10c Yellow (116). Intense
shade, perfs in at top, tied by circle of wedges cancel, used in
combination with France 1867-68 20c Blue and 40c Orange, Napoleon III
(33, 35a), both French stamps tied by a single strike of Anchor in
Diamond of Dots maritime cancel, 20c also tied by red "Etats-Unis Paq.
Fr. H. No. 1 5 Fevr. 70" octagonal French Packet datestamp on blue folded
cover to Bordeaux, France, red "New York Feb. 5" circular datestamp
and matching framed "P.P." (Paid to Port) handstamp, sender's blue oval
datestamp, Paris and Bordeaux transit backstamps, small sealed tear in
cover at rightEXTREMELY FINE. THE ONLY INTACT 10-CENT 1869 COVER KNOWN TO US SHOWING A TRUE MIXED FRANKING WITH FRENCH STAMPS. A HIGHLY-REGARDED COVER THAT GRAPHICALLY DEMONSTRATES THE PECULIAR POST-TREATY PERIOD OF UNITED STATES AND FRENCH MAILS.
The expiration of the 1857 U.S.-French postal treaty on January 1, 1870, left both countries without a new agreement to govern the exchange of mails and division of postage. The U.S. Post Office Department announced that letters sent direct to and from France would be charged 10c, the rate generally applied to any country with which the U.S. had no postal treaty. Letters could also be sent by British Open Mail via England at the 4c rate. The Phantom Rate, announced only for Algeria but also applicable to France, provided another means of prepaying mail to France via England. However, these three options still did not allow a correspondent to prepay the full postage with his own country's stamps, and covers from this post-treaty period typically show due markings of the receiving country. The cover offered here is the rare exception, and it is the only intact cover with French stamps and the 10c 1869 Issue prepaying the combined U.S. and internal French postage.
In this instance, the U.S. postage was correctly prepaid with a 10c 1869 stamp. The cover was postmarked at the New York post office and delivered to an agent aboard the French Ligne H steamer No. 1, the Periere, anchored in New York harbor. Presumably it was the sender who affixed 60 centimes in French stamps to prepay the internal postage, and the mail agent cancelled the stamps with the widely-used Anchor maritime marking. He also marked the cover with the French Ligne H No. 1 packet datestamp. Although New York marked the cover "P.P." -- Paid to Port, not to the final destination -- the French stamps ensured that the letter would be treated as prepaid in France and delivered to the addressee without postage due. The absence of any French due markings confirms this treatment.
True mixed frankings -- so-called Group I mixed frankings -- are defined in the 1869 PRA census (and by other specialists) as having stamps of two or more countries applied conjunctively to pay the rate or rates necessary to carry the letter from the sender to the addressee. Group I mixed frankings are more desirable than covers showing combination frankings for forwarding. Only a few 1869 Group I mixed frankings are known. The other 10c 1869 cover with French stamps originated in the Caribbean and is inbound to New York with a 10c tied by the New York Steamship marking, one of the French stamps has been torn off, thus it cannot be compared to this superb cover. There is also a 2c 1869/6c 1870 cover to France with a similar 20c/40c French franking.
Ex Schatzkes. Signed Calves. (Image)
10c Yellow (116). Vivid
color, used with 5c Brown, F. Grill (95) and 2c Brown (146), rich
colors, each stamp cancelled by small circle of V's, "San Francisco Cal.
Jun. 11" circular datestamp on 1872 buff cover to Paris, France, red
"New York Paid 12" credit circular datestamp, red London Paid transit
circular datestamp and "PD" in oval, Calais receiving circular datestamp
ties 5c stamp, Paris receiving backstampA VERY FINE COVER AND REMARKABLE FRANKING COMBINING THREE DIFFERENT ISSUES.
The 17c postage on this cover overpays by 1c the 16c British packet rate for a letter weighing -1/3 to -1/2 ounce (or 10-15 grams). The presence of the word "grille" next to the 5c stamp - an obvious philatelic reference in the same ink and hand of the address - leads us to speculate that the sender was an early timbrophile. Recognition of shades and grill varieties was already established at this time, and the use of three different issues may have been deliberate.
Ex Krug and Rose. (Image)