- £450.00
1902 MANGAPATNAM, INDIA. A water stained cover sent to Germany with a 2a6p cancelled MADRAS 11 SE 02, that was on the train from Madras to Bombay that fell into a river at Mangapatnam, 205 miles from Madras, when a bridge collapsed during heavy floods on September 11. At least 62 people died in the incident. The mails ended up in the river and only recovered on September 17th. When recovered, on arrival in England, a violet boxed ‘DAMAGED BY IMMERSION / IN SEA WATER’ cachet was applied with ‘SEA’ crossed out. However, as this cover was going to Germany, it did not pass through England and did not get the cachet but on the back written in red ink is an explanatory ‘Damaged in Railway accident, JO’ This specific cover is mentioned in Hoggarth & Gwynn and believed the only known cover with only this m/s notation. Sea Post Office ‘C’ SE 13 02 transit and Hamburg 29.9.02 arrival cancels are on the back. A rare cover that did not go to England, hence the lack of the boxed cachet.
