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Auction: 26015 - "The Treasure of the Eagles" Collection of Albania - Part I
Lot: 3033

(x) Austrian Levant (1820-1914)
Durazzo
1867 (March 7). Large registered envelope from Durres (Durazzo) addressed to the Grand Minister of State (Grand Vizier, Sadrazam) Mehmed Emin Ali Pasha (one of the most influential statesmen of the Ottoman Empire during the reform era known as the Tanzimat), franked with four examples of 1867 Coarse Printing 5s. red, vertical pair, and two singles (one torn on opening) on the reverse to pay the registration fee, tied by very fine "Durazzo" c.d.s.'s (type 2) in blue, with "recom:" straight-line at right, and Austrian c.d.s. of Constantinople on reverse. An extremely rare example of franked registered mail in Albania in this period -as a matter of fact, no examples were encountered in the 19th century in the phenomenal "Albania" collection sold by Fiorenzo Zanetti in 1998, which featured a wide section of Austrian Levant-; in addition, an exceptional case of mail addressed to an Ottoman governor using the Austrian mail via maritime routes, instead of the official Ottoman post overland. Michel 3I.

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

Estimate
£1,200 to £2,000

Starting price
£1000