Lot# 9092

bearing seven Yunnan “half value” Silver Yuan stamps, tied by Kunming cds and arriving Chungking on Jun 3, 1949. The obverse shows a Supreme Court receipt chop indicating prepayment of Gold Yuan 4,000,000 with a value declaration fee of $1.92. The postage is composed of two parts: 34 fen for the domestic airmail double registration rate (applicable Apr 29 to Jul 31, 1949), and the value declaration fee. The total Gold Yuan amount of 4,200,000 (including 5% insurance fee) converts at the contemporary Yunnan rate of approximately GY 140,000 to 1 Silver Yuan fen, equating to 30 fen; combined with the 34 fen registration and airmail fee, the total of 64 fen is correctly prepaid. In addition, based on the local Yunnan conversion ratio of half-value stamps to Silver Yuan at approximately 3:1, the stated $1.92 corresponds to 64 fen, further confirming the accuracy of the rate calculation. Chungking arrival and registration markings are present, with a clear postal route. This cover is of particular importance for its use of Yunnan-specific “half value” Silver Yuan stamps to pay a value-declared fee in conjunction with a judicial receipt system, clearly illustrating the complex currency conversion practices during the transitional period when Gold Yuan and Silver Yuan circulated concurrently. Such locally issued half-value stamp usages on value-declared covers are very rare, with only one recorded example, and are of significant postal history and exhibition value for the study of post-war southwestern postal systems, currency conversion mechanisms, and insured mail operations.