Sale 930 — United States Stamps
Sale Date — Tuesday, 27 February, 2007
Category — 1922-29 Issues (Scott 551-621)
2c Carmine, Perf 10 at Bottom (554d). Choice wide margins, bright color, oval grid and duplex circular datestampVERY FINE. ONLY TEN SINGLES, A BLOCK OF FOUR AND TWO COVERS OF THIS RARE PERFORATION VARIETY ARE KNOWN TO US.
With 2004 P.S.E. certificate
3c Violet (555). Mint N.H. top plate no. 17924 block of six, excellent margins and centering, rich color, Extremely Fine, an outstanding plate block
3c Violet (555). Mint N.H. right plate no. 16473 block of six, deep rich color, fresh and Very Fine
4c Yellow Brown (556). Mint N.H. top plate no. 14096 block of six, pretty color, fresh and Fine
4c Yellow Brown (556). Perfectly centered with wide and balanced margins, bright color, unobtrusive duplex cancel leaves entire design clearly visible, Extremely Fine Gem, a superb stamp in every respect
6c Red Orange (558). Mint N.H. left plate no. 16047 block of six, vibrant color, Very Fine and choice, a pretty plate block
8c Olive Green (560). Mint N.H., deep rich color, perfectly centered, Extremely Fine Gem, a stamp of great visual appeal, scarce in such superb condition, with 2003 P.S.E. certificate
10c Orange (562). Mint N.H. wide top plate no. 15128 block of six, attractively centered, bottom right stamp short corner perf top right, otherwise Fine-Very Fine
15c Gray (566). Mint N.H. left plate no. 17430 block of six, rich color, choice centering, fresh and Very Fine-Extremely Fine
25c Yellow Green (568). Mint N.H. wide bottom plate no. 17444 block of six, fresh, light natural gum bends, Fine-Very Fine, with 2006 P.S.E. certificate
$2.00 Deep Blue (572). Mint N.H., beautifully centered, rich color, Extremely Fine, with 2006 P.S.E. certificate (XF 90: SMQ $360.00)
$2.00 Deep Blue (572). Mint N.H. bottom plate no. 14306 block of six, attractively centered, light natural gum bends, Very Fine
$2.00 Deep Blue (572). Bottom plate no. 14306 block of six, one stamp lightly hinged, others Mint N.H., natural gum creases, top perfs close to touch, about Fine
$5.00 Carmine & Blue (573). Mint N.H., bright colors, Very Fine and choice, with 2005 P.F. certificate
$5.00 Carmine Lake & Dark Blue (573a). Mint N.H., Very Fine and choice, with 2006 P.S.E. certificate (VF 80)
$5.00 Carmine & Blue (573). Mint N.H. centerline block of four, brilliant colors on bright paper, Very Fine
2c Carmine, Rotary (579). Well-centered for this coil-waste issue, circular datestamp, Extremely Fine, with 2006 P.F. certificate (VF-XF 85; SMQ $210.00)
2c Carmine, Perf 10, Booklet Pane of Six (583a). Mint N.H., exceptionally well-centered, wide margins, Very Fine and choice, extraordinarily nice for this
1c Green, Rotary, Perf 11 (594). Unobtrusive strike of machine slogan cancel at top, radiant color, long full perfs all aroundVERY FINE AND CHOICE EXAMPLE OF SCOTT 594. ONE OF THE RAREST TWENTIETH CENTURY STAMPS IN SOUND AND CENTERED 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/enc/census/594/594.htm, contains 89 used singles, four used pairs and five covers (including one with a pair) for a total of 103 used stamps. Many have perforations either in on one or more side, or have faults.
Census No. 594-CAN-52. With 1997 P.F. certificate
2c Carmine, Rotary, Perf 11 (595). Mint N.H., exceptionally well-centered and with choice margins, Very Fine and choice
2c Carmine, Rotary, Perf 11 (595). Oval grid cancel, rich color, Very Fine (perf at left appears nibbed but is just covered by cancelling ink), with 2006 P.F. certificate
2c Carmine, Joint Line Pair, Ty. I, II (599-599A). Mint N.H., exceptionally dark color caused by natural overall "plate wash", Fine-Very Fine, quite attractive
2c Carmine, Joint Line Pair, Ty. I, II (599-599A). Mint N.H., brilliant color on bright paper, well-proportioned margins, Very Fine and choice, with 2001 P.F. certificate
2c Carmine, Ty. II, Coil (599A). Mint N.H., well-centered, Very Fine, with 2006 P.S.E. certificate (VF 80: SMQ $195.00)
2c Harding, Imperforate (611). Enormous bottom right sheet corner margin single showing parts of adjoining stamps at top and left, siderographers initials at right, Extremely Fine Gem, with 2006 P.S.E. certificate (Gem 100 Jumbo; SMQ $85.00 as 98, no value for 100 grade or Jumbo)
2c Harding, Rotary, Perf 11 (613). Three unusually wide margins for this rarity, perfs barely touch at bottom, sharp impression, neat machine cancel, small thin spot and light vertical crease are not clearly evidentFINE APPEARANCE. A RARE EXAMPLE OF THE 2-CENT HARDING ROTARY PERF 11, WITH THREE ENORMOUS MARGINS.
Our census of the 2c Harding Rotary Perf 11 (as published in our Zoellner sale catalogue and updated at our website at www.siegelauctions.com/enc/census/613/613.htm) records 42 used singles (one faintly cancelled, if at all) and two used pairs. Of the singles, 25 are sound, but of these only six rate a grading of Very Fine or Extremely Fine.
The 2c Harding Rotary Perf 11 stamp was discovered in 1938 by Leslie Lewis of the New York firm, Stanley Gibbons Inc. 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-33. With 1994 P.F. certificate.
5c Huguenot-Walloon (616). Mint N.H., wide margins and essentially perfectly centered, rich color and clear impression, Extremely Fine Gem, with 2006 P.S.E. certificate (XF-Superb 95; SMQ $420.00)
5c Huguenot-Walloon, "Broken Circle" Plate Flaw (616 var.). Mint N.H. with top selvage, Jumbo margins and beautifully centered, Extremely Fine, this plate variety exists on only four positions of the top right pane of plate no. 15754, with 2006 P.S.E. certificate (XF 90 Jumbo; SMQ $120.00 as 90; $420.00 as 95, no value for the plate flaw)
1c Lexington-Concord (617). Mint N.H., huge perfectly balanced margins, bright color on crisp paper, Extremely Fine Gem, with 2006 P.S.E. certificate (Superb 98; SMQ $320.00)
2c Lexington-Concord (618). Mint N.H. with bottom plate no. 16801, Jumbo margins and fantastic centering, bright and crisp, Extremely Fine Gem, with 2006 P.S.E. certificate (XF-Superb 95 Jumbo; SMQ $100.00 as 95, $360.00 as 98)
5c Lexington-Concord (619). Mint N.H. with right plate no. 16808, exceptionally wide balanced margins, rich color on bright crisp paper, Extremely Fine Gem, with 2006 P.S.E. certificate (XF-Superb 95; SMQ $275.00)
5c Lexington-Concord (619). Mint N.H., outstanding centering and wide margins, marvelously fresh, Extremely Fine Gem, with 2006 P.S.E. certificate (XF-Superb 95; SMQ $275.00)