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;) | BAHAMAS postal history (Ex LUDINGTON) 1884 printed Royal Victoria Hotel, Nassau cover to New Haven, New York with Chalon QV 4d rose P.12 (SG.41) tied "B" obliterator showing framed SHIP landed Norfolk, Virginia with handstruck DUE appended 4 (2c ship + 2c delivery to New York), reverse clear strikes A/BAHAMAS/JA 29 84, New York Transit FEB 5 84, New Haven N.Y. FEB 6 1884, an interesting 6 full sides letter on 3 illustrated hotel pages included, top folds partially severed on opening. Ex LUDINGTON. £450 |
;) ;) | MAIL FROM THE PROLIFIC FORGER Raoul De Thuin, British Honduras postal history 1939 reg. printed address cover with previously unseen Belize's French Stores, DE THUIN, PAZ & Co., P.O. Box 206, Belize sender address to Monsieur T. Allen, 5 Blake Hall Road, Wanstead, London E11 re-directed Frinton-on-Sea with KGV 10c pmk'd 2 FE 39 being just one of numerous printed address aliases used by the prolific stamp forger Raoul de Thuin to circumvent the spotting by the U.S. Post Office of his fraudulent activities to particular persons or firms (full details in BWISC Journal under article headed Around The Caribbean 7). Further research shows that the cover is addressed to the famous Tommy Allen, who did live at both Wanstead and Frinton-on-Sea. ALLEN, Thomas 1895-1984. Originally dealer in British Colonial rarities, who with Charles Nissen purchased, in 1936, the Perkins Bacon stock and records; most of the records were afterwards acquired by RPSL. Council Member RPSL. Curator of its forgery collection, 1954-67. Member of Expert Committee, for whom he reorganised their vast quantity of reference photographs. A philatelist of wide experience, he was a member of the Executive Committee for the London International Exhibition 1960, and served on the jury at FIPEX, New York 1956. De Thuin (born Belgium 1890, died Guayaguil Ecuador 1975) started his philatelic “work” as early as 1916 leading to a shop in Brussels in 1927. He entered Mexico in 1931 on the run from French and Belgian police who wanted him for forgery. He was expelled from Mexico for setting up a forgery ring and moved to Tegucigalpa, Honduras where he was jailed and expelled in 1936, and then lived in Belize until moving back to Mexico in 1941 where he settled until 1968 when he moved to his wife’s home in Guayaguil. He specialised in forging overprints of Central and South American countries, especially Mexico, turning common stamps into rarities. “The Yucatan Affair” published by The American Philatelic Society illustrates his fabrications on much of the 523 pages. He is quoted as saying that “I have no conscience at all at having deceived all those foolish people. They are just fanatics who neglect their families for their passion.” £360 |
;) | STANN CREEK RAILWAY, British Honduras postmark/cancel (TDC-3, D1) in black dated JUL 6 1916 on strip of three KGV 1d (SG.111). £125 |
;) | FIRST DAY with PREPAYMENT U.S. 3c green SUPPLIED NASSAU arrangement, Bahamas postal history 1878 cover to Boston, Massachusetts with QV Chalon 4d rose P.14 (torn through on opening) pmk'd "A05" in combination with U.S. Washington 3c green tied New York JAN 12 79 "2" duplex, reverse BAHAMAS DE 31 1878 despatch dbl-arc and Boston, Mass, Carrier JAN 13 arrival plus pencil address of sender staying at the Royal Victoria Hotel, Nassau. As of JA 1 1879 and until Bahamas joined the UPU JY 1 1880 USA 3c green adhesives could be bought in Nassau by those who wished to prepay the USA internal postage on letters thus avoiding Postage Due on arrival. Only three other covers are currently recorded with prepaid Washington 3c green for MR xx 1879, MR 19 1879, DE 1 1879. A further seven covers are recorded with U.S. 3c brown Postage Dues added on arrival for SP 20 1879, JA 5 1880, FE 10 1880, MR 8 1880, MR 16 1880, MY 20 1880, JU 18 1880. £1500 |
;) | BAHAMAS postal history 1893 reg. cover to Geo. F. Jackson, Kings Norton, Birmingham with QV £1.00 Venetian red (SG.57) pmk'd "A05" showing red REGISTERED, NASSAU dated A/15 DE 93 and London reg. oval dated I/31 DE 93 alongside address panel, b/stamped reg. Birmingham oval A/JA 1 94 clear of missing flap. £480 |
