Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Covers by country anyone?
That might be a big collection... LOL!
Could be cool!
I'm starting to accumulate some worldwide covers that are cool (to me) and it got me thinking about another "collection" point...
JR
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I am collecting one cover from each country and some postal authorities which may not have been countries per se.
Here is an 1840 letter sent from French India:
Here is a 1922 cover from the N. W. Pacific Islands:
An 1856 cover from Victoria, Australia:
And so on . . .
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Hi Smauggie,
Very cool!
How many so far?
I'm going to start counting mine tonight.
I like this idea of collecting and may stop with my "one stamp per country" and replace with this methodology as I enjoy covers more.
JR
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I have about 150. I have about 5 binders full of them.
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Antonio, regarding your 1856 cover, I had a friend who worked for Hoare and co back in the 60's. They were then a stockbroking firm in the city of London and I actually played for their football (soccer) team although I didn't work for them.
I think they are still in business.
Vic
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I couldn't resist this thread!
Here's my entry:
I have become very interested in the Caribbean mails of the Victorian era, when colonialism in the Caribbean dominated. Could not resist this folded sheet, which contains a letter (in French, I think), dateline "Pto. Cabello, 23 Juni 1867" to Bordeaux via Southampton. It's a new acquisition, so I don't have it in hand yet. Can't wait to translate the letter! Anyway, this one's marked up real nice!
Will need a hand in figuring it all out!
So far, I've determined that "Ruete Rühl" was a cotton exporter. (Found an announcement in the October 16, 1867 issue of El Federalista describing an exportacion of 145 cotton bales worth $27,920 by the firm on "del vapor ingles Plantogenet" to an F. Muller.) The last word in the first line of the address is "Klipsch"
Next task is to figure out which vessel carried this letter! I wonder, since it does not bear a postage stamp, if it was carried by private packet. There was a whole succession of private companies carrying goods (and mail) in the Caribbean around this time...
-Paul
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Hi Paul,
That is an exciting one indeed!
I'll be interested to "follow" the deciphering process!
JR
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Puerto Cabello is in Venezuela. Can you scan the letter?
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Here's the inside of the Puerto Cabello cover:
As you can see, it's going to be tough to do anything with the scan I have. I still can't tell if it's in English, French, or Spanish. I see a "100" in the seventh line of the letter, and I see what appear to be freight rates for London, Hamburg, and Paris in the last line. I think I see the word "Coffee" in a couple of places in the letter.
The imprint at the upper L is that of Ruete Rühl and co.
I have been aware of Puerto Cabello as being an important port in the southern Caribbean, and served by private packets, along with La Guaira and St John, DWI. I believe the top line on the sheet is "Pr Steamer via Southampton". I am presuming "Pr" indicates Private.
Would love to know if there are any clues in the rate markings on the cover!
Thanks,
-Paul
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This is the receiver's notation on the Puerto Cabello cover:
What is that "30 y" or "30 g" in darker ink? the letter's weight?
-Paul
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It is as I thought. The letter is printed, except for the signature. The sender is merchant agent of some sort and he would prepare regular reports on trade in the area (quarterly would be my guess). He would write the letter using a stylus to scratch his script into plate of soft metal. Then the plate can be inked and multiple copies can be produced by firmly pressing a piece of paper onto the inked plate.
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So, the scribe wrote everything BACKWARDS?
It seems incredible to have the result look as it does, like flowing script.
We'll see when I have the original in-hand!
Thanks!
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I am not sure of the exact process, but he would not have been writing backwards.
The fineness of the text made me think of that, and the fact that the writer seems to be reporting on commercial matters. Looking at it know I think I jumped to the wrong conclusion.
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"The fineness of the text made me think of that, and the fact that the writer seems to be reporting on commercial matters. Looking at it know I think I jumped to the wrong conclusion."
"The fineness of the text"...
Might be an understatement!
That cursive is quite unbelievable!
JR
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Dakar, Senegal (French Colony)
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Does that say "Society of Anonymous and Secret Societies"?
That's pretty cool!
JR
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Societe Anonyme means Anonymous Society which is another term for corporation.
Anciens Etablissments means of ancient establishment.
Together they mean "a long established business or corporation". Of course it is referring to the business of E. Cauvin - Yvose.
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Too bad the date cannot be read in the CDS. But, it looks like DAKAR SENEGAL.
