- £550.00
United States. (San Francisco - Via Panama -Trans-Atlantic Mail). 1853. Folded letter written from San Francisco dated 'April 1st 1853' addressed to Amsterdam cancelled by San Francisco date stamp '1st April', endorsed 'Per "California" via New York & Liverpool' with hand-struck 'PAID 26' crude rating hand-stamp and manuscript '26' in pencil, 'New York/ Am Packet' in red on face 'Apr 30' exchange date stamp, London transit 'May 11' with hand-struck 'U.S. PKT' in black and manuscript '8' (U.K. debit to Holland), with small Belgian entry cachet 'Engeland/ over Ostende' in red on reverse (Van der Linden 1024), Amsterdam arrival '13/5' and manuscript '70' Dutch cents due rating.
Letter prepaid West Coast British open mail rate via American Packet. Carried from San Francisco by 'Pacific Mail Steamship Company, steamer "California" to Panama City and over the Isthmus by rail and stage and 'U.S. Steamship Company' from Aspinwall to New York then by American Packet. London marked the 'U.S. PKT' straight-line hand-stamp to show basis of G.B. debit to Holland (letter paid to England leaving only transit to Holland unpaid).
Dutch postage due including 40 Dutch cents to G.B., 10 cents transit through Belgium and 20 cents internal postage.
The crude hand-stamp 'PAID 26' used only from '30 June - 16 July 1853', one of only four recorded examples.
See Richard Winter's Transatlantic Mail sale in 2013, Schuyler Rumsey lot 623.
