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Auction: 21045 - The Alan Holyoake Grand Prix Collection of British and International Registered Mail
Lot: 269

(x) Australasia
New South Wales
Mail to the United Kingdom
1841 (18 Mar.) entire letter to Aberdeen marked "Registered" and with number written underneath, bears good strikes of boxed "maitland/post paid", part Maitland Post office dated oval and oval "paid ship letter/sydney, with rate marks "1/8" and "7" which has been crossed through; there is a fine array of backstamps with the Maitland Post Office oval despatch in black, crowned oval General Post Office Sydney datestamp (22.5), straight-line "ship letter" plus London, Edinburgh and boxed Aberdeen arrival (25.7) datestamps; fresh and fine, free from the usual filing creases.


This is the earliest known registered letter from Australia to the United Kingdom

The local registration fee of 6d. needed to be paid in cash to the local postmaster, the 1/8d. was to be paid by the recipient being double ship letter plus 1/- registration whilst the 7d. denoted prepayment of 4d. coastal ship to Sydney plus 3d. overseas ship letter

Subject to 5% tax on Hammer Price in addition to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium.

Sold for
£1,800

Starting price
£1800