;) | MIXED CURRENCY, British Honduras postal history (Ex ADDISS, FREELAND) 1888 use of QV 1½d Post Card with added bisected "2 CENTS" on QV 6d rose P.14 (SG.25) pmk'd "O" obliterator with BELIZE JA 17 88 despatch to Vienna showing Mariahilf, Wien 6 2 88 arrival. Ex ADDISS, FREELAND. One of only three mixed currency recorded. As of 1st January 1888 CURRENCY CHANGED FROM STERLING TO DOLLARS and CENTS (Guatemalan as its standard). BRH went decimalised on the gold standard equal to U.S. dollars, but the USA told them to get lost, and BRH had to decimalise off the Guatemalan quetzel. The $1.00 US was equal 4/2d (ie 100 ½d) but the Quetzel was 3/11½d (ie 95 ½d) therefore running at 5% less (eventually allowed to align with gold standard in 1895 at US $1 = 100 ½d). £575 |
;) | BAHAMAS via JAMAICA to BELIZE (Ex SHENFIELD, DALE LICHTENSTEIN, "STAIRCASE") 1879 cover to The Hon. T.W.H. Dillet, Belize, Honduras with QV Chalon 4d rose tied "A05" showing JAMAICA/TRANSIT, Kingston I C/JA 22 79 and Belize FE 9 79 arrival, reverse b/stamped Bahamas JA 4 1879/B dbl-arc. £1200 |
;) ;) | MASKALL BANK, British Honduras postmark on cover to Republic of Honduras 1929 opened-out reg. cover to La Ceiba, Republic Honduras from Peter Melnikov, Northern River with KGV 10c pmk'd at Belize 5 OC 29, wide display of transit cancels with handstruck mauve REBUT and AUSENTE finishing return journey with MASKALL BANK temporary rubber datestamp dated MAR 19 1930 (TDC-17, D2). A rare commercial cover. £625 |
;) | MASKALL BANK, British Honduras postmark/cancel 1929 cover to Scotland with strip of six KGV 1c tied MASKALL BANK temporary rubber datestamps dated FEB 6 1929 (TDC-17, D2), right stamp with corner fault. £525 |
;) | BAHAMAS postal history 1863 advertising cover for Trask & Zuberbier BUTTER, CHEESE & LARD to Monroe, Orange County, New York with pair QV Chalon 4d bright rose (SG.26) pmk'd "A05" and b/stamped BAHAMAS JU 6 1863/B dbl-arc. £950 |
;) ;) | VREED-EN-HOOP, British Guiana to SENEGAL, West Africa postal history 1930 reg. opened-out cover marked "Per F.M.S. Biskra via France" to M'Bour, Senegal with KGV 2c, 4c, 6c pmk'd Vreed-En-Hoop */29 MY 30 with boxed "INCONNU" and "RETOUR/A L'ENVOYEUR and purple NON RECLAME/NOT CALLED FOR (style unlisted by Proud) with re-direction to Dakar and numerous transit datestamps. Exotic destination. £300 |
;) ;) | BERBICE dbl-arc, British Guiana postal history 1841 wrapper to the Revd A. Tidman, London with BERBICE DE 31 1841 seriffed dbl-arc (T.6, ERD, showing inverted figure "1" in year) rated 1/- (last date of quarter ounce rate, introduced JA 1 1840) unpaid with FE 18 1842 arrival and docketted "acknowledged 1 March 1842". Exhibition quality (the only example dated 1841) and possibly the only example carried by the old Falmouth sailing packets. The last old sailing packet "Seagull" landed mail fom Jamaica at Falmouth on 3 March 1842. The packet rate was reduced to 1/- per half ounce on 1 January 1842. £325 |
;) ;) | Unique SMUGGLED Polignac, St. Vincent postal history 1861 entire without the customary "Per RMS Steamer" or despatch cds headed "St. Vincent 9th December 1861" to The Duke de Polignac, Paris with 2 x GB QV 6d lilac pmk'd "8" in diamond obliterator (triple 4d rate) and with upper flap showing London JA 2 1862 transit and Paris 3 JANV 62 arrival. The only Polignac as such. Contents mention Calder and Argyle estates. £750 |
;) | JAMAICA to CAYMAN ISLANDS showing both FORWARDING AGENT and NAMED MAIL BOAT 1890 cover to James S. Webster, Bodden Town, Grand Caymans c/o W.H.B. Hitchins, 2 Lower George Lane, Kingston endorsed Schr Electra with Jamaica QV 1d Keyplate pmk'd SHOOTERS HILL A/NO 14 90 and backstamped Kingston 3 D/NO 15 90 squared circle. Peripheral faults but exceptional for showing both forwarding agent for Cayman Islands mail and named mail boat. £1200 |
