Lot 2191
China, 1897, $5 large surcharge on 3¢ red Customs (85), vertical pair, surcharge misplaced vertically and therefore partly appearing in the bottom margin, representing the $10 remitted in stamps to be redeemed, uncancelled as dictated by postal regulations, on 1898 (Aug. 4), Remittance Certificate number 306 from Foochow to Amoy bearing ICP 20c maroon (representing the commission charged), tied by "Foochow" dollar chop, slight age spotting "ties" the $5 pair to the certificate, Very Fine [Chan 91].
Estimate 50,000 - 60,000
SURVIVING POSTAL DOCUMENTS FROM THIS PERIOD ARE EXCEEDINGLY RARE.
Provenance: Anna-Lisa and Sven-Eric Beckeman
With the inauguration of the Imperial Post and the concurrent changeover to the silver dollar system, stamps with new face values were needed without delay. Furthermore, the introduction of the money remittance system on 1 January, 1898 (Chicago Flight. Postal Circular No. 3 and accompanying Postal Notification No. 26 of 17 November 1897) whereby money orders redeemable at the post office of the sender's choice, to a maximum value of 10 dollars, could be used as a vehicle of securely (through anonymity and even the ordinary post) transferring money without any formality. Consequently, 3 cents revenue stamps were surcharged 5 dollars, which was the highest denomination produced. Approximately 5,000 such stamps were printed, the surcharges having been adapted from the large $1 surcharge plate with the original positions randomly rearranged. Since the strict policy was to destroy both the remittance certificate and stamps on redemption, only a limited amount of the 5 dollars value has survived. Many unused 5 dollars Red Revenues have been taken off certificates, and because of the $10 sending limit and format of the certificates, vertical units of two are the most logical multiples to be found. The only multiples recorded to date are two strips of four (one with inverted surcharge), approximately 20 or less pairs, and a plated block of four comprised or formed of two vertical pairs.
According to our records, approximately fifteen Remittance Certificates bearing the Red Revenue $5 on 3c have survived. Four of these have the $5 on 3c surcharge inverted variety affixed.
Interestingly, consecutively numbered Certificates "305" and "306", both similarly franked and mailed on the same day, were originally auctioned by Christie's Robson Lowe in Zurich in 1990 (June 14, lot 1179) and 1991 (May 28, lot 514), having remained in the possession of the descendants of the person to whom they were commissioned in 1898.
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| Realized $43,650 |
