1914 TO 1956 AMAZING PRISONERS OF WAR / INTERNEE MAIL COLLECTION

A fascinating collection, carefully written- up & explained in English, of covers & cards sent by Prisoners held during both WWI & WWII. This excellent collection has done a marvelous job illustrating the mail services open to interned / imprisoned civilians & military persons during (and in the case of POW tracing services, after) the two great European conflicts. The collection starts with a range of WWI items including a 1914 official Christmas postcard sent from interned British civilians in German Ruhleben Camp, then two different covers transmitted through a Swiss Bank to French POWs in Germany; 1916 Egyptian p/card sent with various cachets from a British camp for German POWs and onwards including covers for the German Concentration Camp in New South Wales, a Camp Christmas p/card from Knockaloe on the Isle of Man, another from a German POW Camp at Fort Napier in Natal, a small group of covers from German POWs in Russia, etc; WWII with a larger range including French POW camps in Germany; Polish POW camps in Germany; a fabulous collection of private stamps issued at Polish Officers Internment Camps used on POW mail from Murnau, Woldenberg & Gross-Born Camps (14 covers / items); an interesting collection of German POW camp mail from England, Canada, Egypt, France, French North Africa, Russia, the USA and laterly Germany itself with mail to and from war criminals; a 1946 p/card bearing set of four stamps issued at the Ettlingen Displaced Persons Camp in Germany sent through the inter-camp courier service plus a number of other displaced person camp covers with unusual private service stamps; the collection ends with an interesting run of mail to the mid-1950s sent by POW tracing services. A truly fascinating collection crammed with historical nuggets, the covers are secured by a couple of dots of gum but are easily removed. Highly recommended. (Approx 140 covers).
Estimate £4500-£5000

Lot 5030 in our 5187 sale closing 24th May 2011
www.sandafayre.com

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• 20110518
• 091137