Lot# 9022

these two covers, addressed respectively to Czechoslovakia and USA, each paying the standard 15,800-yuan Old RMB rate for 10g airmail letters to non-Asian destinations. The first, posted 14 June 1950 from Peking to Prague, mixed with North China and R series issues x 3, totaling 15,800 yuan, tied by “Peking 50.6.14” cds, carried via Moscow on the provisional USSR flight before the formal opening of the Peking–Chita route on 1 July 1950, it is a scarce early example of PRC mail to Europe by air. The second, posted 9 July 1950 from Shanghai to Athol, Massachusetts, was paid by East China meter mark for 15,800 yuan, tied by “Shanghai 50.7.9” cds. Routed via Canton and Hong Kong, it was conveyed to USA on Pan American Airways’ Pacific service. This cover represents one of the earliest known PRC meter-franked airmail letters, properly rated and clearly struck. Both covers document China’s early international airmail development following the establishment of the People’s Republic, illustrating accurate franking, defined postal routes, and the transitional use of Old RMB rates—important postal history artifacts with high research and exhibition value.