Lot 20673 – 1867 CHILIE single circle datestamp with posthorn ornament on cover front to Galati

1867 CHILIE single-circle datestamp with posthorn ornament on cover front sent on 3/5 (1867) from Chilia (now Kiliya in Ukraine), South Bessarabia/Moldavia, to Galati (the initial ‘2’ of the postmark was manuscript-modified to a ‘3’). The 20 parale Prince Carol stamp is cancelled by the grille marking. The mysterious ‘CHILIE’ postmark, different from all the Romanian handstamps of the period, was believed by Kiriac Dragomir to be an Austrian provenance shipmail DDSG datestamp, with usage on the river route between Chilia and Galati (K. Dragomir, page 118). This is an early example of this extremely rare postmark, not found on classical stamps, and very rarely found on Paris issue stamps. Illustrated on the cover of Filatelia magazine (12/1995). A key item for the postal historian. Some aging and creases, still in fine condition. Ex Kiriac Dragomir, Pascanu. Signed Pascanu