1864 (26 May) FL from Constantinople to Marianpol, franked with 3x10k brown & blue, perf. 12 1/2, tied by blue departure pmks (repeated on back), with oval merchant's handstamp alongside (Image)

Est.US$500

1865 2k brown & blue, vertical pair, canceled in blue dots, fresh and v.f. (Cat No. 2) (Image)

Est.US$1,000

1866 (4 July) FL from Mersina to Constantinople, franked with bottom sheet margin horizontal pair of 10 para brown & blue, placed upside down and canceled by three strikes in blue, apparently sent by an agent of ROPIT, some lettersheet separations, fine and very rare franking, signed Holcombe, with his 1999 certificate, ex-Julius Steindler and Dr.Casey collections (Image)

Est.US$5,000

1865 (31 Aug) large portion of outer FL (internal side-flaps missing) franked with 20k blue & red, large margins all around, tied by blue Chios departure pmk, endorsed "Parakhodom" (by Steamship) to Constantinople, filing fold away from the stamp, with part of arrival marking on back, v.f., signed Diena, with his 1979 certificate (Cat No. 3) (Image)

Est.US$1,000

1865 (5 Apr) cover addressed to Tripoli, with red crayon in Latin letters, franked with a vertical pair of 2pi blue & rose, horizontal network, large margins all around, tied by a perfect strike of double circle "Compagnie Russe de Navigation Smyrne" (Tchilingirian type 4), with violet merchant's handstamp alongside, filing fold away from the stamps, with 1998 Mikulski certificate "one of the rarest and also finest known to us letters from Russian Levant", ex-Faberge and Caspary collections (Tchilingirian suggests that it is possible that this marking was taken by the Ropit Agent on-board arriving ships to cancel mail deposited in their letter boxes) (Image)

Est.US$1,500

1865 (10 Nov) outer FL franked with 2k rose & pale blue (horizontal network), lower right sheet corner margin single, tied by blue "Tarsus" cds in Cyrillic, supported by oval "Simeon Giovanni Tarsous" merchant's handstamp, addressed to Smyrna, with ornamental blue "Smyrna Nov 2, 1865 Companie Russe de Navigation" arrival pmk on back, vertical and horizontal filing folds well away from the stamp, v.f. and rare cover from Tarsus, with 1998 BPA certificate, ex-Faberge, according to Tchilingirian "One cover known"` (Cat No. 4) (Image)

Est.US$1,000

1866 2k (10 para) red with blue horizontal net, vertical pair, canceled by mute diamond of dots, groundwork shifted downwards, minor flaws, fine (Cat No. 4) (Image)

Est.US$500

1866 (Apr) complete FL franked with 2k pale rose & pale blue (horizontal network), large margins all around, tied by blue "783" in truncated triangle of dots (Beirut), ornamental framed "PP" at top, showing a perfect strike of "Port Alexandretta" in blue Cyrillic, filing fold well away from the stamp, v.f. and scarce maritime letter carried by Steamship from Port Alexandretta and franked on arrival in Beirut, 1998 Mikulski certificate (Cat No. 4a) (Image)

Est.US$1,000

1868 (29 Apr) complete FL franked with 2k rose & pale blue (horizontal network), large margins mostly all around (just in at upper left), tied by blue "783" in truncated triangle of dots (Beirut), sent from Alexandretta to Beirut, with blue Cyrillic "ROPIT Alexandretta" and "ROPIT Beirut" cds on back, filing folds away from the stamp, fine maritime letter carried by a ROPIT Agency Steamship from Alexandretta and franked on arrival in Beirut (Cat No. 4) (Image)

Est.US$750

1868 (13 Aug) FL to Chisnovi, franked with pair of 10k carmine & blue numeral issue, tied by blue diamond in dots, with ROPIT Constantinople departure in blue on back, Odessa transit and Kishinev (19 Aug) arrival pmks on front, fine and attractive letter, with 1990 Holcombe certificate (Cat No. 11) (Image)

