1929 Air Mail Postmarked. No Address

I know first day issues often are post marked by request for collectors. But these are 1928 issued stamps. Any thoughts on why this cover is marked but not used? Was this common?

Your clue is the imprint on the back at the bottom. It's a philatelic cover for certain. Story is in the link.

http://www.stampnotes.com/Notes_fro...tnote469.htm

Battlestamps, excellent! thanks. I wonder why he/someone would bother with these stamps on this cover?

Judging from the cancel on the back, the cover looks like it may have been prepared as a first flight on a Dominican Republic, Haiti, Porto Rico, & Cuba route. The 10 centavo blue stamp is the Dominican Republic's C-1 and carries a small premium.

The postmark on the reverse is a day later than on the front. A receiving cancel at the end of a round trip? Certainly, somewhat of a mystery cover

Seems like an unaddressed hand-back would not have much value for a first-flight collector, but then maybe who ever prepared it might have intended to address it after the fact??

Does anyone have the Roessler cover catalog to see if a flight on the above mentioned route and date is listed?

Don

Just a thought, but I used to put addressed stickers on envelopes requesting first day cancellations. These could then be removed, so my name wouldn't be on the envelopes. I don't know if this was possible in the 1920's. K

It's doubtful that the above was intended as a first flight cover. From what I can learn, the West Indies Airlines flew this route as early as 1928. Here is a link to a similar cover (addressed) with the slogan cancel used to cancel the stamps. It is postmarked about six months later than the above.

Don

http://www.stampnotes.com/Today_in_.../093029.html

Yes, I also thought 1928 would have been first flights, so there doesn't seem to be any reason to create this cover. That is why its bothering me.

It is definitely not a first flight cover. The first flight from Santo Domingo to Santiago de Cuba left on February 20 and arrived and was backstamped on February 21. The plane turned around and the return leg of the first flight from Santiago de Cuba back to Santo Domingo left on February 25 and arrive and received the Santo Domingo backstamp of February 25, 1928. As was mentioned, the clue to what you have is the printed name on the back in small type. Albert C. Roessler, who sometimes used the pseudonym A.C. Roe was a very large stamp dealer of the day. However, he was a real character to put it politely and many of his philatelic creations and his claims were fraudulent. He was convicted of fraud, finally, in 1933. This cover seems to be one of his 'creations' that he did not finish with - a left over from another of his schemes to create covers to sell to his customers when he no longer had real ones to sell. Some people enjoy collecting his covers because of his notariety, but I am among the many who will not touch one.

Kimo, great stuff. I'm starting to find covers much more interesting then just stamps.

stampcrow,

Thank you for sharing and rest of comments are interesting.

I concur that covers are much more interesting than stamps, and my collection now focuses more on covers because they seem to have a story to tell or unravel. Of course stamps are the top, the pinnacle, the reason.

but covers are mysteries.

I just saw this cover on ebay and felt sorry for it (wierd anthropomorphic sentiment, but still):

A newfoundland cover from 1868, with the poor stamp lifted but the envelope and letter intact and still living without its stamp...150 years without...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Newfoundlan...em566a8dc7be

He loved Air Mails.

That cinderella "Via Airplane" is unique, too. I don't recall having seen an example like that before.