Anping
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What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Sept 13, 2017 0:52:15 GMT
The following cover is my latest GB WWI registered envelope which I assumed had been sent from somewhere in France or Belgium to Montreux in Switzerland. Registered mail sent by serving members of the British armed forces was subject to normal postage fees, unlike normal mail which was eventually sent free of charge after the early days of the war. As it turned out, this is more intriguing than when I first saw it on eBay. Dated 5th December 1916, it is countersigned (by a commanding officer) just visible underneath the registration label; it is twice censored by different censors; it has 13 hand struck markings in total. The Field Post Office that first serviced the envelope, used the designation H.R. (as seen at the base of the double ringed postmark), which is also present on the registration label. Aside from the two postmarks of the receiving office in Montreux on the reverse, there are two very curious postmarks; one of which I had not seen on the auction item image as it was so faint. Here are the front and reverse images: The very faint postmark which I had not noticed, dated the same day of despatch, is unknown to me. In fact I can't read the upper section. It seems to be of a 'hooded' type, struck in pale blue: Retroreveal was of no help, so I ran it through other software to try to enhance the postmark. This is the best I could manage without distorting it. Can anyone decipher the lettering : An intriguing part is the London registration mark. This at first glance appears to be dated 7 06 ??. But it is more likely that the date actually reads 7 DE. The year slugs don't look like 17 which it would have to be if it was received on 7 06, and there does appear to be a start of a loop where one would expect a numeral 6 to be. In addition, the month portion is unlikely to have been numeric, as per the usual British postmarking convention. However, why would mail sent to Montreux end up in London (2 days later) and then be sent on to Switzerland, arriving 4 days later? Having considered this further, I now wonder if this was not sent from the French/Belgian war theatre after all, but was in fact sent from somewhere in the UK. This would explain the London registration marking. I'm sure this would all become clear, if firstly the pale blue postmark could be deciphered and the Field Post Office H.R. designation could be identified. Unfortunately, I don't have any FPO reference books. Finally, The No. 2 index mark on the registration label might also reveal it's source. As I don't have enough knowledge of this field and lack the appropriate reference material, it would be a considerable help if anyone can shed any light on the missing links.
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Anping
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Sept 12, 2017 23:08:21 GMT
Thank you very much for your effort with the translation. It's a good start.
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Anping
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Sept 12, 2017 23:02:14 GMT
I bought this sheet at a local stamp fair as I couldn't resist this attempt by the British Post Office to train monkeys employees how to remove 'peel and stick' labels from a sheet. These were produced in 2001 in the run up to the new Christmas stamps. Unfortunately, some buffoon managed to partly adhere the article cutouts to the side of the sheet. I haven't yet tried to gently steam them off. I'm hoping that 'the Post Office' will be producing a new training aid for 2018, that explains the difference between a sharpie and a hand cancelling device.
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Anping
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Sept 12, 2017 22:45:27 GMT
Thanks again for your help and the link. Looking at my copy, it's been printed on distinctly thick paper and still has quite a fair bit of very shiney gum remaining. Oh for an imperf vertical pair.
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Anping
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Sept 12, 2017 16:49:43 GMT
My current favorite air mail cover in my collection. The flying clipper appears grey, but it is actually printed in shiny, metallic-like silver ink. I wish my scanner could capture the effect. Now that's a nice cover. By coincidence, I was looking at some of these about 2 weeks ago on eBay and was quite taken by them. I hadn't realised about the silver paint job as that didn't show up (as you found out). The odd thing is all of them have disappeared bar one. And that one is priced at $100. It has a just slightly different destination and route map.
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Anping
Departed
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Sept 12, 2017 16:02:16 GMT
Thank you both for your assistance. Great name for a post office. I guessed the aircraft image was just a representation as it didn't look at all familiar. Is it usual for service labels like this not to have a denomination, despite providing a stated 1 oz carriage weight?
Edit:
Looking at the Retroreveal image, the year actually appears later (which ties in better with the issue date); it looks more like 1928.
