Rare Stamps & Postal History of the World; Hawkins II - European Colonies
May 12-13, 2020

Our May 12, 2020 sale was prepared in anticipation of London 2020 World Stamp Exhibition. While the show has been rescheduled, this auction will take place as scheduled. There is an important collection of Great Britain and British Commonwealth, with many individual Colonies offered intact. In addition, there are hundreds of better individual lots of Inverted Centers of the World, French Colonies Postal History selection from the Lorenz correspondence to Trieste, excellent range of European countries, with Italy and Colonies, especially Fezzan, Poland, Russia, as well as rarities from Japan, Korea and more. There are many attractive and substantial Large Lots and Collections, often fully scanned.

ImagesDescriptionCurrent Bid
Lot #1518
ITALIAN WORLD WAR II OCCUPATION ISSUES FEZZAN - French Occupation
1943 selection of 24 covers cards, variety of franking and combinations, handstamped on 50c on 50c brown (Sass.PA3), other usages include Fezzan and Ghadames, several items with 1951 surcharges, high values to 480fr, occasional toning, generally fine-v.f., many signed, several with certificates (The Military Territory of Fezzan-Ghadames was a territory in the southern part of the former Italian colony of Libya controlled by the French from 1943 until Libyan independence in 1951. It was part of the Allied administration of Libya. Free French forces from French Chad occupied the area that was the former Italian Southern Military Territory in 1943] and made several requests to annex administratively their Fezzan to the French colonial empire. The administrative personnel retained the former Italian bureaucrats. The British administration began the training of a badly needed Libyan civil service. Italian administrators continued to be employed in Tripoli and the Italian legal code remained in effect for the duration of the war. In the lightly populated Fezzan region, a French military administration formed a counterpart to the British operation. With British approval, Free French forces moved north from Chad to take control of the territory in January 1943. French administration was directed by a staff stationed in Sabha, but it was largely exercised through Fezzan notables of the family of Sayf an Nasr. At the lower echelons, French troop commanders acted in both military and civil capacities according to customary French practice in the Algerian Sahara. In the west, Ghat was attached to the French military region of southern Algeria and Ghadames, the French command of southern Tunisia, eventually giving rise to Libyan nationalist fears that French intentions might include the ultimate detachment of Fezzan from Libya. Fezzan joined Tripolitania and Cyrenaica to form the Kingdom of Libya on 24 December 1951. It was the first country to achieve independence through the United Nations and one of the first former European possessions in Africa to gain independence)
Envelope
Catalog #Sass.1/40
Catalog Value €354,600
Unsold
Lot #1519
ITALIAN WORLD WAR II OCCUPATION ISSUES FEZZAN - French Occupation
1943 5fr on 50c (two), also 20fr on 1.75L, used on registered cover from Sebha to Brach, handstamped departure postmarks, with date filled in by hand, fine-v.f., with undated arrival pmk on back, signed Bolaffi, with his 1970 certificate,
Envelope
Catalog #Sass.7,9
Catalog Value €28,300
Unsold
Lot #1520
ITALIAN WORLD WAR II OCCUPATION ISSUES FEZZAN - French Occupation
1943 10fr on 1.25fr dark blue, vertical pair, top stamp double surcharge, used on registered cover (headed Administrazion dell'Africa Italiana) from Murzuk to Sebha, 19 May 1943 departure datestamp (Murzuk) and 20 May arrival (Sebha) on back, filing fold away from the stamps, fine and rare usage, signed Roger Calves, Diena,
Envelope
Catalog #Sass.8,8a
Catalog Value €17,500
Unsold
Lot #1521
ITALIAN WORLD WAR II OCCUPATION ISSUES FEZZAN - French Occupation
1943 50fr on 75c, used on Air Mail cover from Sebha (30 June 1943) to Souma, Alger, opened by censor with Controle labels on both sides, also "Ouvert Par les Autorites du Controle" handstamps on both sides, with arrival postmark on back, faint toning, fine and rare single franking on cover, signed Bolaffi and Roumet,
Envelope
Catalog #Sass.10
Catalog Value €30,000
Unsold
Lot #1522
ITALIAN WORLD WAR II OCCUPATION ISSUES FEZZAN - French Occupation
1943 1fr on 25c blue, l.h., perfectly centered and post office fresh, v.f., signed Roumet, Calves, etc., with 1995 Calves certificate (YT 19)
*
Catalog #Sass.12
Catalog Value €16,000
Unsold
Lot #1523
ITALIAN WORLD WAR II OCCUPATION ISSUES FEZZAN - French Occupation
1943 Parcel Post, complete set of seven horizontal pairs, 1fr on 5c brown, 1fr on 10c blue, 1fr on 50c orange, 1fr on 1L lilac, 1fr on 2L green, 1fr on 3L yellow, 1fr on 4L gray, each canceled on piece, fine-v.f., signed Bolaffi, with 1980 certificate. A rare set, only 35 (!) possible YT 21-27)
O
Catalog #Sass.13-19
Catalog Value €99,000
Unsold
Lot #1524
ITALIAN WORLD WAR II OCCUPATION ISSUES FEZZAN - French Occupation
1943 (18 June) registered cover franked with vertical pair of 5fr on 50c, used on combination with two vertical pairs of 1fr on 50c orange, horizontal block of two pairs of 1fr on 1L lilac, also two singles (one on back), plus pair of 1fr on 5fr brown, all tied by Sebha, Fezzan departure postmarks, with registry label, sent to Yaounde Cameroun, with "Controle Postal Commission A Territoire du Cameroun" censor handstamp applied to both sides, censor label, with Douala transit (25 Sep) and Yaounde (28 Sep) arrival postmarks on back, fine and rare cover, signed Bolaffi (YT 7,21,23,24)
Envelope
Catalog #Sass.13,16
Catalog Value €90,800
Unsold
Lot #1525
ITALIAN WORLD WAR II OCCUPATION ISSUES FEZZAN - French Occupation
1943 Parcel Post 1fr on 10c blue, upper left sheet corner margin pair, tied by "R.F. Postes Fezzan" date (18.7.43) filled in by hand, corresponding Sebha datestamp alongside, used on cover to Zouar, v.f., signed Bolaffi, etc., only 90 (!) pairs issued, few exist on cover,
Envelope
Catalog #Sass.14
Catalog Value €15,000
Unsold

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