INDIA 1942
WWII 1R 9 1/2A RATE AIRMAIL COVER KALBADEVI BOMBAY TO INDIANA USA FRANKED 1R
HIGH VALUE 4A TWO 2A 6P & 1/2A W/ DHC CENSOR HANDSTAMPS & MERCHANTS
CORNER CARD
1942 (dispatch), commercial airmail
corner card cover sent from Kalbadevi,
Bombay, India to Fort
Wayne, Indiana, United States, bearing printed corner card at upper left: "M. SOMNATH & CO. /
LOHAR STREET, / BOMBAY 2." listing commercial wares (stones, abrasive
cloth, coat hangers, goldsmiths' tools). Addressed in typewriting to "Messrs. The Marion Tool Corporation / P.O. Box 266
/ Fort Wayne, Indiana / U. S. A." beneath a printed blue "BY AIR MAIL / PAR
AVION" label and red crayon endorsement "Air mail". Prepaying 1 rupee 9 1/2 annas (1r 9a 6p) with a
five-stamp 1937–40 King George
VI definitive franking affixed across the reverse flap: a 1r brown & green high value,
a 4a brown, two 2a 6p bright purple (Dak
Bullock Cart, vertical pair), and a 1/2a purple. The stamps are cancelled and tied by black circular
datestamps reading KALBADEVI /
[...] / BOMBAY, with an additional strike of the KALBADEVI datestamp in blue
ink on the front. Opened for military censorship at the left edge and
resealed with off-white paper tape printed in black "P. C. 90 / OPENED BY EXAMINER", tied by an inverted blue examiner handstamp "DHC/350" across
the tape and stamp on reverse, and a matching octagonal framed cachet "PASSED / DHC/21"
enclosing the British imperial crown on the face. Condition shows light handling wrinkles, corner
rounding, and minor peripheral toning. Please refer to scans for more condition information.
Mailed
during the critical middle period of the Second World War in 1942, this
commercial cover was sent by M. Somnath & Co., an import-export hardware
merchant operating on Lohar Street near the Kalbadevi commercial district in Bombay, to the Marion Tool Corporation in Fort
Wayne, Indiana. To cover the wartime transatlantic air surcharge and
international postage, the sender applied a composite franking totaling 1 rupee 9 1/2 annas (25 1/2
annas), utilizing the King
George VI 1-rupee key value alongside a vertical pair of the pictorial 2a 6p Dak Bullock Cart
definitives, a 4a,
and a 1/2a. Dispatched through the Kalbadevi post office, the envelope was routed to the Bombay Censorship Station
under Base Censor code DHC. It was examined under security regulations, resealed
with the standardized P.C. 90
label, and stamped with both the DHC/350 examiner mark and
the crowned DHC/21 cachet. This item provides a well-preserved record of WWII Indian commercial postal
history, transatlantic
air rates, and wartime
civil postal censorship
Please examine lot scan carefully and please send any questions at least 48 hours before the auction closes. Please note that cover condition usually includes normal wear and tear to cover edges, opening tears and some creases and wrinkles. Only exceptional or extreme condition issues will be mentioned.
Legend:
PS - Postal Stationery
FL - Folded Letter
SFL - Stampless Folded Letter
RPO - Railway Post Office
CDS - Circular Date Stamp
DPO - Dead Post Office
SHIPPING
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Please note that in an auction items may start at a very low price and may be sold at prices that may considerably exceed the original starting bid. For the purposes of calculation of shipping costs the final cost of the item will be used to calculate the shipping rate and method of shipping NOT the original shipping cost specified in the listing.
INVOICE
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SHIPPING TIME
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NOTE TO CANADIAN BUYERS
Note to all Canadians Buyers: Canadian law requires me to charge GST/HST depending on your Province of residence on the total cost of your purchases including shipping. Ontario residents must pay an additional 13% on the cost of the purchased item. Taxes do not apply if your purchases are shipped to an address outside of Canada.