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Anping
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Sept 12, 2017 13:37:12 GMT
I picked up this rather nice 1 oz letter rate label with a postmark that I can't identify. It appears to have been cancelled August 29th 1926, somewhere in Ontario. Can anyone pick out the place name and perhaps flesh out how the label was used given that there is no indicia? Can the type of aircraft shown be identified?Thank you.
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Anping
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Sept 12, 2017 10:53:53 GMT
Surprisingly, these are not listed in my Exhibition Catalogue although earlier issues are including the first National Stamp Day in 1975 which were produced in private booklets..... My 1975 Booklets contain the Se-Tenant pairs of the European Architectural Heritage Year issue. Well I found my booklet when I wasn't looking for it:
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Anping
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Sept 12, 2017 10:21:11 GMT
I will try to see if I can at least get you a translation of the characters on the rest of the piece, if you are interested. Thanks for trying to look these up BG. I guessed it might be a long shot. It would certainly be great if you could get a translation but don't make things difficult for yourself. My only short term option would be to go to my local Chinese take-away (carry-out) and ask for special chow mein and a small portion of translation please . That would go down well!
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Anping
Departed
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Sept 12, 2017 3:54:00 GMT
As always, I'm intrigued by oriental philatelic ephemera. I know absolutely nothing about it, so if anybody can cast any light on this it would be a help. Even a date for the 10 cent revenue adhesives would be a good start (I don't have any catalogue covering China). Although it looks incomplete, I would think that the perforations on the left of the document indicate that the part shown is the customer's copy: Edit:
Translation supplied by Beryllium Guy : "Received today. Person of 'family name'...He paid twenty-five dollars and five cents. Date: 18th October 1927."
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Anping
Departed
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Sept 11, 2017 17:15:21 GMT
Welcome to TSF, Willy, good to have you aboard! I know almost nothing about U.S. Telephone stamps, so I am looking forward to learning a bit from you in future posts. Yes, welcome aboard Willy and I second the above comment by Beryllium Guy.
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Anping
Departed
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Sept 6, 2017 2:15:57 GMT
I have at last located my colour separation sheets of Easdale. But first, a brief introduction to the island: It appears to be a rather attractive place, as can be seen on the island website entitled : eilean eisdeal ?There are five colour separation printings plus the final product, which are all imperforate. I've only shown one colour separation; the grey-blue followed by the 'issued' final printing. As can be seen there must have been a strong affiliation with Hong Kong and their previous governors : Each 10p 'label' depicts one of the governors who represented the colony, from the first in 1843 to the last in 1997. Here is a cropped image showing the 28th and final governor of Hong Kong; Chris Patten. The British government handed control of Hong Kong back to China on the 1st July 1997. For a supposed local post issue, these are actually quite good quality:
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Anping
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Sept 2, 2017 21:58:08 GMT
That's a nice Trans Tasman cover. Interesting that the flight actually didn't take place until the 17th February; so this was sent to Auckland well in advance. Here's a good write-up about the flight and a bit of information about the pilot, Charles Ulm: First Trans-Tasman Airmail
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Anping
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Sept 2, 2017 16:03:12 GMT
August 31st, 1917
...it is possible that an accompanying “R” label at upper left has fallen-off.
vasia, you may want to check this, but the red brown rectangular printed marking is probably the registration mark. As far as I know, the Russian word for registration is зарегистрированный . Note the first letter.
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Anping
Departed
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Sept 2, 2017 11:57:53 GMT
Here's my latest first flight cover with a fine array of cachets. It was flown from Shanghai with China National Aviation Company (CNAC) and then transferred to the China Clipper service of Pan American Airways (FAM14) at Hong Kong. It was then flown on its long journey to San Francisco. Leaving Shanghai on 26th April 1937, it reached San Francisco on 4th May and took a further 3 days to Maplewood, New Jersey. It would be interesting to establish which type of aircraft flew the Shanghai-Hong Kong leg and also the San Francisco-New Jersey leg. CNAC apparently used Douglas DC2's (or DC3's), for internal flights, although other aircraft were in service. I think the Chinese PAA cachet is somewhat misleading as it shows an image of a clipper, which would only have been used for the Pacific leg of the journey. From the little information I have so far found about CNAC, it appears to have quite a history worth looking into including being 45% owned by Pan AM. Here are the backstamps:
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Anping
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Aug 31, 2017 1:12:44 GMT
The Chloromine-T, marketed as Halamid by Pharmaq, is the cheaper chemical. Foxit is supplied in a tiny 5 (or perhaps 10 gram) bag and now costs £4.75. I can't recall exactly how much I paid at the time for the Halamid product, but it was around £15 for 100 grams.
