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Auction: CSS115A - Fine Stamps and Covers of China and Hong Kong
Lot: 430

China Foreign Post Offices
China Expeditionary Force
Royal Engineers Balloon Section
1900 (Nov.) - 1901 (Feb.) an important group of covers addressed to Captain A.H.B. Hume, 4th Balloon Section R.E., China expeditionary Force" in either Peking or Tientsin. The letters were sent by by his wife who was residing in the safety of either Japan, Shanghai or Tientsin. The envelopes from Japan (5) originating from Nagasaki, Kobe or Tokyo; the letters from China were sent via the German Post Office (13), C.I.P. (5, most with some missing adhesives) or C.E.F. with Base Office c.d.s. (3) or F.P.O. No.4. Many just have F.P.O. No.1 backstamp but some show an interesting array of backstamps with various F.P.O's, bilingual c.d.s. including Tangku and Peking dated oval

The final cover is from Shanghai (one stamp removed) to Peking and readdressed to Liu-ka-Chou, the reverse bearing a superb strike of the large double-circle "balloon section/royal engineers/feb./no" with manuscript "13th". A fascinating group of cover relating to this little-known Engineer Section. (27 covers)

Arthur Hume was sent to China as part of the Expeditionary Force with No.4 Balloon Section Royal Engineers serving at Tientsin, Pekin and neighbourhood and was also employed on Electric Lighting, Special Survey, Railway Work etc. according to his service record.

In 1900 the Government of India decided to form an "Experimental Balloon Section" and in August 1900 a total of 7 men of the 4th Balloon Section under Hume were sent to Rawalpindi on their return from China, whilst the remainder of the 4th Balloon Section returned to Aldershot.


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Estimate
HK$18,000 to HK$24,000

Starting price
HK$18000