TREAY PORT GEM. N1 is one of the scarcest postal marking among the treaty ports, and this cover is also the earliest recorded usage of Customs Ningpo cds.
An 1877 cover originated from Ningpo to Berlin, with clear strike of ‘Customs Ningpo’ 28 November origin cds on reverse. The cover bears Hong Kong 16c stamp in yellow cancelled by ‘N1’ killer in blue, with Ningpo cds (28 Nov) alongside, and was superimposed by ‘S1’ killer in black and Shanghai cds (29 Nov) on reverse. It transited Hong Kong on 3 December, Brindisi on 9 January 1878 to arrive Berlin on 12 Jan.