Note that although the container shows an expiry date, it can largely be ignored if stored with the cap on in a cool place. Mine is just over 4 years out of date yet still appears to be doing its stuff (perhaps its strength has been very slightly diminished over time but impossible to measure).
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Anping
Departed
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Aug 31, 2017 0:12:53 GMT
I have a tiny sub-collection of Hong Kong QV stamps from the 1884 definitive issue; specifically the 10 cent deep blue-green (SG37). For some unknown reason, I have always found this shade to be very attractive and unusual and have been trying to obtain a copy used in each Treaty Port with a fine cancel. This particular stamp was superceded very shortly after issue by the same value but printed in a true green colour. The reason for the change was a request by the Postmaster General who reported that the deep blue-green shade caused confusion between it and the 30 cent mauve when viewed in gas light. Finding fine examples of these used in the Treaty Ports is challenging, partly because the blue-green is not a common stamp. It is listed by Gibbons at about 11 times the price of its successor. Plus the added difficulty of finding these cancelled outside the Colony itself; in some of the more isolated treaty port post offices. Sometimes condition can be a problem. Although I won't buy any torn or damaged stamps, I will put up with examples that are toned and even affected by tropicalisation, namely foxing/mold. The reason I accept these, apart from getting them at a lower price, is that I am confident at treating these rogues and returning them to their former glory (or very nearly). Firstly, here's an example of the quite long lived successor to the deep blue-green (SG37); the green SG37a, coincidentally with a rather scarce treaty port part cancel of Ningpo: Following on is a badly toned and foxed copy of a deep blue-green, with Amoy cancel: Having put this through the wash with Chloromine-T, this was the result: A marked improvement which now graces my main sub-collection. Here's a selection including B62, the above Amoy, Canton, Foochowfoo, Hankow, Shanghae (with bent E), Shanghaf (broken E), and a full strike of the same postmark type, on an extreme shade of deep blue-green:
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Anping
Departed
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Aug 30, 2017 11:21:59 GMT
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Anping
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Aug 30, 2017 11:12:11 GMT
And now to more philatelic material but this time affected by foxing/mold: Over the last couple of days I have been treating two Queen Victorian Hong Kong Postal Stationery Cards (PSC's). These, as can be seen, were not in good shape and were sacrificial due to their damage and staining: Before Treatment: After Treatment: Although a significant improvement, the card may benefit from a further treatment.
