Havana, Cuba to Hong Kong, China in use of Forwarding Agent in London 21 August 1863, entire letter sent from Habana (Cuba) to Sr. D. Juan
Havana, Cuba to Hong Kong, China in use of Forwarding Agent in London 21 August 1863, entire letter sent from Habana (Cuba) to Sr. D. Juan Salvador Álvarez in Hong Kong, China, endorsed "per overland via Marseille", routed through London with forwarding agent handstamp "ENCAMINADA POR MANCHA Y C" / LONDRES", and carried overland through France to the Far East via the French packet system. Red London transit marking and manuscript "1/-" credit rating indicate handling under British-French postal arrangements. Manuscript accountancy mark "14" suggests application of international charges. Backstamp in green-black shows origin cancel from Habana (C MAYO). This is a rare pre-UPU correspondence from Spanish colonial Cuba to China, demonstrating complex postal logistics in the pre-Suez Canal era. Few letters from Cuba to Hong Kong are recorded from this early period, especially bearing forwarding marks and routed via the overland Marseille route. A remarkable example of transcontinental mercantile correspondence from Latin America to Qing China. Provenance: Ritchie Bodily. 古巴寄中國 - 1863年由哈瓦那經倫敦與馬賽寄香港,郵政聯通前罕見的遠東郵件。本件信函全文日期為1863年8月21日,由古巴哈瓦那(Habana)寄往中國香港的胡安·薩爾瓦多·阿爾瓦雷斯先生(Sr. D. Juan Salvador Alvarez)。信封上手寫標示“per overland via Marseille" (陸路經馬賽),經倫敦轉運,並蓋有轉遞代理人手戳:“ENCAMINADA POR MANCHA Y Cª / LONDRES,隨後經法國陸路郵路轉發遠東,推測搭乘法國郵船系統。信封上蓋有紅色倫敦轉遞戳記,手寫郵資記錄“1/-”表示英國方面記帳,另有紅色手寫“14”會計記號,反映當時國際郵費安排。封背並見綠黑色哈瓦那日戳(C. MAYO). 本件為萬國郵政聯盟(UPU)成立前,少見自西班牙殖民地古巴寄往中國的郵政實寄封,不僅展示出當時複雜的郵路系統,更是陸路馬賽線與倫敦轉遞的精彩實例。此類來自古巴寄中國的早期郵件極為罕見,兼具轉遞代理戳與精美手寫郵資標示。 為一件橫跨三洲、具歷史價值之十九世紀中葉拉丁美洲對華商業通信郵品。Ritchie Bodily舊藏。
