Two People Wanted This Cover Very Badly ...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1941-CENSOR...382160070222

It wasn't mentioned in the description, but this cover is rather historic in nature.

It was onboard the Clipper Anzac about one hour out of Honolulu when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. The crew received a radio message reporting the attack and the aircraft was diverted to Hilo.

My nuclear bid of $100 didn't even register!

It was mailed on Dec 5th 1941, so it's a legitimate return to sender rather then a philatelic creation after the 7th. The Trans-Pacific Route marking may also have something to do with it; perhaps the 20th century postal history people will chime in.

The cover was destined for the Philippines and I believe the Anzac should have been at Pearl Harbor or on its way to Wake when the attack started. I am still sorting though the various timelines that could have occurred. My understanding is that all of the mail went through a makeshift censor process, thus the markings seen on the cover. All mail that was addressed to points beyond Hawaii were returned as undeliverable.

Ken Lawrence wrote an in-depth article for Linn's Stamp News a few years back that covered the chronology and location of each Pacific Clipper at the time war broke out. If anyone is interested, I'll see if I can find a link to it. It was a fascinating article. I guess examples from each Clipper's last flight are highly collectible. This auction supports that premise.

This cover sure does!

The mail that would bring the really high prices would be something from the Pacific Clipper at that time. It wound up being too far west to return to Hawaii and wound up continuing westward and eventually going around the world to get back to the US. Here is a link to an Air and Space Museum write-up of that incredible story: https://airandspace.si.edu/stories/...rcial-flight

As for the ANZAC Clipper mail that was returned to Hawaii, of which this is an example, I notice that there is an ICB 230 rubber censor marking on the back. The ICB was the "Internal Censorship Board" and their official censors each had a number - in this case this letter was censored by Censor Number 230 who was working at the ICB. The ICB was in place in the early months after the war and was eventually replaced by regular censors. ICB censored mail is not common, but it is not rare either so that marking would add to a cover's value, but it would not add that much. The return to sender is the reason this cover did well, though in my personal opinion that price is a bit on the silly side for what this is and is not.

Perhaps, but if somebody "needed" it for an exhibit, they might go all out in bidding for it. Chances are it will never recoup the investment, but if added something to an exhibit, I could see that making it "worth it" to the buyer.

Basil

Kimo - Ken Lawrence's article "International airmail covers recall the 'Day of Infamy'" has many covers as part of the illustrations. There is one that flew on the epic Pacific Clipper flight. That article appeared in the 15 October 2015 issue of Linn's Stamp News.

I find the whole history of the development of the Trans-Pacific route fascinating.

Basil - I totally agree with you. There are a number of very serious collectors and exhibitors of trans Pacific airmail covers, especially the material that is not the typical plain ordinary FAM 14 covers that were sent in large numbers and are relatively easy to find - though finding a complete matched set with crisp markings on attractive number 6 size envelopes is getting hard to find. It is the specialized material like this that does well.

j - Thanks for the citation on Ken's article in the 2015 Lynn's. I will look it up. I am always eager to learn more and I have a lot of respect for Ken's research abilities and writings.

best, Kimo

That's a fantastic piece of history and a bargain at that price.

Do you collect that area Stampman2002? What value would you place on the cover?

On a related note, I saw Bob Hohertz (president of the A.R.A.) at the Minnesota Stamp Expo this past weekend. He shared with me that his one-frame exhibit at the upcoming StampShow in Richmond includes a cover from Honolulu postmarked the morning of December 7, 1941, where the post office was open for a few hours before the attack. You can see the cover here:

http://www.rdhinstl.info/prexies/1halfchr.htm