Worldwide Stamps and Postal History

1917 (Aug 22) Letter written and signed by Shackleton shortly after his return from the 1914-17 Trans-Antarctic Expedition, with an attached marginal block of four KEVII Land stamps C.T.O with the MY 4 09 Antarctic c.d.s, with marginal alignment arrow, the block bordering the two different overprint settings, the upper pair more heavily inked. The letter, written on notepaper of "Marlborough Club, Pall Mall, S.W", reads "My Dear Mr Hobson, Here are the Antarctic stamps for your son. They are the first ever issued for an Expedition and are rare, Yours sincerely Ernest Shackleton". A fine Shackleton letter and an interesting souvenir of the 1908-09 Expedition sent eight years later by Shackleton, who clearly still had stocks of the C.T.O stamps. Photo on Page 20.
Suggested price: £ 250-300