Early Mail Ships, Tristan da Cunha

Boy, this Sunday Funday flew so fast! It is almost 8 pm, and I can say that I've been anything but productive today... so at least lets get an update done :)


I recall I wanted to post these stamps for one of the M-days (as Mail Ships), but in the end i posted something else, so here they come today, in all their glory, 9 early mail ships! (I must point out that I'm missing three of the stamps in the set (the most expensive ones, of course), so if anyone has these, or you know someone who might have, please let me know, cos Id really like to complete this set :))

Issued on 8th December 2015 by Tristan da Cunha, which you collectors probably know by now, is the most remote inhabited island in the world lying some 2,430km from St. Helena and over 2,800km from Africa. With my good orienteering skills, the last row of stamps was, of course, scanned in a reverse order....

Mail from and to the island became very important as it was their only opportunity to communicate with the outside world. Quite often this could take years as they were dependent on passing ships, like whalers, to carry the mail.
Eventually after numerous requests British war ships called annually but even this waned.
This definitive stamp issue depicts ships that carried mail to and from the island between 1904 and 1953. Of course most of the ships calling at Tristan would carry out this task and as such not all of the ships from this period are included.

The stamps, briefly, depict the following:


- 1p
HMS Odin -  Called at Tristan 23 January 1904. This was the last of the war ship visits for the next 15 years.


- 2p
RMS Asturias - Called at Tristan 15 February 1927 and was the first ship to call for over a year. Supplies and mail were brought ashore using a water tight raft towed to the shore. Mail was taken off and reached London 14 March 1927.

- 5p
SS Empress of France  - Called at Tristan 28 February 1928 and was the first ship to visit for 11 months. 54 letters and 3 packages were landed. The ship was on its way from Buenos Aires to Cape Town. It landed stores and gifts from USA, Canada and Great Britain.


- 10p
HMS Carlisle -Visited Tristan in 1932 and 1937. She landed 7 January 1932 with the New Bishop of St Helena, the first such visit since 1856, and the Tristan Representative Mr Percy Snell. The opportunity was taken to try and establish whether a radio transmitter could be installed to assist future possible sea plane visits.

-25p
Barque Ponape - Visited Tristan around June or July 1934 and the mail she took was off loaded at Singapore bearing the date 24 September 1934.

- 35p
RMS Atlantis - Visited Tristan 19 February 1934, landing 12 tons of provisions including mail. Some of the mail was struck with an oval ship cachet which has become highly collectable.

- 45p
Sailing Ship Cap Pilar - Called at Tristan 31 January 1937. This was a refurbished barquetine. She carried mail to the island on its world cruise and was allowed to fly the Royal Mail Pennant by special permission, the last sailing ship to do so. It unloaded 9 bags of letters and 10 bags of parcels.

- 60p
RMS Franconia - Visited Tristan 21 February 1939 on a cruise from New York. 4000 souvenir postcards were produced on board and sold to passengers, an image of this postcard is featured on the First Day Cover envelope. Mail was dropped off and taken on board, but no passengers could land on the island as a case of chickenpox had broken out on the ship.

- £1 HMS Queen of Bermuda Called at Tristan 24 August 1940. Built in 1933 by Vickers Armstrong Barrow she has been referred to as one of the most beautiful cruise ships of all time.

Can you imagine, living in such a place, where mail is delivered and collected like, twice a year? What kind of a postcrossing world would that be? Hmmm....

For more e-stamps, click here

Have a nice evening! :)