;) | REGISTERED PRINTED MATTER, British Honduras postal history 1891 home-made and still sealed wrapper using large part of a printed Deed dated Belize 15th March 1889 opened at both ends so as to enclose a printed pamphlet or newspaper showing small portion removed at left where the enclosure was probably "tied" addressed to Dresden, Germany with 3 x "3 CENTS" on QV 3d tied "O" obliterators without despatch datestamp being contrary to regulations, endorsed 'Printed Matter Registered' with REGISTERED LONDON 10 MY 91 oval and DRESDEN 19 5 91 arrival b/stamp. Exceptionally rare as such. £480 |
;) ;) | ARROYO, Porto Rico carried "loose" to ST. THOMAS postal history (Ex Don Gaspar Roca)
1874 entire, written at Arroyo on July 11th 1874 has the correct 4d rate adhesive for mail to the British Postal Agency at St. Thomas, but was carried as a ‘loose’ letter (outside the mailbag) and was pmk’d ‘C51’ on arrival, no datestamp was applied probably due the letter originating elsewhere. The letter was then carried from St. Thomas to New York by the U.S. and Brazil Mail Steamship Company, the only line serving New York and Brazil during this period. The line was viewed by the British Government as an intruder on the British monopoly over mail service to and from Brazil, and was consequently driven out of business by heavy British government subsidies to the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company. Ex Don Gaspar ROCA (2006). Entires from the British Postal Agency at Arroyo, opened 24th October 1872, are seldom encountered with the GB adhesives pmk’d ‘F83’. The few surviving covers are divided into two groups, those initially cancelled by round top ‘3’ in the ‘F83’ and those with a replacement flat top ‘3’ sent out 31st August 1876 due a fire. £825 |
;) | Unique forced registration "Supposed to contain coin/REGISTRATION FEE 6D", Queensland postal history 1871 interrupted mail cover with 2 x QV 3d greenish grey pmk'd "Q.L" and tied BRISBANE 4/NO 1 71 paying the 6d rate via Southampton to Cambridge Heath, London, h/stamped champhered corners boxed "Supposed to contain coin/REGISTRATION FEE 6D." with further QV 6d yellow-green affixed and tied "Q.L", London registration cds and oval dated JA 29 72 plus red crayon "1/-" confirming full postage paid. Ex Geoffrey MANTON. £8500 |
;) | 1 used BRIDGETOWN, Barbados postmark/cancel (Ex Hurlock) (C1) on 1854 bisected (2d) greyish slate (SG.4a), very fine used tied Bridgetown "1" obliterator clearly demonstrating the practice of downward scissor-cutting resulting in subsequent tear correctly tied to piece. (Alex Rendon, New York certificate issued 1994). Ex HURLOCK (1958, Lot 72). Evidence of pre-preparing imperforate stamps by cutting into horizontal strips and scissor cutting vertically between each stamp, for easy separation, is found on FE 16 1860 cover to London (ex Sir James Marshall Robson Lowe May 7 1946, Lot 140) with horiz. pair imperf. 6d pale rose-red scissor-cut vertically about 90 percent with clear separation tear showing at top right corner. At least one bisected 1854 cover shows identical downward scissor-cutting and separation tear. £600 |
;) | QUEENSLAND forwarded NEW SOUTH WALES to TASMANIA, twice inter-colonial rate postal history 1880 cover with QUEENSLAND QV 2d pale blue pmk'd "59" with supporting TOWNSVILLE NO 17 1880 despatch to Mrs. Mowbray Gray, c/o Henry Hicks, Punch Office, Sydney routed through Brisbane NO 25, on arrival re-addresssed to the Rev. Claude Roberts, Woodrising, Latrobe, Tasmania with pair NEW SOUTH WALES QV 1d orange to scarlet pmk'd Sydney NO 30 80, parts of flap removed clear of LATROBE DEC 6 80 arrival. A very rare combination. £525 |
;) | The GOVERNMENT OF ST. VINCENT Crowned Circle cover to DENMARK, St. Vincent postal history 1865 unique O.H.M.S. cover to Copenhagen, Denmark with spectacular GOVERNMENT OF ST. VINCENT embossed flap showing two strikes of the red ink PAID AT ST. VINCENT crowned circle (latest use) with SAINT-VINCENT A/JU 06 66 despatch cds alongside, reverse 30 6 arrival. A wonderful exhibition item. The SAINT-VINCENT cds only appears on two Crowned Circle covers. £6000 |