Transkei Post Offices
Transkei, Umzimkulu · 1984-05-11
Official first day cover (FDC) · South African philately
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front
This cover is postmarked on 11 May 1984 in Umzimkulu. It carries a set of four Transkei stamps illustrated by A H Barrett, each depicting a different post office building serving communities across the territory. The cover's cachet captures the human side of the postal service, showing a mother writing a letter by hand in the open air, a scene that speaks to the everyday reach of the post offices honoured on the stamps themselves.
Description of the Cachet
The cachet on this cover shows a woman kneeling on the grass with a baby wrapped on her back, writing at a small postbox while a young child watches beside her. A rooster and a goose peck at the ground nearby, and two loose envelopes lie in the grass, giving the scene a warm, everyday quality centred on the simple act of writing a letter. The title "Transkei Post Offices" appears beneath the illustration in italic script, with the series marking "2" and "1.34" placed alongside a small logo in the lower corner. Four stamps fill the top right corner in a block, each illustrated by A H Barrett and showing a different post office building across Transkei, from Umzimkulu to Umtata. Two Umzimkulu postmarks, each built around an ornate scrollwork design, cancel the stamps.
Information Card
Note: the info card for this cover couldn't be transcribed since the envelope is sealed shut.
Theme: Heritage
Condition: AverageNoticeable wear or light damage, such as creases, minor soiling, small tears, or light discolouration, but still collectable.
Addressed: No
Signed: No
Estimated value: ~US$0.1
This is a high-level, subjective estimate only, not a professional appraisal.
This first day cover (FDC) is part of Southern Covers, a private collection of 248 first day covers documenting the postal history and philately of South Africa and the homeland states. New to first day cover collecting? Read the guide to learn about cachets, postmarks, and stamp collecting terms, or browse the whole collection of Southern African FDCs.
