Sale 920 — United States Rarities
Sale Date — Tuesday, 17 October, 2006
Category — 1847 Issue
5c Red Brown (1). Unused (no gum), full margins all around, bright colorVERY FINE AND CHOICE. A REMARKABLY FRESH UNUSED EXAMPLE OF THE 5-CENT 1847 ISSUE.
With 2006 P.F. certificate (VF 80; SMQ $2,300.00)
5c Red Brown (1). Unused (no gum), full to large margins, tiny extraneous blue ink mark on Franklin's neck, otherwise Very Fine, scarce in unused condition, with 2005 P.F. certificate
5c Red Brown (1). Position 100R with huge bottom right corner sheet margins, 11-1/2mm at right and 5mm at bottom, huge margins other sides, beautiful rich color nicely contrasted by red grid cancel, certificate notes faint horizontal and vertical creases, which are almost invisibleEXTREMELY FINE APPEARANCE. A MAGINFICENT CORNER-MARGIN COPY OF THE 5-CENT 1847 ISSUE.
Ex Newbury and Wall. With 1982 P.F. certificate
5c Red Brown (1). Block of four, full margins to just in, rich color, lightened pen cancels, small scissors-cut at bottom between stamps, small thin spot at top, light creasesFINE APPEARANCE. A RARE USED BLOCK OF FOUR OF THE 5-CENT 1847 ISSUE.
As an indication of rarity, the Scott Catalogue assigns a 12.5x premium for a block versus four singles
5c Red Brown (1). Two, one with huge margins all around incl. sheet margin at right, other large margins to clear at bottom, cancelled or tied by ms. "H" cancels on cover to an antiquarian bookstore in Boston, ms. "John Howard Payne Washington, 25 March 1851" at top left, faint strike of red Washington D.C. circular datestamp, few trivial toned spotsVERY FINE. A RARE COVER WITH THE 5-CENT 1847 ISSUE CANCELLED BY "H" MANUSCRIPT INITIAL, EVIDENTLY APPLIED BY WASHINGTON D.C. CARRIER, THOMAS F. HARKNESS.
The "H" manuscript initial cancelling the 5c 1847 stamps on this cover is the same "H" initial on the 3c 1851 (Scott 10) first day cover sold in our Martin auction (Sale 894). Thomas F. Harkness was appointed as a letter carrier in Washington D.C. on August 30, 1849 (Chronicle 120, p. 243). He is probably responsible for the "H" cancellations on this cover and the 1851 first day.
10c Black, Double Transfer Ty. A (2-A). Position 1R1, original gum, typically of Rawdon, Wright, Hatch and Edson the gum is thinly applied, but it covers the entire surface (described on accompanying certificate as "part original gum"), full to large margins, intense shade and impression clearly showing the double transfer lines in top and bottom portions of design to a much greater degree of clarity than usual, unusually fresh and completely soundEXTREMELY FINE. ONE OF THE FEW SOUND EXAMPLES OF THE 10-CENT 1847 WITH ANY AMOUNT OF ORIGINAL GUM. THIS IS ONE OF TWO RECORDED UNUSED EXAMPLES OF THE 10-CENT 1847 ISSUE WITH THE PROMINENT TYPE A DOUBLE TRANSFER. WITHOUT QUESTION, ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT AND OUTSTANDING SINGLE STAMPS OF THE FIRST UNITED STATES GENERAL ISSUE.
This extraordinary stamp was described in the 1956 sale of the Alfred H. Caspary collection (Sale 2, lot 124) as "showing more details of the doubling and all clear and sharp." In concordance with our observation, Herbert Bloch also described the gum as "Full o.g." (and he mentioned a few toned specks present on the gum, which do not affect the paper). The Scott value for a 10c 1847 in 1956 was $250.00 (without premium for the double transfer variety), and this stamp sold for twice the Scott value at $500 hammer. Accordingly, we estimate the current market at two to three times the Scott value of $30,000 for an unused copy with original gum (the double transfer varieties are not priced in unused condition).
With 2002 P.F. certificate
10c Black (2). Original gum which is only lightly hinged, large even margins all around, intense shade and impression, accompanying P.S.E. certificate notes two vertical gum creases at left, which are frequently found on 1847 stamps with original gum and are not mentioned on any of the three accompanying P.F. certificatesEXTREMELY FINE APPEARANCE. A SUPERB ORIGINAL-GUM EXAMPLE OF THE 10-CENT 1847 ISSUE. ONE OF THE MOST DIFFICULT STAMPS TO OBTAIN WITH FOUR LARGE MARGINS.
The early imperforate issues are often found with margins close or cutting into the design, because of the difficulty in manually cutting along the narrow gap between stamps. This stamp was part of a pair that was divided in 1990.
With 1981 and 1990 P.F. certificates as a pair. With 1990 P.F. and 2006 P.S.E. certificates as a single.
10c Black (2). Unused (regummed), full to large margins, handsome shadeVERY FINE AND CHOICE. A RARE UNUSED EXAMPLE OF THE 10-CENT 1847 ISSUE.
With 1997 P.F. certificate
10c Black (2). Large to mostly huge margins, very wide at sides, crisp impression, red target cancel, Extremely Fine, lovely used example