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| Scott Number | 2 |
|---|---|
| Date | October 1, 1849 |
| From City | Philadelphia |
| From State | PA |
| To City | San Francisco |
| To State | CA |
| Addressee | J. Foster Flagg |
| Cert Author | PF |
| Cert # | 177421 |
| Fake | |
| Quantity 1 | 0 |
| Quantity 2 | 4 |
| Bisect | |
| Others |
Notes
10c Black (2). Four Singles, Three Have Large to Huge Margins, the Fourth, Which is Double Transfer Type "C" has three Large Margins, clear to touched at right, tied by Bold ms. penstrokes and light Blue Philada., Pa. pmk. on Oct. 1849 Folded Letter to California, cover is a bit aged and there are some hinge reinforced separation along folds, nevertheless A Very Important and Valuable 1847 Cover of Which Only A Handful Exist
Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries, Inc. Sale 679, lot 70 realized $13,500
Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries, Inc. sale 771 lot 440 realized 11,500
Ashbrook Special Services cover 201
Alexander listed as 10/1/49
Robert A. Siegel sale 1331 lot 1035 realized 29,000 (image)
Matthew Bennett International Sale 252 lot 83 realized 26,000¨10c Black (2) four singles, 2nd is Double transfer Type C, four margins except latter is touched one side, tied by matching pen strokes and light blue Philada. Pa. Oct 1 cds on 1849 folded letter to San Francisco paying the 40c transcontinental rate, ms Paid and 40, lengthy entertaining contents; cover with small tears at bottom, still a Very Fine and rare usage.
One of the rarest and most sought after of the 1847 usages. There are only 12 recorded covers with the transcontinental rate. Of these, only four have singles.
Expertization: 1987 PF Certificate
Provenance: Stollnitz, signed Ashbrook
Illustrated: The United States 1847 Issue: A Cover Census and Letters of Gold
The contents include an acknowledgement of the receipt of a 50 page California journal of the addressee's trip around the Horn, an early reference to the San Francisco opera and a tiny newspaper clipping advertising an opera at a theater in Philadelphia.
The enclosed clipping sheds some light on the relative cost of postage in the 1840's. The newspaper notice lists the price for seats at the opera. The best seats, in the orchestra or the boxes, were 75c. Compare that to the 40c cost of mailing this letter and to the $100 (an up) charge for a good seat at an opera in a large US city today. We thus have a cost basis (in 21 century US dollars) for the postage of over $50
PF 177421
2 1847 10¢ black FOUR SINGLES PEN CANCELLED ON FOLDED LETTER TO SAN FRANCISCO FROM PHILADELPHIA, PA. OCT. 1 (1849).
AND WE ARE OF THE OPINION THAT
They Are Genuinely Used On Cover With THE SECOND STAMP BEING A DOUBLE TRANSFER TYPE "C"
PhilaMercury Cover #13823
Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries, Inc. Sale 679, lot 70 realized $13,500
Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries, Inc. sale 771 lot 440 realized 11,500
Ashbrook Special Services cover 201
Alexander listed as 10/1/49
Robert A. Siegel sale 1331 lot 1035 realized 29,000 (image)
Matthew Bennett International Sale 252 lot 83 realized 26,000¨10c Black (2) four singles, 2nd is Double transfer Type C, four margins except latter is touched one side, tied by matching pen strokes and light blue Philada. Pa. Oct 1 cds on 1849 folded letter to San Francisco paying the 40c transcontinental rate, ms Paid and 40, lengthy entertaining contents; cover with small tears at bottom, still a Very Fine and rare usage.
One of the rarest and most sought after of the 1847 usages. There are only 12 recorded covers with the transcontinental rate. Of these, only four have singles.
Expertization: 1987 PF Certificate
Provenance: Stollnitz, signed Ashbrook
Illustrated: The United States 1847 Issue: A Cover Census and Letters of Gold
The contents include an acknowledgement of the receipt of a 50 page California journal of the addressee's trip around the Horn, an early reference to the San Francisco opera and a tiny newspaper clipping advertising an opera at a theater in Philadelphia.
The enclosed clipping sheds some light on the relative cost of postage in the 1840's. The newspaper notice lists the price for seats at the opera. The best seats, in the orchestra or the boxes, were 75c. Compare that to the 40c cost of mailing this letter and to the $100 (an up) charge for a good seat at an opera in a large US city today. We thus have a cost basis (in 21 century US dollars) for the postage of over $50
PF 177421
2 1847 10¢ black FOUR SINGLES PEN CANCELLED ON FOLDED LETTER TO SAN FRANCISCO FROM PHILADELPHIA, PA. OCT. 1 (1849).
AND WE ARE OF THE OPINION THAT
They Are Genuinely Used On Cover With THE SECOND STAMP BEING A DOUBLE TRANSFER TYPE "C"
PhilaMercury Cover #13823

