Lot 90010 – 1871, 48 mon dark brown, plate 2, vertical strip of four on cover

1871, 48 mon dark brown, plate 2, vertical strip of four, positions 4 / 12 / 20 / 28, only pos. 28 with left margin slightly touched, otherwise being very fine with good to large margins all around, tied by two strikes of early non-standard square “Kozuchi / ken” handstamp of Kozuchi, Mino province, on reverse of an entire letter sent to a postal official at Hotaka town, Shinano province. On address side framed early-non standard “(year of the) rooster 8th month 24th day / Kozuchi Postal Receving and Handling Agency” (Gregorian 24 August 1873) datestamp in red. The 200 mon postage paid the unified nationwide single weight letter rate of the 3rd rate period, Meiji 6.4.1-15.12.31.

A very attractive and rare franking of the scarce second plate of the first postage stamp of Japan.