Lot
87 
(San Francisco) San Francisco, Cal, Apr 8, 1865. Double circle postmark and "10" handstamped rate marking on incoming Pacific Steam Navigation Company folded cover to Germany with "Steam, Panama" oval handstamp struck partly off and "Purser" straight line handstamp and erroneous "30" handstamped rate marking overstruck by target cancel, endorsed "pr Hamburg Steamer", treated in New York as ordinary unpaid Hamburg direct mail with an indistinct exchange cds showing a 3¢ debit for U.S. domestic postage, orange "9" and blue "4½" schillings due markings, Hamburg May 20 receiving postmark on the back, docket at upper left, Very Fine, likely not recognized in New York as a ship letter because the "Purser" handstamp was nonstandard and the erroneous "10" rate marking happened to correspond to the 10¢ rate for Hamburg direct mail. Estimate $200 - 300.
As with most non-contract ship letters received by the San Francisco Post Office in the period, this cover was incorrectly rated and improperly marked. It should have been rated 6¢ collect (double the 3¢ domestic postage rate) and marked as a "ship" letter. The San Francisco Post Office was instead rating ship letters 10¢ collect and using "Purser" and "Foreign" handstamps or no marking on most Pacific Steam Navigation Company letters with "Steam" handstamps, which were applied by the British company and also unclear as to meaning (non-contract "steamboat" and "steamship" were the same as non-contract "ship" but not the same as contract "steamship").
Realized: $450