Datei:Ma 18.jpg

Ausschnitt...

2d Used on letter addressed "Mesieurs Ducau & Lurguie" Bordeaux; by Mischief via England". A piece is torn out of the left-hand side of the stamp by the "O" of OFFICE; it is just touched at the lower left-hand corner by a DOUBLE-LINED ANGL/BOULOGNE/27 DEC 47 postmark. In addition the letter bears the following markings on the front: COLONIES &C ART. 13 in rectangle, and the delivery charges in manuscript. Details of the contents and sender of the letter are given in Berliner Briefmarken Zeitung (Kosack) vol 5 p 434.

• 1848 January Received by Ducau & Lurguie Bordeaux wine merchants.
• 1902 Found by a French schoolboy when searching through the firm's correspondence¹
• 1903 January 17 Th. Lemaire bought the letter for £1,200¹
• 1903 P.Kosack bought it for £1,400²
• 1903 The Reichspost Museum Berlin acquired the letter³ and with seven other stamps was placed in a wall-mounted glass fronted lead display frame. For the subsequent history of the stamps and display frame, see British Guiana 1851 2 cents Biography II 1945 onwards.

Spelling per Peter Ibbotson - see not to Nos 23 and 24 (page 154 post)

• 1 Stamp Collectors' Fortnightly vol 9 p 38
• 2 Les Timbres-POste de l'lle Maurice by G. Brunel 1928 p 26
• 3 Deutsche Briefmarken Zeitung (Krötzsch) vol 15 p 45