Lot 60481A – 1855 (Nov 21) Envelope to England with 1855 6d. QV dull orange « per ship James Baines »

1855 (Nov 21) Envelope to England with 1855 6d. QV dull orange with wide margins all around (mild corner crease otherwise fine), on cover from MELBOURNE NO 21 1855 to Horsham, Sussex, with clear strike of scarce « AUSTRALIA PACKET PAID LIVERPOOL MR 4 56 » cds further to manuscript « per ship James Baines » (BLACK BALL LINE), fine and very scarce.Note: Due to the Crimean war, the General Screw shipping Co. withdrew from its contract for carrying Australian mails when the Admiralty began commandeering their steamships for use in said conflict. P&O did the same in December thus leaving Australia without scheduled steam service. No one knew how long the conflict would last, so the Post Office issued single-voyage contract and foreign mail then reverted to conveyance by sailing ship via Cape Horn (Tierra del Fuego, Chile). This envelope took 95 days to reach GB! It was carried on the Black Ball James Baines which left Melbourne on 28 November 1855 and arrived Liverpool on 2 March 1856. The ship was delayed by calms off Cape Horn.