I was confronted with a questions a couple of days ago which I could not find a decisive answer to. For a specialised catalogue of Brazil which is due to be published in 2013 the editor asked me whether I could give him a definite answer when the British Post Offices in Brazil (Rio de Janiero, Bahia...

Many Thanks. That was very helpful.

Can anybody help me with the illustrated item? It was sent to me from a fellow collector from Austria who would like to know the weight of the parcel that was sent. As you can see (hopefully) the parcel was sent on 2nd March 1933 from Paisley to Vienna and paid for with a five shilling Seahorse-stam...

Dear Eunice and Ron,

in "The Postage Markings of Scotland to 1840" by Bruce Auckland you can find an illustration of a fancy 3 in a Bishop Mark which should resemble your illustration. Please see the attached scans.

Best wishes

Theo

Hi,

if you send me your e-mail address I can send you an article which explains how things were done. Unfortunately this article is a pdf-file which I cannot attach here.

Please send your e-mail to:
theo.brauers(at)belgacom.net

Kind regards

Theo

Dear Russel,dear Fred,

thank you very much for your response. That makes things very clear.

Fred, I hope you are well and have found a secure place for your passport. Hope to see you all in London (STAMPEX) in February.

Best wishes

Theo

A member of the German Precancellation Society sent us the newspaper wrapper which bears the cancellation STAMFORD MERCURY 742 STAMFORD. Does anybody know whether these wrappers were cancelled beforehand by the Stamford Mercury and later wrapped around the newspapers? If so this would result in a pr...

Kevin, first of all I would like to say that I agree with your calculation of postage. This is exactly what should have been charged. As the letter was only charged 8d. I would like to suggest that it may not have been carried via Edinburgh and Inverary at all. The nearest town to Lunga is Oban. Thi...

Hi,

another question about an insured cover from me. Can anybody tell me which amount was covered by the insurance of 1s11d in November 1945?

Thanks in advance

Theo

I promised you another letter which has puzzled me for quite some time. It is an 1816 entire letter posted in Rostrevor, a small village on the west coast of Ireland. The letter was prepaid 3s4d. It passed through Dublin on 21st February 1816 and was sent from there via Holyhead (2d packet charge) t...

The latest explanations of mozzerb plus Mike's hint on Michael Furfie's book seem convincing. I think we have got an explanation now. The last remaining question that is still somehow open to me is how the Late Fee system worked for insured/registered covers. The only mention of such a Late Fee I ha...

First of all let me say that I am deeply impressed by the number of people commenting on my question. Thank you all very much for you suggestions. I think that mozzerb is right in suggesting that neither Advice of Receipt - no AR-mark present - nor Express can be identified on the cover. If it was s...

Mike, thanks for your answer but the insurance fee for £24 was 7 1/2 d in 1904 (5d for the first £12 and 2 1/2 d for the next £12) and as far as I know postage cost 2 1/2 d per ounce and not per half ounce to UPU countries in 1904. The registration fee should have been included in the insurance fee....

Could anyone explain the postage on the attached cover, posted on 21st May 1904 from London to Cassel in Germany? My explanation so far is: Insurance fee for GBP 24 = 7 1/2 d for insured letters abroad. Postage = 2 1/2 d. for a letter weighing 17 grams Altogether 10d. The cover is franked with a tot...