Would be fascinating to know how this cover made its way from Dakar to Paris, and how long it took to get there!
(The 1920s was the cradle of international air mail development.)
-Paul
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The Avion in red crayon means Airplane.
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Hannover - 1860's
From Celle to Peine
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For the "AVION" cover from Senegal, I meant that it would be interesting to know the identity of the aircraft/pilot that carried this piece of mail, and its schedule. Keeping to schedules was a precarious proposition in those early days, and the delays (and reasons for same) make very interesting stories about what it took to have the mails "go through".
That "what" is often taken for granted today...
-Paul
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I understand. Now that you have brought the subject up, I am rather curious about it as well. I will pull the cover tonight hopefully and get a look at the back side and see if there are any markings that help explain its story.
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Although narrower than what you are talking about, I think Richard Frajola's "Postal history of the world 1840-1860" is a fascinating take on country cover collecting:
http://www.rfrajola.com/world/world.htm
Well worth checking out if you haven't seen it.
Bob
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Thanks for that link, 1840!
Here's another one, a new acquisition:
Panama!
I bought this one because it (was cheap and) it's a three-fer!
1. First Day of Issue of the stamps (January 9, 1928)
2. Commemorates Lindbergh's Good Will Tour of Latin America, and his arrival in Panama with a fancy cancellation. LLEGADA is 'arrival'.
3. Genuine Postally Used
I haven't finished the research on this one yet, but Lindbergh was named Time Magazine's Man of the Year on January 2, 1928. On February 6, 1928, he piloted a plane carrying 3000 pieces of souvenir mail in Central America, ending up in Havana. I have my doubts whether Lindbergh was actually IN Panama on January 9, but still, it's a neat piece...Strongly philatelic, but at an interesting intersection of time...
Now, THAT's my kind of FDC!
-Paul
PS: One has to realize how immensely popular Lindbergh was in 1927-1928. He was a true national hero, widely revered by the general public, commanding HUGE crowds wherever he appeared. We have probably seen nobody in modern history, before or since, as universally popular as he was.
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Want to guess at who printed the stamps?
Lindbergh was indeed in Panama in 1928 though he did not arrive until the 12th of January.
More info: Charles Lindbergh in Panama in 1928
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They're pretty crudely done, so I'd say a private printing firm, and not one of the Bank Note Companies...
Now, I AM curious!
-Paul
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So from what I understand the stamps were ordered up on kind of a last minute basis. There was not time to get the designs nicely engraved. The Panama Canal Company (the US organization that ran the Panama Canal) offered to help with printing them up, but because of the time restrictions they were printed using the easier and quicker typography.
These are the only Panama stamps I know of that were printed by the Panama Canal Company.
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low whistle
How about that?...
Isn't postal history FUN?
-Paul
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I updated the date for the Senegal cover. It is 1933. The backside of the cover, though does not give any hint as to the route of travel.
I found this article which is quite interesting.
Tracing the Route of Airmail Pioneers
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Nigeria (British Colony and Protectorate)
September 9, 1926
Montgomery Ward took mail order requests from literally anywhere with a postal service it seems.
It is hard to judge whether this was an order for the Bank of British West Africa or just one of its executive employees.
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Costa Rica
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Nigeria, First Republic 1960-1966
December 3, 1963
As Nigeria was granted autonomy by the UK in 1960, the government formed Nigeria's first republic. In 1966 the First Republic ended as Nigeria descended into civil war.
In my reckoning the various covers from all of the countries and/or postal administrations for Nigeria (or it's environs) would be:
Lagos (Island) Colony
Oil Rivers Protectorate
Niger Coast Protectorate
Northern Nigeria Protectorate
Southern Nigeria Protectorate
Nigeria Colony and Protectorate
First Republic
Second Republic
Biafra
Third Republic
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09:44:15pm
Transvaal Boer War censored cover to POW on St. Helena.
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Smauggie- Did you consider Nigerian stamps used in British controlled Cameroons in 1960-61 (Nigerian stamps overprinted U.K.T.T.) prior to the separation of north & south and absorption into independent Nigeria & Cameroons, respectively?
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Good question rjan. As the stamps were used in Cameroon, and not Nigeria that is how I would classify them as Cameroon stamps
Also, my interest is based less on stamp issue and more on each political entity. Since the stamps were used in British Controlled Cameroon, the part that would be of interest to me would be getting a cover from British Cameroon.
