Looks to me like a 'fantasy' cover. Only two stamps belong on the envelope and they are the Deutsches Bundespost 60pf and 10pf.
All the others have been attached later.
Thanks !
I agree. The glue remnants are clearly visible.
Plus, only the West German stamps are tied to the cover. And the point of doing this was…?
Bob
It's the new style all world album on a single cover.
Here's an example of a four stage cover that did go through the mail systems of three countries. From the USA to London (England), to Hong Kong and then back to the USA.
This was obviously a contrived 'boomerang' cover. Mr Dwortetzky apparently had contacts in England and Hong Kong who on receipt, removed the address label and applied another one (and the appropriate stamps) for the next leg of the journey. The significant part of this cover is the GB 1½d definitive, which indicates that the London to Hong Kong leg was carried under the 'Empire All-Up Scheme' concessionary rate.
"10am, Hong Kong, 30 August 1939" except for the complications of crossing the Date Line that was almost the last day of general peacetime.
I wonder if anyone has a stamp or cover cancelled around 5 or 6 am September 1st, 1939 Europe or about 4pm Sept 1st in the Far East.
The exact hour and date will be different for different locales.
This cover, from an American perspective, was posted Dec. 6, 1941 in Germany the day before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. That attack, of course, forced the U.S. finally to enter the war against the Axis:
It was "interned" in New York throughout the war, then in 1948 was forwarded to Japan via in San Francisco, and was finally delivered to its destination in Kyoto, Japan.
Bob
Bob, it's interesting that a cover mailed from Germany to Japan wound up in the USA. I also wonder if Frau Liesa was still at the Kyoto Hotel all that time! Or if she ever got her letter.
I own this multiple use card, all within Texas but scarce and fun to own. Of course it's in the Ben Franklin collection.
"I wonder if anyone has a stamp or cover cancelled around 5 or 6 am September 1st, 1939 Europe or about 4pm Sept 1st in the Far East."
Tom said,
"Bob, it's interesting that a cover mailed from Germany to Japan wound up in the USA."
"Check out the top cover on this page of my Stamporama Exhibit "Very Cool Covers"."
Bob - that's a fantastic cover - I'm wondering if "return to sender" means that the recipient was no longer there after the war? Or only in relation to service suspended - in which case it would be as mentioned, unlikely that anyone was in any rush to return this to Germany.
It is most likely that mail marked 'return to sender' from an enemy country was, as Bob stated, deliberately retained.
The Japanese did exactly the same thing in Hong Kong and probably Singapore. All this sort of mail was found bagged up in sacks and dumped in Post Office cellars.
It would be interesting to know where and when my German cover was handstamped, "RETURN TO SENDER". In the hours and days immediately after the attack on Pearl Harbor, routines in international post offices must have been in chaos. I can see a postal clerk using that handstamp in error and then striking it out with a blue pencil. Or, later, someone else might have realized the error, struck out handstamp imprint, and consigned the cover to internment.
Bob
Bob - you must be reading my mind - I was wondering the same thing.
Regarding the Service Suspended handstamp: I'm wondering why the British even let this cover be forwarded to New York--if I'm not mistaken that is a British P.C 90 censorship label so at some point, the cover was held by the British who were at war with Japan and Germany.
The British probably intercepted this cover after December 7th since it was mailed from Germany on December 6--the cover may have been intercepted sometime in December after Hitler declared war against the U.S. on December 11, making the cover, from a U.S. standpoint and the British viewpoint, an interned one rather than a return to sender in Germany.
The Service Suspended handstamp was possibly applied with no intention of the return to sender portion being followed. It can't be a British handstamp since they would intern such mail, not return it to Germany.
I'm still unsure why the British would forward a captured enemy cover to New York Registry Division -- perhaps this was a standard procedure at the time of its capture, again likely after we had also declared war against Germany on December 11 shortly following their declaration against the U.S.
The cover appears to have been handstamped there by U.S. clerks with the Service Suspended message, some months after Pearl Harbor. The handstamp was likely crossed out when the cover was released and forwarded to Japan in the postwar era.
I wonder what the Japanese characters and handstamp state.
Bruce
PS: Great cover!
I can't comment any further about my Germany-Japan cover with any authority, but I can quote Wikipedia!:
"On 8 December 1941, the government of the United Kingdom declared war on the Empire of Japan, following the Japanese attacks on Malaya, Singapore and Hong Kong."
British colonies were attacked at the same time as the US; previously, they were not belligerent with Japan
Its this cover ok? Its first time when i see something like this (please note im a beginer in philately)
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
Looks to me like a 'fantasy' cover. Only two stamps belong on the envelope and they are the Deutsches Bundespost 60pf and 10pf.
