Файл:St Petersbourg 1838 Dob0102304.jpg

Provenance: Arthur White.

Details:

• November 1 (Julian) 1838 paid letter posted at St. Petersburg. 'С.ПБургь НОЯБРЬ 1' (November 1, Julian, 1838) postmark applied.

Dobin: 1.02 type 3.04. The postmark applied by reception expedition office of foreign correspondence. Used 1838-1852, Rarity 5.

In 1834, reception offices appeared in the suburbs of St. Petersburg, there were as many as 108.

• Mail was collected from the reception office by shipping company 'Navigation des Pyroscaphes', which plied between St. Petersburg and Lübeck.

November 1 1838 coincides with the sailing date of Sunday November 4, 1838 (this vessel sailed from St. Petersburg weekly on Sundays). Also the last trip of the year of the pyroscaphe 'Alexandra'. The Alexandra (capt. J.C. Diets) was one of three Pyroscaphes owned by this company, the others were the 'Nicholas I' (capt. N.W. Stahl) and the 'Naslednik' (capt. G.B. Boss).^{[#cite_note-1 [1]]}

• November 21 (Gregorian). Arrival date backstamp 'N 2 21-11' at Berlin.
• 'R' handstamp applied.

Vandervelde: type B1, large R - 'Russland'.

Van der Linden: 2384^{[#cite_note-2 [2]]}