Philately at the Cape of Good Hope

The blue stamps were smuggled out of the South African town of Mafeking on a letter on 9 May 1900. These stamps are the silent witnesses of the prevailing war at that time, the Boer War.  These stamps are the witness to the creation of the Scout movement which came about as a result of the war. A secret postal service using children and teenagers was organised in order to be able to maintain contact with the outside world. Over a 100 years later the Mafeking letter turned up at the Rolli Auction.  The rarity of such stamps driven by the fascination of the participants at the venue and by online bidders resulted in a memorable battle for ownership.