Lot# 9020

during this period, the international surface letter rate was calculated per 20g, while the airmail surcharge was applied per 10g ; thus, a 20g letter to non-Asian destinations was rated at 28,500 yuan. Both items show mixed franking with stamps from various liberated areas, illustrating postal operations during the transitional phase before full standardization under the PRC. The first, posted 10 March 1950 from Toishan, Kwangtung to Quincy, Massachusetts, is franked to 15,800 yuan using a mix of Central China and South China Liberated Area stamps x 5 (3,100 yuan for the first 20g plus 12,700 yuan for airmail surcharge per 10g). It bears a “Toishan 50.3.10” cds and routed via Hong Kong to the U.S. The second, posted 22 March 1950 from Shanghai to Pasadena, California, is a double-weight airmail cover franked with North China and East China Liberated Area stamps x 8, totaling 28,500 yuan (3,100 yuan surface postage plus 25,400 yuan for two airmail weight steps at 12,700 yuan each). The “Shanghai 50.3.22” cds is clearly struck, and the franking fully conforms to postal regulations. These two covers exemplify the postal reality of early 1950s China during the transition to a unified postal system, accurately reflecting the interim usage of liberated area issues and the calculation of international airmail rates under the old RMB currency. With clear markings and complete franking, they are of high philatelic and research significance, representing early PRC postal history at its formative stage.