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Anping
Departed
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Aug 30, 2017 10:46:32 GMT
Although this subject has been discussed ad nauseam on various boards and in numerous philatelic and paper conservation articles, I just wanted to describe my experience of a treatment method which I have used on and off for some years. We are all mostly aware of a condition problem that can affect our stamp collections; called foxing (here in the UK) or rusting/mold (elsewhere). This can be destructive in that it can spread given the ideal circumstances. Although this condition evolves more so in tropical climates, it can also emerge in poorly ventilated and damp storage conditions. I've had my small share of material affected by foxing, mainly because I collect Hong Kong, which endures a very humid and wet tropical season. There are from what I have seen, more severe examples from countries where air conditioning is the exception rather than the rule; such as India. I have a couple of very early covers from India terribly affected by foxing but where the the damage has gone beyond brown spotting and staining only to exhibit what I can best describes as termite (or silver fish) feeding holes. Perhaps these are indeed caused by such beasties but if so, the combination of humid conditions, tasty damp glue and poor quality paper just destroys this material. To try to curtail the potential for foxing/mold to spread, I use a substance called Chloromine-T as a chemical soak. Chloromine-T was readily obtainable in the UK a few years ago under the brand name 'Foxit' from some philatelic outlets. It's purpose was to kill mould spores and at the same time bleach out these blemishes on documents, stamps and silks. But the product strangely disappeared from the market. In fact, I have only just found one eBay seller who is selling this product again, which I had first used over 25 years ago. When this product disappeared from the market, I sought an alternative. I found the same chemical for use in sanitising drinking systems, treating poultry related diseases and for eradicating certain skin afflictions in coy carp. The added bonus was being able to buy the crystals in 100g tubs, as opposed to the Foxit, which was packaged in 5g bags at comparatively huge cost. I use about 2 grams of Chloromine-T in half a pint of water but find I have to vary the amount of the chemical in more severe cases. I have used Chloromine-T primarily on documents, which has produced some quite amazing results. In addition to the above claimed 'cures', it has also treated smoke impregnated documents; as found in old pictures hung near open coal fires. As for these documents, I unfortunately didn't take any 'before' images of my document restoration because I had no PC at the time and thus had no apparent reason for doing so. However, I do have 'after' treatment images, which are mainly photographs. Here is one example of treatment I applied to a very old block print which was badly affected by smoke staining. This took three treatments before the print finally gave up all its staining in tea coloured water. Once lightly pressed under weight until dry, it was only then that I realised that there were buildings and clouds in the background behind the rigging. But even after the treatment, there is still a slight outline of the smoke staining where the glass once was. So although Chloromine-T has been very effective, it can't perform miracles. More to follow.......
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Anping
Departed
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Aug 20, 2017 21:28:02 GMT
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MassachusettsLooking at the image, I would guess that this one is from the 1940s, but perhaps zipper knows better how to date these postcards. The campus as shown is clearly much less developed than what it was when I was there in the late 1970s. I should also admit that this is a reprint which was sent to me by the MIT Alumni Association several years ago. The original dates from around the mid 1920's.
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Anping
Departed
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Aug 19, 2017 9:04:21 GMT
Hi there Anping , My experience has been very good as I find them honest and reliable. Well between you and me, I have used them just the once. But I was interested in another opinion. I did benefit from a 'first time buyer' (£55) discount plus a 20% reduction on a relisted item; plus the standard no buyer fee; plus zero postage & handling fee. So I did rather well. Dealing with them by email is impressive as they are very responsive. But for my own collecting interest, I do find their estimates somewhat high and some of the quality of the material a little below my expectations for the price listed. Occasionally, their descriptions are confusing and images rather small. But I guess this is the price you pay for postal auctions, where lots can't be examined personally. The online catalogue feature is rather good. Looking at comments on other forums, the overall feedback is very good. Re: UPA - Universal Philatelic Auctions (Based in the UK) Since posting the above, I got an email a few days ago about a problem I had with a lot, that I had won about three weeks ago from their unsold lots listing. This was only my second attempt at bidding on one of their auctions. Here's just to emphasize UPA's service: I had notified them that one of the two stamps I received, was not as described. The stamp is listed at £11 in Gibbons. Maddie, who is the lady who deals with sale problems, consulted with Andrew the owner. The outcome is that they will credit my account with £14.80 (a curious amount). So, this equates to 28% off the original invoiced amount, should I win any further auction lots. I was also told to keep the problem stamp as it wasn't worth their while processing such a return. A generous gesture I think and a lesson on good customer relations. As an aside to this, I have been reading feedback from buyers based in Canada and the USA, who have been using UPA. All have had positive experiences, boosted no doubt by zero postage & handling costs and zero buyers fees. There does seem to be a problem getting hold of the printed catalogue (a large beast) delivered to the USA in time for the auctions. But as the poster pointed out, the delay is not with UPA (who send them out at least a month in advance), it's USPS sitting on these magazine type mailings.
