I'm looking to add any interesting covers to New Zealand from the UK pre 1900 to my database / survey and possibly my collection. Scans gratefully received.

I don't think there was a 11d rate - the rate to NZ at this time was 6d. I believe the contract for this route allowed 5d of the rate to be credited to NZ PO, and the remainder 1d. to the UK PO.

Had the following from Colin Tabeart... It is a long time since I looked at the NSW/NZ service via Panama, but the UK allowed the mail from UK to go to NZ at the 6d rate, making no charge for the RMSPCo service to Chagres and trans Panama. The "5" in Red is an accountancy marking applied i...

Does anyone have a record of a red hand stamp being used in the UK on GB covers to overseas destinations? Ordinarily I'd have assumed that this hand stamp on a rather tatty cover to New Zealand via Panama would have been applied in NZ & indicated postage due to be paid by the recipient of the le...

In the 1840/50s The Post Office's Daily Packet List provided information in table form from the Ship Letter Office of ships sailing to specific destinations carrying ship mail. Colin Tabeart illustrates one of these tables (for 10th Jan 1843) in his Vol 1 book on Mails to / from Australia NZ & t...

Thank you for the reply - it is pretty much as I expected or would have guessed. Judging by the time taken to Marseilles it must have been a pretty efficient well trodden rail journey from London to Dover & Calais to Marseilles. The rail companies appear to have contract for ships to take mail p...

Yep - a blue "thimble" cancellation. "MK London NO-25 63". Any idea what the MK is?
Thanks for the head up on evening dispatch. Are there any books that reference this cancellation that I could read up on? Thanks for your help!

Mails to Australia & New Zealand to 1880 are covered in great detail in Colin Tabeart's excellent book. But I'm still wondering how mail endorsed & paid to go via French Packet to Marseilles actually got to Marseilles. For NZ at this time mails were sorted in London (at a central London Post...

Thank you for the prompt reply and link to John Parmenter's book - I didn't know about this. You are right I should have considered a Late Fee, and agree it is probably the right answer.

I've managed to find in Colin Tabeart's book (Rates Routes and Ships out and Home) Pages 9 & 10 a number of key dates & rates for mail from the UK to the Australia & New Zealand via Marseilles. For ½ oz this appears to be : Jan 1857 - 1/-. (for ¼ oz there also appears to have been a 9d. ...

I believe that there are exceptions to the Rates in the table from 1898 (25 Dec). For example, I believe, the rates to New Zealand and Australia remained at the "Foreign" rate despite the introduction of the "Empire" rate. Perhaps a note to that effect in the table is appropriate...