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Okinawa Prefecture
US Military Administration - 1945-1952
A very scarce first day cover. In case you are wondering the double rectangle in the upper right is a provisional postage marking.
In 1952, the US returned the Amman Islands to Japan and the rest of the islands in the Okinawa region were turned into the US territory of the Ryukyu Islands.
Inside the cover is this card. I am not sure what a Women's Department did.
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Very neat First Flight cover, smauggie!
The Boeing Stratocruiser depicted in the cachet made its first flight on July 8, 1947 - just months before the voyage that the cover made, and TWO YEARS AFTER the first commercial orders for the plane. It was not put into airline service until April 1, 1949 (PanAm) which is a good indication that the cachet was wishful thinking at the time it was printed.
The Stratocruiser was a derivative of the B-29 Superfortress, and had a checkered operational history due to many incidents with its propellers, 2 of which resulted in fatalities...but, that's another story...
-Paul
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Country: Venezuela (Puerto Cabello).
The Pto. Cabello folded letter above arrived this morning, 8AM via FedEx Express! How exciting! So, I have rescanned the letter:
First, to respond to smauggie's conclusion that the letter is a print, I don't think so. For these reasons:
1. The hand that wrote the letter is the same as penned the address.
2. There is visual evidence of ink blobs where the pen paused. This effect would not occur with a stylus on a metal plate. To wit, these "t"s:
Next, I think the letter might be written in Portuguese. Here is another close-up:
There are two lines on this piece. In the top line, I see "brillado Caffee", which may translate into "bright coffee". In the bottom line, I see "Descerezado", which translates to "Dissappointed".
There are numbers on 5 lines in this letter, including these two, both with $ signs:
and, this:
Looks like the word "Steamer" at the right side.
What excites me about this folded letter now is it's multiculturalism:
- Posted in Venezuela, a former Spanish colony
- Transitted through Southampton, England, gaining a GB rate marking for carriage from England to France
- Written in Portuguese
- Addressed to Bordeaux, France
- Reference to American currency ($)
- German company (Ruete & Ruhl)
- German addressee? (Klipsch)
I guess that's what attracts me to 19th century Caribbean as a collecting area - it's a cultural crossroads!
-Paul
PS, anyone know Portuguese?
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Yeah, if you see my response on June 5, I had already realized that it was not a printed matter letter.
I am quite sure the letter is in Spanish, though the script is rather hard to read.
Descerezado means to remove the pulp from the coffee fruit, leaving the seed or bean.
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A busy cover from Italy
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Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
Odessa, Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic - 1933
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A Registered cover, an elderly hand, a West Chicago address that's now walk-up apts.
In the 1920s and 1930s, I wonder how many international Registered covers like this contained money...(especially the ones to banks). The paper is quite heavy, isn't it?
-Paul
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Usually the money would come from the US back to the old country. My guess is that this cover contained important paperwork, perhaps in preparation for emigration to America.
Here in Minnesota, you will find many covers form Scandinavian countries to Minnesota where no postage was applied to the envelope as a regular practice, as it was expected that the wealthy US relatives would pay the cost of postage. Of course the cost for postage due covers was twice the normal cost of postage for the same route.
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Another Italian cover...
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Ukraine - Independent 1990-Present
Odessa, 1993
Cover from Odessa, Ukraine to Wisconsin, USA. This is the modern cousin of the previous cover form Odessa. The postage is provisional postage printed on a dot matrix printer.
The asterisk in the top middle of each stamp is the closest text symbol for Ukraine's Trident.
The high values of the postage stamps denominated in Ukraine's equivalent of the US Dollar, the Karbovanet. This shows the beginning of the a hyper-inflationary problem that would eventually see the Karbovanet replaced by a new currency, the Hryvnia.
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Hi all,
Covers by country anyone?
That might be a big collection... LOL!
Could be cool!
I'm starting to accumulate some worldwide covers that are cool (to me) and it got me thinking about another "collection" point...
JR
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
I am collecting one cover from each country and some postal authorities which may not have been countries per se.
Here is an 1840 letter sent from French India:
Here is a 1922 cover from the N. W. Pacific Islands:
An 1856 cover from Victoria, Australia:
And so on . . .
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Hi Smauggie,
Very cool!
How many so far?