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Anping
Departed
Rest in Peace
Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Aug 16, 2017 22:36:52 GMT
This Coutinho photo shows the cisterns of Tawila in Aden. Also known as the Tawlia Tanks or just 'the tanks', it is the best-known historic site in Aden (how exciting). It consists of a series of man made reservoirs of varying shape and capacity. They are connected to one another and located in Wadi Tawila to the southwest of Aden’s oldest district, Crater. The photographer has used the best viewpoint that illustrates the volcanic nature of the landscape. This is actually the crater from which the 'capital' took its name. This enlargement of the circular tank shows that motorised transport was in use at the time (camels too) and would presumably date this photo to 1920/1930's. This is the closest image I could find on a post card. This one was retailed by Pallonjee Dinshaw & Bros but was taken earlier. The ornate brick walling shown above has replaced the metal hoop like barriers here and only a horse drawn carriage and a camel train are in evidence:
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Anping
Departed
Rest in Peace
Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Aug 15, 2017 0:28:45 GMT
Thanks to all those involved, for their behind the scenes effort. A well deserved gong.
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Anping
Departed
Rest in Peace
Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Aug 13, 2017 22:18:00 GMT
Another Coutinho photograph that illustrates the difficulties of water supply in the early days. The water was probably obtained from Crater where the man made reservoirs were located. These were known locally as the 'tanks'. Here's the same view on a local postcard. This was not attributed to Coutinho but was retailed by Cowassjee Dinshaw & Brothers:
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Anping
Departed
Rest in Peace
Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Aug 13, 2017 22:05:29 GMT
I know nothing about this block but as I have a thing about balloons and dirigibles, I thought it would be a nice addition. It's apparently from 1936 by ROC (?) of New York:
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Anping
Departed
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Aug 13, 2017 10:44:01 GMT
This post moved to its own thread.
The following is a real photograph by J.M. Coutinho, who among other local studio photographers produced postcards of the colony. Dating these can be very difficult as some images tended to be used over decades. Consequently, the rather strange use of a postage stamp dated 1932, may be misleading. This photo (and others I have) was printed on very thin gloss photographic paper, which is rather fragile. It has a similar feel to albumen prints. The most prominent landmark is Hogg Tower on the hill in the background, which could be seen readily by approaching shipping. This was known locally just as Clock Tower. As can be seen by the white imprint, the location is Post Office Bay, which indicates the photo was produced from an original negative intended for postcard printing. So far I have not been able to locate a Coutinho postcard that corresponds with this actual view, although I'm sure I have one somewhere. Instead I have shown another later view of Post Office Bay. This one is not attributed to any photographer but just states that it is copyright of Star Pharmacy Aden. This later view now refers to the location as Steamer Point and shows some development in the bay. As can be seen, a motor car is in view rather than the horse and carriage in the photo. The postage stamp attached to the photo is an Indian 12 annas definitive. Indian stamp issues were of course used in the colony until Aden issued its own stamps in 1937, with the Dhows set.
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Anping
Departed
Rest in Peace
Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Aug 13, 2017 0:07:11 GMT
Here's a rather comical commemoration of the Pander Postjager's crew; Geijsendorffer, Asjes and van Stratten, on their inaugural flight:
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Anping
Departed
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Aug 12, 2017 16:59:25 GMT
Smauggie This I think is an example of a tax fraction charge, which superceded the UPU postage due system in 1966. That system was based on the centime (part of a French Franc). I don't have time to find a more appropriate reference for you, but this may give you the gist of the basic concept: Canadian Tax Fraction chargesJust added this, which gives a very short explanation of the pre 1966 system: Canadian Centime postage due
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Anping
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Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Aug 12, 2017 9:55:13 GMT
It's a variation on the original symbol of fascism; the fasces adopted by Benito Mussolini in Italy, from which the word fascist derives.
According to Wiki: This is an ancient Imperial Roman symbol of power carried by lictors in front of magistrates; a bundle of sticks featuring an axe, indicating the power over life and death. Before the Italian Fascists adopted the fasces, the symbol had been used by Italian political organizations of various political ideologies (ranging from socialist to nationalist), called Fascio ("leagues") as a symbol of strength through unity.
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