Lot 30259 – 1875, 12 sen rose, syllabic 1 (i), very fresh and well centred, used on fragment of cover with black inland cancel

1875, 12 sen rose, syllabic 1 (i), very fresh and well centred, used on fragment of cover with black inland cancel, accompanied by N1B1 “Tokyo 9.1.9” (Jan. 9, 1876) double circle at left, showing large “Yokohama Jan 10 / (bar) / Japan” cds and tied by “San Francisco Jan 31” cds. A very interesting usage featuring the short-lived 12 sen rate to United States, which was into force during just three months from 1st January to 31st March 1876; the “Bird” 12 sen was issued with the purpose of paying this rate.