Egypt 1918 WWI Unopened Censored Cover to Capt. W.R. Gatt RFA Intact Wax Seal

Description & Condition

Egypt – World War I Unopened Censored Cover to Captain W. R. Gatt, Royal Field Artillery. A scarce and historically significant World War I commercial cover, mailed from Alexandria, Egypt, on 14 July 1918, addressed to Captain W. R. Gatt, R.F.A. (Royal Field Artillery) at the Sultan Hussein Club, Alexandria. This attractive cover combines Egyptian postal history, British military history, wartime censorship, and named military correspondence from the Egyptian Expeditionary Force period.

The cover remains in excellent original condition for its age, showing normal postal wear consistent with genuine wartime use.

Most importantly, the envelope remains unopened with its original embossed Arabic wax seal fully intact, preserving the correspondence exactly as mailed in July 1918. Please examine all photographs carefully, as they form an integral part of the description.

Postal Details

Origin: Alexandria, Egypt, 14 July 1918, bears a single 5 Milliemes 'Sphinx' from the first pictorial stamps set of Egypt, tied by a clear Alexandria circular datestamp.

Addressee

Captain W. R. Gatt, Royal Field Artillery (R.F.A.), Sultan Hussein Club, Alexandria. The address is written as "Capitano W. R. Gatt", suggesting the sender was likely Italian or from Alexandria's large Italian commercial community.

Wartime Censorship & Auxiliary Markings

Fine strike of the British triangular censor cachet: PASSED BY CENSOR / No. 3147. One of the characteristic censorship markings applied to correspondence passing through British military censorship in Egypt during the First World War. The front additionally bears a faint light blue five-pointed star handstamp or office marking, believed to be an internal commercial or routing mark rather than a postal marking, adding further character and research interest.

 Original Wax Seal

One of the most attractive features of this cover is its completely intact original brown wax seal on the reverse. The seal bears an embossed Arabic personal seal impression within a kind of rectangular border.  The envelope has never been opened and remains exactly as it left the sender over one hundred years ago, preserving the original correspondence in its untouched state. Unopened World War I covers retaining their original wax seals are considerably scarcer than opened examples and are especially desirable to collectors of military and postal history.

Research & Historical Notes

Research has identified several surviving war-time covers addressed to Captain William Raphael Gatt, M.C., recorded in specialist military postal history auctions. One documented example, offered by a leading philatelic auction house, notes that Captain Gatt was one of only four Maltese officers to be awarded the Military Cross (M.C.) during the First World War, and includes a summary of his distinguished military service. The existence of multiple recorded covers addressed to Captain Gatt confirms that his correspondence is a recognized field of interest among collectors of British military and postal history.

Historical Importance

This cover brings together several desirable collecting themes:

• World War I Postal History
• Egypt Postal History
• British Military Mail
• Named Royal Field Artillery Officer
• Wartime Censorship
• Alexandria Postal History
• Original Intact Wax Seal
• Unopened Correspondence
• Arabic Personal Seal
• Military Correspondence

 

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