Russia Offices in China #55, cancelled (possibly CTO)

Item Specifics

Country

Russia

Catalog Number

55

Stamp Type

General Issue

Condition

Used

Stamp Format

Single

Year of Issue

1902

Item Description

The stamp in this listing is a stamp issued for use in the Russian post offices in China, listed in Scott as RO in China #55, which is a black “10 CENTS” overprint on an otherwise ordinary 10 kopeck stamp of the 1909 definitive series. The stamp is postally used, (probably CTO) with a light Shanghai cancel. Because this stamp was issued in late 1917, and all Russia’ post offices in China closed in 1920, Scott values this stamp 10 times higher in used versus mint condition.

The history of this stamp is as follows:

As was common in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the major powers maintained post offices overseas where the local postal service was deemed to be “unreliable” and / or because the other country was not a member of the Universal Postal Union. (Chinese stamps, for instance, were not acceptable for showing payment on international letters until China’s admission to the UPU in 1914.) The Russian PO’s in China accepted mail for delivery both in Russia and in other countries as was the practice of the time. The Russian PO network accepted Chinese currency for this service at par, i.e. one Chinese cent was accepted as if it were one Russian kopeck.

The Russian Post Office was vital in speeding up the mail service between East Asia and Europe in the early 20th century, once the Trans-Siberian Railway was completed. Mail could be sent from China to Europe “via Siberia” in approximately two weeks versus the nearly 40 days it took on ships sailing around India and through the Suez Canal as was the practice prior to the opening of the railway. Mail from the other countries’ post offices in China—as well as mail from Japan, European colonies, etc—could travel via Siberia once these entities concluded agreements with the Russian post office which allowed them to do so.

In the wake of the October Revolution, all Russian post offices in China closed in 1920.

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Seller Information

Seller

sugi891 (3954)

Registered Since

06/07/2005

Feedback

99.9%

Store

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Item Location

Virginia, United States

Ships To

Worldwide

Returns Accepted

No