Today in Postal History

   
     
Jamaica to United States
March 29, 1899

This neat cover is franked with three of the 1889 key plate 1d. purple and mauve (SG 27).
(Ed. Note: Boy, did those Victorians have colors!)

The key plate issue included three different values (1d., 2d., and 2½d.) stamps.
The stamp was surface printed or typographed by De La Rue & Co. using two plates.
The first plate, called the headplate, provided the frame and
the second, called the dutyplate,  provided the denomination tablet.
All denominations used the same headplate.
Only the octagonal dutyplate and colors were changed.
As a result of the number of printings, there are several color variants of each denomination.

The cover was cancelled in Kingston using two strikes of a double rimmed CDS.
Kingston seems to be the source of most Jamaica covers.
Kingston, is, of course, the capital and also by far the largest city in Jamaica.
Jamaica, like most of the rest of the British Caribbean islands, is famous for its villages.

The destination of the cover is New York City.
There is no evidence on the front of the cover of a receiving marking.

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