All the others have been attached later.
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
I agree. The glue remnants are clearly visible.
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
Plus, only the West German stamps are tied to the cover. And the point of doing this was…?
Bob
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
It's the new style all world album on a single cover.
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
Here's an example of a four stage cover that did go through the mail systems of three countries. From the USA to London (England), to Hong Kong and then back to the USA.
This was obviously a contrived 'boomerang' cover. Mr Dwortetzky apparently had contacts in England and Hong Kong who on receipt, removed the address label and applied another one (and the appropriate stamps) for the next leg of the journey. The significant part of this cover is the GB 1½d definitive, which indicates that the London to Hong Kong leg was carried under the 'Empire All-Up Scheme' concessionary rate.
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
"10am, Hong Kong, 30 August 1939" except for the complications of crossing the Date Line that was almost the last day of general peacetime.
I wonder if anyone has a stamp or cover cancelled around 5 or 6 am September 1st, 1939 Europe or about 4pm Sept 1st in the Far East.
The exact hour and date will be different for different locales.
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
This cover, from an American perspective, was posted Dec. 6, 1941 in Germany the day before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. That attack, of course, forced the U.S. finally to enter the war against the Axis:
It was "interned" in New York throughout the war, then in 1948 was forwarded to Japan via in San Francisco, and was finally delivered to its destination in Kyoto, Japan.
Bob
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
Bob, it's interesting that a cover mailed from Germany to Japan wound up in the USA. I also wonder if Frau Liesa was still at the Kyoto Hotel all that time! Or if she ever got her letter.
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
I own this multiple use card, all within Texas but scarce and fun to own. Of course it's in the Ben Franklin collection.
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
"I wonder if anyone has a stamp or cover cancelled around 5 or 6 am September 1st, 1939 Europe or about 4pm Sept 1st in the Far East."
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
Tom said,
"Bob, it's interesting that a cover mailed from Germany to Japan wound up in the USA."
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
"Check out the top cover on this page of my Stamporama Exhibit "Very Cool Covers"."
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
Bob - that's a fantastic cover - I'm wondering if "return to sender" means that the recipient was no longer there after the war? Or only in relation to service suspended - in which case it would be as mentioned, unlikely that anyone was in any rush to return this to Germany.
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
It is most likely that mail marked 'return to sender' from an enemy country was, as Bob stated, deliberately retained.
The Japanese did exactly the same thing in Hong Kong and probably Singapore. All this sort of mail was found bagged up in sacks and dumped in Post Office cellars.
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
It would be interesting to know where and when my German cover was handstamped, "RETURN TO SENDER". In the hours and days immediately after the attack on Pearl Harbor, routines in international post offices must have been in chaos. I can see a postal clerk using that handstamp in error and then striking it out with a blue pencil. Or, later, someone else might have realized the error, struck out handstamp imprint, and consigned the cover to internment.
Bob
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
Bob - you must be reading my mind - I was wondering the same thing.
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
Regarding the Service Suspended handstamp: I'm wondering why the British even let this cover be forwarded to New York--if I'm not mistaken that is a British P.C 90 censorship label so at some point, the cover was held by the British who were at war with Japan and Germany.
The British probably intercepted this cover after December 7th since it was mailed from Germany on December 6--the cover may have been intercepted sometime in December after Hitler declared war against the U.S. on December 11, making the cover, from a U.S. standpoint and the British viewpoint, an interned one rather than a return to sender in Germany.
The Service Suspended handstamp was possibly applied with no intention of the return to sender portion being followed. It can't be a British handstamp since they would intern such mail, not return it to Germany.
I'm still unsure why the British would forward a captured enemy cover to New York Registry Division -- perhaps this was a standard procedure at the time of its capture, again likely after we had also declared war against Germany on December 11 shortly following their declaration against the U.S.
The cover appears to have been handstamped there by U.S. clerks with the Service Suspended message, some months after Pearl Harbor. The handstamp was likely crossed out when the cover was released and forwarded to Japan in the postwar era.
I wonder what the Japanese characters and handstamp state.
Bruce
PS: Great cover!
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
I can't comment any further about my Germany-Japan cover with any authority, but I can quote Wikipedia!:
"On 8 December 1941, the government of the United Kingdom declared war on the Empire of Japan, following the Japanese attacks on Malaya, Singapore and Hong Kong."
re: Cover with multiple country stamps
British colonies were attacked at the same time as the US; previously, they were not belligerent with Japan