I'm going to start counting mine tonight.
I like this idea of collecting and may stop with my "one stamp per country" and replace with this methodology as I enjoy covers more.
JR
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
I have about 150. I have about 5 binders full of them.
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Antonio, regarding your 1856 cover, I had a friend who worked for Hoare and co back in the 60's. They were then a stockbroking firm in the city of London and I actually played for their football (soccer) team although I didn't work for them.
I think they are still in business.
Vic
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10:16:37am
re: Covers by Country anyone?
I couldn't resist this thread!
Here's my entry:
I have become very interested in the Caribbean mails of the Victorian era, when colonialism in the Caribbean dominated. Could not resist this folded sheet, which contains a letter (in French, I think), dateline "Pto. Cabello, 23 Juni 1867" to Bordeaux via Southampton. It's a new acquisition, so I don't have it in hand yet. Can't wait to translate the letter! Anyway, this one's marked up real nice!
Will need a hand in figuring it all out!
So far, I've determined that "Ruete Rühl" was a cotton exporter. (Found an announcement in the October 16, 1867 issue of El Federalista describing an exportacion of 145 cotton bales worth $27,920 by the firm on "del vapor ingles Plantogenet" to an F. Muller.) The last word in the first line of the address is "Klipsch"
Next task is to figure out which vessel carried this letter! I wonder, since it does not bear a postage stamp, if it was carried by private packet. There was a whole succession of private companies carrying goods (and mail) in the Caribbean around this time...
-Paul
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Hi Paul,
That is an exciting one indeed!
I'll be interested to "follow" the deciphering process!
JR
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Puerto Cabello is in Venezuela. Can you scan the letter?
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01:30:58pm
re: Covers by Country anyone?
Here's the inside of the Puerto Cabello cover:
As you can see, it's going to be tough to do anything with the scan I have. I still can't tell if it's in English, French, or Spanish. I see a "100" in the seventh line of the letter, and I see what appear to be freight rates for London, Hamburg, and Paris in the last line. I think I see the word "Coffee" in a couple of places in the letter.
The imprint at the upper L is that of Ruete Rühl and co.
I have been aware of Puerto Cabello as being an important port in the southern Caribbean, and served by private packets, along with La Guaira and St John, DWI. I believe the top line on the sheet is "Pr Steamer via Southampton". I am presuming "Pr" indicates Private.
Would love to know if there are any clues in the rate markings on the cover!
Thanks,
-Paul
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01:35:08pm
re: Covers by Country anyone?
This is the receiver's notation on the Puerto Cabello cover:
What is that "30 y" or "30 g" in darker ink? the letter's weight?
-Paul
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
It is as I thought. The letter is printed, except for the signature. The sender is merchant agent of some sort and he would prepare regular reports on trade in the area (quarterly would be my guess). He would write the letter using a stylus to scratch his script into plate of soft metal. Then the plate can be inked and multiple copies can be produced by firmly pressing a piece of paper onto the inked plate.
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02:48:15pm
re: Covers by Country anyone?
So, the scribe wrote everything BACKWARDS?
It seems incredible to have the result look as it does, like flowing script.
We'll see when I have the original in-hand!
Thanks!
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
I am not sure of the exact process, but he would not have been writing backwards.
The fineness of the text made me think of that, and the fact that the writer seems to be reporting on commercial matters. Looking at it know I think I jumped to the wrong conclusion.
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
"The fineness of the text made me think of that, and the fact that the writer seems to be reporting on commercial matters. Looking at it know I think I jumped to the wrong conclusion."
"The fineness of the text"...
Might be an understatement!
That cursive is quite unbelievable!
JR
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Dakar, Senegal (French Colony)
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Does that say "Society of Anonymous and Secret Societies"?
That's pretty cool!
JR
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Societe Anonyme means Anonymous Society which is another term for corporation.
Anciens Etablissments means of ancient establishment.
Together they mean "a long established business or corporation". Of course it is referring to the business of E. Cauvin - Yvose.
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09:45:15am
re: Covers by Country anyone?
Too bad the date cannot be read in the CDS. But, it looks like DAKAR SENEGAL.
Would be fascinating to know how this cover made its way from Dakar to Paris, and how long it took to get there!
(The 1920s was the cradle of international air mail development.)
-Paul
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
The Avion in red crayon means Airplane.
