MOUBRAY British Letter Mail to Overseas 1840-1875

November 23, 2021

Rare Books, Documents, Photos, and Artwork

Lot 181

MOUBRAY British Letter Mail to Overseas 1840-1875

Estimate: $100 - $125

Have one like this?

About this Lot

Description

Jane & Michael MOUBRAY British Letter Mail to Overseas Destinations 1840-1875

Offered for sale by Ian & Yvonne Halford of 'Quathlamba Books' - for more information please contact them via email at y.halford@btinternet.com

Jane & Michael MOUBRAY. British Letter Mail to Overseas Destinations 1840-1875.

London: The Royal Philatelic Society, 1992. Quarto (30.5 X 22cm. Weight 2kgs.) Hardback with green boards and blocked gilt lettering to upper board and spine titles.

Our interest in the foreign letter mails of Great Britain began one day sometime in the 1970s when, walking down the strand in London, we met F.M.Johnson (Johnny to his friends). He suggested that if we had time to spare we might write something about rates, a subject which he felt had been inadequately covered. To pure stamp collectors, who had just begun to concern themselves with the use of those stamps, the idea seemed appealing and not too onerous. 1856, the year in which the Postal Guides made their appearance, suggested itself as a starting point but, in a very short time, it became obvious that by using this date we should be telling only half a story and, moreover, the guides left much that we needed to know unsaid. We considered 1850, then 1845. Finally we resolved to begin at the fruition of Rowland Hill's scheme for cheaper postage. The study grew, like Alice in Wonderland, and we found ourselves ranging far beyond the original concept. Routes, postal conventions, regulations, shipping contracts and dispatch dates all seemed relevant to the subject. Place names have been spelt according to contemporary Post Office Guides. This book, however, is not about marcophily and does not set out to illustrate marks of selected types or in general.

From the outset we decded not to rely upon secondary sources and wherever possible we have used archival material or contemporary reports. We spent much time in the Post Office Archives and are particularly grateful to Jean Farrugia, Catherine Tully and former members of staff who have shown us unlimited patience, kindness and courtesy. We also owe a debt of gratitude to the staffs of the Guidhall Library in the City of London, the Maritime Museum at Greenwich, the Public Record Office at Kew and the British Library Newspaper Library at Colindale. We thank the Hulton Deutsch Collection for permission to reproduce the pictures at Figs.76,97 and 103, and Gavin Fryer for pictures at Figs.55 and 124. The table at Fig. 104 is reproduced by courtesy of the Post Office Archives.

Half Title, Illustration (2), Title, Dedication, Subscribers, Preface, Note by Publications Committee, Introduction, Contents. xxiv plus 512 pages text with reserved pages for notes. Numerous supporting images, examples etc.

Fine

ISBD 0 900631 28 7

A fine copy of the first edition

Ask a Question