Est.US$500

1873 (3 Dec) FL to Genova, franked with 3k green, used in combination with unoverprinted Russia 20k orange & blue (horizontally laid paper), tied by blue "Konst-Pol" departure, Odessa transit at top, oval "Otrpavleno" (dispatched), charged "18" in red crayon, some rust along the perforations of both stamps, otherwise fine and scarce mixed franking Russia+Russian Levant, signed Diena and Bolaffi (Image)

Est.US$500

1876 (26 Oct) FL from Odessa to France, franked with Russian Levant 7k black surcharge on 10k numerals (defective), tied by cds, with additional strike repeated below, Postal Car 21-22 (Pochtwoyj Wagon), transit and Bordeaux arrival pmks on back, overall toning, fine (Cat No. 18) (Image)

Est.US$500

1879 (28 July) cover to Taganrog franked with "7" (thick numeral), tied by "Konstantin" departure pmk, with Odessa transit and Taganrog arrival pmks, fine cover signed Hassel (Cat No. 18) (Image)

Est.US$500

1893 (28 Sep) registered cover (opened for display) addressed to St. Petersburg, franked with 3x10k numerals, tied by double circle "ROPIT Trebizond" pmks, "Batum-Kutais" transit and arrival pmks, some cover mending, otherwise fine (Image)

Est.US$150

1901 (16 Aug) picture postcard from St. Petersburg to La Canea, Crete, franked with 4x1k orange, each tied by "3" numeral pmk, oval "ROPIT Agent. Crete" and Xania cds alongside, also "Prezhyano A.K." addressee's arrival cachet, fine example of the Ropit Agency in Crete pmk (Image)

Est.US$500

1905 (5 Aug) registered cover to Constantinople, franked with horizontal pair of 1pi on 10k, tied by the rare "ROPIT Ordu" postmark, with ROPIT Constantinople arrival pmk on back, v.f. (Ordu, a Greek city of Asia Minor is located on the Black Sea, present day Kotyora (Turkey); population in 1905 was under 10,000) (Image)

Est.US$1,000

1907 (22 July) picture postcard to Krasnoye Selo (St. Petersburg), franked with pair of 10pa on 2k green, tied by a perfect strike of "ROPIT Ineboli" in violet (Tchilingirian type 4), Ropit Constantinople transit and what appears to be arrival pmk, fine and extremely rare usage from this small port on the Ottoman coast of the Black Sea (Image)

Est.US$750

1909 (13 May) registered cover (Banque Imperiale Ottomane on backflap) to Leipzig, franked with 2x1pi on 10k blue, tied by blue "Ropit Metelin" departure cds, with Constantinople transit, "Post Russe Metelin Recommandee" Registry label, fine cover (Image)

Est.US$150

1911 (15 July) registered from Dardanelles to Odessa, attractively franked with six Dardanelles overprints, tied by ROPIT cds, with registry label, Ropit Constantinople transit and Odessa arrival pmks, faint toning, fine and colorful cover (Image)

Est.US$150

1913 (11 Mar) postal stationery 20pa on 4k card addressed to Berlin, with two "ROPIT ORDU" departure strikes in violet, showing oval "Spir. A. Papadopoulo ORDOU Turquie Mer-Noir" merchant's handstamp on back, fine and rare usage from this small port on the Ottoman coast of the Black Sea (Image)

Est.US$500

1913 20pa on 4k Romanov, intact postal reply card registered in 1914 from Constantinople to Germany, additionally franked with 10pa and 15pa (2) Romanov surcharges (Image)

Est.US$150

1914 (Sep) registered cover addressed to "Mahmad Bey care of the Russian Consulate in Monastir, Greece" (actually Macedonia), franked on back with strip of 5x1pi on 10k dark blue, tied by faint violet "Ropit Sinope" departure cds, with intact "Poste Russe Sinope recommandee" Registry label, two-line Serbian Censor handstamp on front, with Ropit Constantinople and Salonika transits on back, some cover and backflap faults, otherwise fine and very rare usage from Sinope (a port on the Ottoman coast of the Black Sea; a ROPIT postal agency operated there until 1st October, 1914. Tchilingirian records "no covers known to the authors") (Image)

Est.US$1,000