Description
China 1948 (Oct) North East Provincial Issues, Peiping Central Print, Parcel Post $500,000 on $5,000,000 grey-lilac, SGP84, Chan NEP7.
A fine block of 4 cancelled-to-order used by Shanghai circular date stamp for '14.12.48'.
Very rare in this quality and as a block of four.
This Parcel Post stamp was not officially issued in unused condition.
Stamps were overprinted for use in these North Eastern Provinces because the currency there had lost about 70% of its value. They were used in Liaoning, the third province of Manchuria as well as in Kirin and Heilungkiang.
On 5 January 1948 the Communist commander, Lin Piao, began his eighth offensive and isolated Changchun and Mukden; in a final offensive Changchun fell on 20 October and Mukden ten days later. By 5 November 1948 the Nationalists had lost the North-East.