Map tied by 'MAWSON' cds, to New York with minor water-staining & superb 'DAMAGED BY/WATER' cachet, knife-cut at left & through the cover at the base inflicted in 2020 by Australian Customs. Double disaster cover! [Carried on MV Thala Dan which sprang a leak in the hold]
AUSTRALIAN: 1987 Antarctic Scenes (Third Issue) stampsize colour photographic essays of the five designs all denominated with the issued values endorsed below "2c 10c 20c 36c 60c", affixed to thin greenish card (230x170mm), a couple of tiny blemishes.
