A Rare Unused First Special Service Force "Black Devils" V-Mail Letter 1944

Inside panel printed in red and black inks, illustrating a map of south-east France and western Italy, various place names on the map with illustrations of Black Devils attacking those areas, cartooned Germans along with other representations adjoining the place names, lower left of the map with a Black Devil peering in from the left margin with the unit's insignia to the right, inscribed "Black Devils" above and "First Special Service Force" below the insignia, with a ribbon banner across the insignia inscribed "Season Greetings", inscribed "V...-MAIL" below the map, marked "U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1943 16-28143-4" at the lower right, address panel at the top with a place designated for the censor's stamp and inscribed "CHRISTMAS 1944", outside panel printed in red ink with an address panel entitled "V...-MAIL" facing tail-to-tail with an Instructions panel, measuring 117 mm x 149 mm when folded and 235 mm x 280 mm when fully opened, light tearing exhibited on the glue tab, extremely fine.

Footnote: V-mail, short for Victory Mail, was a hybrid mail process used during the Second World War in the United States, as the primary and secure method to correspond with soldiers stationed abroad. To reduce the cost of transferring an original letter through the military postal system, a V-mail letter would be censored, copied to film, and printed back to paper upon arrival at its destination. The V-mail process is based on the earlier British Airgraph process. (C:28)