Sale 989 — 2010 Rarities of the World
Sale Date — Saturday, 19 June, 2010
Category — 1922 and Later Issues
2c Carmine, Perf 10 at Top (554d). Choice centering, tied by light strike of "Gregory Mich. Sep. ?" duplex cancel on cover to Marshall Mich., blue "Test" handstamp at left with manuscript "15440 Boys Cured 2/10/14", also 1923 receiving handstamp, with original contents inquiring about a naval appliance to cure the sender's daughter the same as her son had previously been cured, also with copy of typed response, slightly reduced at rightVERY FINE. ONE OF ONLY THREE RECORDED COVERS WITH THIS PERFORATION VARIETY. A GREAT RARITY OF THE ISSUE.
Our unpublished census of Scott 554d contains ten singles, a block of four and three covers.
With 2009 P.F. certificate
10c Orange, Perf 10 at Bottom (562c). Unused (no gum), vibrant colorFINE. ONE OF ONLY TWO RECORDED UNUSED EXAMPLES OF THE 10-CENT 1922 PERF 10 AT TOP OR BOTTOM VARIETY.THIS IS ONE OF THE RAREST OF ALL OF THE PERF 10 ON ONE SIDE VARIETIES.
Our comprehensive census records on this issue record only two unused examples. The other was offered in our 1990 Rarities sale. In addition, there are twelve used singles and two used pairs. Of the examples contained in our records, only five singles and one pair are sound.
With 2007 P.F. certificate. Unpriced as unused in Scott. Scott Retail as used $20,000.00 does not adequately convey its rarity.
1c Green, Rotary, Perf 11 (594). Pretty shade, neat machine cancelVERY FINE EXAMPLE OF SCOTT 594. ONE OF THE RAREST 20TH CENTURY STAMPS IN SOUND CONDITION.
The 1c Green, Scott 594, is waste from a horizontal rotary printing used to make coils. At the beginning or end of a coil-stamp print run from the 170-subject rotary plates, some leading or trailing paper was produced that was too short for rolling into 500-stamp rolls. In 1919 the Bureau devised a plan to salvage this waste by perforating and cutting the sheets into panes. They were put through the 11-gauge flat-plate perforator in use at the time, giving the sheets full perforations on all sides. The existence of Scott 594 was not reported until four months after the final sheets were delivered, and the 1c Rotary Perf 11 was soon recognized as one of the rarest United States stamps.
Our recently completed exhaustive census of Scott 594, available at our website at: http://www.siegelauctions.com/dynamic/census/594/594.pdf , contains 88 used singles, four used pairs and five covers (including one with a pair) for a total of 102 used stamps. Many have perforations either in on one or more side, or have faults.
Census No. 594-CAN-80. Ex Sheriff and Lake Shore. With 1972 P.F. and 2009 P.S.E. certificates, the former as on piece
2c Harding, Rotary, Perf 11 (613). Well-centered with unusually wide margins for this Rotary Waste issue, detailed impression, neat wavy-line machine cancelEXTREMELY FINE. THIS IS WITHOUT QUESTION ONE OF THE FINEST SINGLES OF THE 44 2-CENT HARDING ROTARY PERF 11 STAMPS RECORDED IN OUR CENSUS.
Our census of the 2c Harding Rotary Perf 11(www.siegelauctions.com/dynamic/census/613/613.pdf ) records 43 used singles (one faintly cancelled, if at all), one used pair and a newly-discovered used strip of three. Of the singles, approximately 30 are sound, but of these only six rate a grade of Very Fine or Extremely Fine. The stamp offered here is easily superior to almost all others.
The 2c Harding Rotary Perf 11 stamp was discovered in 1938 by Leslie Lewis of the New York firm, Stanley Gibbons Inc., and the stamp offered here was part of that find. Gary Griffith presents his hypothesis in United States Stamps 1922-26 that rotary-printed sheets of 400 were first reduced to panes of 100 and then fed through the 11-gauge perforating machine normally used for flat plate sheets. This method distinguishes sheet-waste stamps -- Scott 544, 596 and 613 -- from the coil-waste stamps and explains the existence of a straight-edge on Scott 613.
Census No. 613-CAN-06. Ex Sheriff. Two older P.F. certificates no longer accompany. P.S.E. Encapsulated (XF 90; SMQ $132,000.00). This is the highest grade awarded to date and the only example to achieve this grade. The next-highest grade is an 80.
15c John Paul Jones, Perf 12 (1789B). Clear wavy-lines cancel, rich colorsVERY FINE AND CHOICE. A RARE SOUND USED EXAMPLE OF THE PERF 12 JOHN PAUL JONES ISSUE.
Very few used copies are recorded. With 2007 P.F. certificate
22c Texas Flag and Silver Spur, Dark Blue Omitted (2204c). Right stamp in horizontal strip of four the variety, adjoining stamp with part of color missing, selvage at right, Mint N.H.VERY FINE AND RARE. ONLY TWO EXAMPLES OF THIS VARIETY WITH THE COLOR COMPLETELY OMITTED ARE KNOWN.
The accompanying 1995 P.F. certificate for block of 50 shows that this variety comes from this position and the one beneath it (Positions 40 and 50). The three positions above these all show traces of the blue ink, and three others show partial but significant printing of the blue (one is the third stamp in this strip). None of these qualify as the variety.
With 1995 P.F. certificate.
29c New York Stock Exchange Bicentennial, Center Inverted (2630c). Mint N.H. with selvage at top, which also shows a trace of the inverted center, brilliant colors, wide and balanced marginsEXTREMELY FINE. A DESIRABLE EXAMPLE OF THE 29-CENT NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE INVERT, WITH SELVAGE AT TOP WHICH ALSO SHOWS PART OF THE INVERTED VIGNETTE.
Two panes containing this invert error were discovered, for a total of 56 examples recorded. The bottom rows of each pane have the black completely missing (twelve stamps) as the vignettes for these were printed off the top of the sheet as seen here. This is the first invert to be discovered since the 1979 C.I.A. invert.
With 2008 P.S.E. certificate (VF-XF 85; unpriced in SMQ)