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Hannover - 1860's
From Celle to Peine
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08:57:41am
re: Covers by Country anyone?
For the "AVION" cover from Senegal, I meant that it would be interesting to know the identity of the aircraft/pilot that carried this piece of mail, and its schedule. Keeping to schedules was a precarious proposition in those early days, and the delays (and reasons for same) make very interesting stories about what it took to have the mails "go through".
That "what" is often taken for granted today...
-Paul
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
I understand. Now that you have brought the subject up, I am rather curious about it as well. I will pull the cover tonight hopefully and get a look at the back side and see if there are any markings that help explain its story.
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11:05:11am
re: Covers by Country anyone?
Although narrower than what you are talking about, I think Richard Frajola's "Postal history of the world 1840-1860" is a fascinating take on country cover collecting:
http://www.rfrajola.com/world/world.htm
Well worth checking out if you haven't seen it.
Bob
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02:12:48pm
re: Covers by Country anyone?
Thanks for that link, 1840!
Here's another one, a new acquisition:
Panama!
I bought this one because it (was cheap and) it's a three-fer!
1. First Day of Issue of the stamps (January 9, 1928)
2. Commemorates Lindbergh's Good Will Tour of Latin America, and his arrival in Panama with a fancy cancellation. LLEGADA is 'arrival'.
3. Genuine Postally Used
I haven't finished the research on this one yet, but Lindbergh was named Time Magazine's Man of the Year on January 2, 1928. On February 6, 1928, he piloted a plane carrying 3000 pieces of souvenir mail in Central America, ending up in Havana. I have my doubts whether Lindbergh was actually IN Panama on January 9, but still, it's a neat piece...Strongly philatelic, but at an interesting intersection of time...
Now, THAT's my kind of FDC!
-Paul
PS: One has to realize how immensely popular Lindbergh was in 1927-1928. He was a true national hero, widely revered by the general public, commanding HUGE crowds wherever he appeared. We have probably seen nobody in modern history, before or since, as universally popular as he was.
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Want to guess at who printed the stamps?
Lindbergh was indeed in Panama in 1928 though he did not arrive until the 12th of January.
More info: Charles Lindbergh in Panama in 1928
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02:51:57pm
re: Covers by Country anyone?
They're pretty crudely done, so I'd say a private printing firm, and not one of the Bank Note Companies...
Now, I AM curious!
-Paul
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
So from what I understand the stamps were ordered up on kind of a last minute basis. There was not time to get the designs nicely engraved. The Panama Canal Company (the US organization that ran the Panama Canal) offered to help with printing them up, but because of the time restrictions they were printed using the easier and quicker typography.
These are the only Panama stamps I know of that were printed by the Panama Canal Company.
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06:02:12pm
re: Covers by Country anyone?
low whistle
How about that?...
Isn't postal history FUN?
-Paul
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
I updated the date for the Senegal cover. It is 1933. The backside of the cover, though does not give any hint as to the route of travel.
I found this article which is quite interesting.
Tracing the Route of Airmail Pioneers
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Nigeria (British Colony and Protectorate)
September 9, 1926
Montgomery Ward took mail order requests from literally anywhere with a postal service it seems.
It is hard to judge whether this was an order for the Bank of British West Africa or just one of its executive employees.
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05:48:42pm
re: Covers by Country anyone?
Costa Rica
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Nigeria, First Republic 1960-1966
December 3, 1963
As Nigeria was granted autonomy by the UK in 1960, the government formed Nigeria's first republic. In 1966 the First Republic ended as Nigeria descended into civil war.
In my reckoning the various covers from all of the countries and/or postal administrations for Nigeria (or it's environs) would be:
Lagos (Island) Colony
Oil Rivers Protectorate
Niger Coast Protectorate
Northern Nigeria Protectorate
Southern Nigeria Protectorate
Nigeria Colony and Protectorate
First Republic
Second Republic
Biafra
Third Republic
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Immediate Past President - West Essex Philatelic Society www.wepsonline.org
08 Jun 2018
09:44:15pm
re: Covers by Country anyone?
Transvaal Boer War censored cover to POW on St. Helena.
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Smauggie- Did you consider Nigerian stamps used in British controlled Cameroons in 1960-61 (Nigerian stamps overprinted U.K.T.T.) prior to the separation of north & south and absorption into independent Nigeria & Cameroons, respectively?
