Lot 2014

1863 (3 March), a neat blue cover sent from Indo-Chine to France, franked with a French Empire 20c tied by Anchor lozenges cancellation with perfect strikes of red “COL. F. V. SUEZ PAQ. F / DONNAI / 3 MARS 63” French octagonal datestamp and “COR. D. ARMEES INDO-CHINE / 3 MARS 63” double-circle datestamp, sender's directive "Via Suez & Marseille", manuscript "Saigon" likely indicating origin, red framed "PD" handstamp, Marseilles (Apr. 2) and Paris (Apr. 4) backstamps. This Indo-Chine mail was riding on the French Messageries Imperiales paquebots “Donnai”, for which, according to 27.3 “LT”, it is Donnai’s First Voyage sailing from Hong Kong to Egypt via Saigon. The mail was stamped during the course of the French M.I. “Donnai” packet service sailing to Saigon and therefore, the stamp was cancelled by the Anchor lozenges. Earliest known per M.I.: (1) prepaid mail, and (2) COR.D. ARMEES / INDO-CHINE. A very rare mail with both French paquebot DONNAI c.d.s. and Cor. D. Armees c.d.s. A BEAUTIFUL COVER AND ONE OF ONLY TWO RECORDED EXAMPLES OF THE "COR. D. ARMEES INDO-CHINE" DATESTAMP STRUCK IN RED. AN IMPORTANT RARITY. Provenance: Illustrated on page 16 of Lee Scamp’s French Mail Paquebot Far East Itineraries

1863.3. 印支寄法國，貼20生丁，銷船錨殺手戳，另見清晰之“COL. F. V. SUEZ PAQ. F / DONNAI”日戳、“COR. D. ARMEES INDO-CHINE”日戳。此為最早之Messageries Imperiales預付郵件及“COR. D. ARMEES INDO-CHINE”日戳例子。Donnai號日戳同樣少見。為兩件蓋有“COR. D. ARMEES INDO-CHINE”紅色日戳之存世例子之一。Scamp《French Mail Paquebot Far East Itineraries》第16頁原件。