The Fayetteville Mystery

One of our members Peter McCann bought this embossed cover in June from Ebay for a few pounds. It was clearly worse for wear but was clearly addressed to Fayetteville, North Carolina.
In Peter’s database of about 2000 embossed covers, this was only the 3rd cover to North Carolina.

It was sent from Cheltenham 11th December 1851 and sailed to Boston on board Cunard’s Canada. But, therefore, why did it have a ‘2½d currency’ mark?

Peter consulted some colleagues in the North Carolina philatelic society who were only too pleased to help. They suggested the cover must have accidentally been put in a closed mail bag for Canada at Liverpool. The closed bag would have passed through Boston and then gone to Montreal.
Upon being discovered in Montreal we think it was then given the currency mark and sent back to the USA. Having been re-directed, it then picked up a double 5c due mark (10 cents).

Both of these marks are extremely rare on embossed covers. Only 1 other example is known of both.Indeed, this combination of marks is the only known example.

The moral of this tale : -even on Ebay, there are lots of new discoveries out there, and all for a few pounds!