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Good question rjan. As the stamps were used in Cameroon, and not Nigeria that is how I would classify them as Cameroon stamps
Also, my interest is based less on stamp issue and more on each political entity. Since the stamps were used in British Controlled Cameroon, the part that would be of interest to me would be getting a cover from British Cameroon.
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Okinawa Prefecture
US Military Administration - 1945-1952
A very scarce first day cover. In case you are wondering the double rectangle in the upper right is a provisional postage marking.
In 1952, the US returned the Amman Islands to Japan and the rest of the islands in the Okinawa region were turned into the US territory of the Ryukyu Islands.
Inside the cover is this card. I am not sure what a Women's Department did.
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12:51:15pm
re: Covers by Country anyone?
Very neat First Flight cover, smauggie!
The Boeing Stratocruiser depicted in the cachet made its first flight on July 8, 1947 - just months before the voyage that the cover made, and TWO YEARS AFTER the first commercial orders for the plane. It was not put into airline service until April 1, 1949 (PanAm) which is a good indication that the cachet was wishful thinking at the time it was printed.
The Stratocruiser was a derivative of the B-29 Superfortress, and had a checkered operational history due to many incidents with its propellers, 2 of which resulted in fatalities...but, that's another story...
-Paul
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07:49:13pm
re: Covers by Country anyone?
Country: Venezuela (Puerto Cabello).
The Pto. Cabello folded letter above arrived this morning, 8AM via FedEx Express! How exciting! So, I have rescanned the letter:
First, to respond to smauggie's conclusion that the letter is a print, I don't think so. For these reasons:
1. The hand that wrote the letter is the same as penned the address.
2. There is visual evidence of ink blobs where the pen paused. This effect would not occur with a stylus on a metal plate. To wit, these "t"s:
Next, I think the letter might be written in Portuguese. Here is another close-up:
There are two lines on this piece. In the top line, I see "brillado Caffee", which may translate into "bright coffee". In the bottom line, I see "Descerezado", which translates to "Dissappointed".
There are numbers on 5 lines in this letter, including these two, both with $ signs:
and, this:
Looks like the word "Steamer" at the right side.
What excites me about this folded letter now is it's multiculturalism:
- Posted in Venezuela, a former Spanish colony
- Transitted through Southampton, England, gaining a GB rate marking for carriage from England to France
- Written in Portuguese
- Addressed to Bordeaux, France
- Reference to American currency ($)
- German company (Ruete & Ruhl)
- German addressee? (Klipsch)
I guess that's what attracts me to 19th century Caribbean as a collecting area - it's a cultural crossroads!
-Paul
PS, anyone know Portuguese?
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Yeah, if you see my response on June 5, I had already realized that it was not a printed matter letter.
I am quite sure the letter is in Spanish, though the script is rather hard to read.
Descerezado means to remove the pulp from the coffee fruit, leaving the seed or bean.
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11:41:50am
re: Covers by Country anyone?
A busy cover from Italy
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
Odessa, Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic - 1933
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02:20:46pm
re: Covers by Country anyone?
A Registered cover, an elderly hand, a West Chicago address that's now walk-up apts.
In the 1920s and 1930s, I wonder how many international Registered covers like this contained money...(especially the ones to banks). The paper is quite heavy, isn't it?
-Paul
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Usually the money would come from the US back to the old country. My guess is that this cover contained important paperwork, perhaps in preparation for emigration to America.
Here in Minnesota, you will find many covers form Scandinavian countries to Minnesota where no postage was applied to the envelope as a regular practice, as it was expected that the wealthy US relatives would pay the cost of postage. Of course the cost for postage due covers was twice the normal cost of postage for the same route.
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08:54:30am
re: Covers by Country anyone?
Another Italian cover...
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re: Covers by Country anyone?
Ukraine - Independent 1990-Present
Odessa, 1993
Cover from Odessa, Ukraine to Wisconsin, USA. This is the modern cousin of the previous cover form Odessa. The postage is provisional postage printed on a dot matrix printer.
The asterisk in the top middle of each stamp is the closest text symbol for Ukraine's Trident.
The high values of the postage stamps denominated in Ukraine's equivalent of the US Dollar, the Karbovanet. This shows the beginning of the a hyper-inflationary problem that would eventually see the Karbovanet replaced by a new currency, the Hryvnia.
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