Dr D Gwynne Harries FRPSL, who leads Hansons Auctioneers’ Philatelic Department highlights a recent star find
At a recent stamp evaluation day at Hansons’ Derbyshire saleroom in Etwall I was presented with a number of boxes and bags containing numerous sheets and singles of modern, mainly pre-decimal stamps along with typical associated stamp collectors’ ephemera.
On the face of it there was little real value in what was presented. However, I could see there were also some old letters with pre-stamp postmarks mixed in among the accumulation.
This got me looking through in more detail and I went on to spend two weeks researching the consignment in greater detail.
Amongst other little gems – more about which I will share later – one cover caught my eye, as I had not seen the postmark before.
It was a registered cover posted from ‘Arrowe Park Camp’ in the Wirral, Cheshire, in the north west of England. It was dated in 1929 with a standard definitive stamp and a 2½d Postal Union Congress commemorative.
Further research revealed this was the location of the third World Scout Jamboree which was based at Arrowe Park in Upton, near Birkenhead.
This world event commemorated the 21st birthday of the Scouting movement, and was also known as the Coming of Age Jamboree. It attracted around 50,000 Scouts and more than 300,000 visitors making it the largest jamboree known at the time.
Baden-Powell was given a peerage at the event, taking the title Lord Baden-Powell of Gilwell.
This was the first World Scout Jamboree to have its own postmark. Three different skeleton postmarks were used on registered mail at the Jamboree post office. Regular mail was postmarked at the Liverpool post office which was nearby.
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