From Le Hâvre (France) to Ghent (Belgium) in 1918

This letter was sent from Le Hâvre to Ghent on 28 November 1918. Le Hâvre was the place in France where the Belgian government had been in exile during World War I. It had maintained a provisional post office in Sainte-Adresse, a suburb of Le Hâvre, until 22 November 1918. This letter was sent a week later, and French stamps should have been used. Instead, the sender continued using Belgian stamps. Somehow because the Belgian "Sainte-Adresse" cancel was no longer available, the post office resorted to the roll cancel (used for savings booklets) on the stamps and a generic "Belgique - Belgie" cancel on the cover to indicate the date. See another document with roll cancel.

Characteristics: All stamps up to 10c+10c Total franking = 18c (probably not exact franking, especially since French stamps should have been used!) Roll cancel on stamps and "Belgique - Belgie" cancel on cover Part of address erased Cancel of arrival on back
Estimated value: $160 [Auctioned by David Delhaye in October 2008]