Jusqu-a Airmail Markings- A Study Ian Mcqueen _verified_ 🎯 Genuine
Ian McQueen's "Jusqu'à" Airmail Markings: A Study is the definitive guide to 20th-century postal instructions that directed mail to be carried by air only until a specific destination. The book is an essential tool for aerophilatelists, offering a classification system, historical context for 1930s-1950s air routes, and a rarity guide for valuing and authenticating covers.
The French word translates to "as far as" or "up to." In a postal context, these markings indicate that a letter traveled by air only for a specific portion of its journey.
Postal authorities needed a clear way to indicate that an airmail service had ended at a specific point. This was done by applying a cachet, handstamp, or bar marking across the airmail etiquette (the “Par Avion” label) or directly on the cover. These markings, collectively known as “jusqu’à” markings, literally meant the letter was being carried by air only “up to” that point. For example, a cover from Africa to England might be marked “By Air to London” to show that the air service terminated at London, after which the letter would continue by surface transport.
Ian McQueen's work is credited with being a "ground-breaking" resource for aerophilatelists. Key features of the study include: Jusqu-a Airmail Markings- A Study Ian McQueen
remains essential because it decodes the logistical constraints of early aviation. These markings are not just ink on paper; they are a record of a world transitioning from the slow pace of steamships to the "shrinking" world of the Jet Age. mentioned in McQueen's study, such as
He mapped out the specific air networks—such as Imperial Airways, Air France, and Pan American World Airways—that required these interventions due to complex tariff structures.
Forgeries are rampant in early airmail. Fakers often add a "Jusqu’a" stamp to a mundane cover to inflate its value. McQueen cataloged the specific dies (the metal cuts used to make the handstamps). By comparing the wear pattern, spacing, and font flaws in his book, a collector can prove a marking was applied in the 1930s, not the 1970s. Ian McQueen's "Jusqu'à" Airmail Markings: A Study is
McQueen’s study classifies hundreds of distinct markings based on several physical characteristics:
Official rubber or metal stamps applied by postal clerks. These are the most desirable and easily identifiable markings. They frequently feature a boxed frame or a simple, bold sans-serif typeface.
These markings definitively pinpoint the exact transfer hub where the physical mailbag was opened and diverted to a surface route. 3. Manuscript and Local Modifications Postal authorities needed a clear way to indicate
Over time, these administrative instructions evolved into distinct cachets. Without a study like McQueen’s, a modern collector might mistake a "Jusqu’a" marking for a routing error or defacement. In reality, it is a receipt—proof that the sender paid for a specific segment of aerial transport.
The term “Jusqu’à” in a postal context originally came to mean “up to” or “as far as”. Within the international mail system, postal authorities used handstamps and labels inscribed with this phrase to indicate that a letter would be carried by air only as far as a certain terminal point, beyond which it would be transferred to a surface route (by ship, train or road).
The term jusqu’à is French for "as far as" or "up to". In a postal context, these markings were used to indicate the point at which airmail service ended for a particular piece of mail.