Sale 904 — Superb United States Stamps
Sale Date — Saturday, 10 December, 2005
Category — 1867-68 Grilled Issue
3c Rose, C. Grill (83). Original gum, lightly hinged, clearly-defined grill, brilliant color on bright paper, beautiful centering with well-balanced marginsEXTREMELY FINE. A SUPERB ORIGINAL-GUM EXAMPLE OF THE 1867 3-CENT C GRILL.
With 1993 P.F. certificate
3c Rose, C. Grill (83). Original gum, lightly hinged, strong grill impression, rich color on bright paper, beautiful centering with well-balanced marginsVERY FINE. A SCARCE ORIGINAL-GUM EXAMPLE OF THE 1867 3-CENT C GRILL.
With 2000 P.S.E. certificate
1c Blue, E. Grill (86). Unusually wide margins for this difficult issue, deep rich color, clearly-defined grill, light strike of cork cancel, Extremely Fine, with 2002 P.F. certificate
1c Blue, E. Grill (86). Clear grill, pretty pastel color, grid cancel, well-proportioned margins, fresh and Extremely Fine, scarce with choice centering, with 1994 and 2005 P.S.E. certificates (VF-XF 85)
10c Green, E. Grill (89). Original gum, wide margins and remarkably choice centering, rich color and strong grill impressionEXTREMELY FINE. THE 1868 10-CENT E GRILL IS RARELY OBTAINABLE IN THIS SUPERB ORIGINAL-GUM CONDITION.
With 2001 P.F. certificate
10c Green, E. Grill (89). Original gum, lightly hinged, clearly-defined grill, deep rich color, three extra wide marginsVERY FINE AND CHOICE ORIGINAL-GUM EXAMPLE OF THE 1868 10-CENT E GRILL.
With 1983 and 2005 P. F. certificates
12c Black, E. Grill (90). Choice centering with balanced margins, deep shade providing background for vivid red cork cancel, Extremely Fine, a wonderful 12c E Grill for the collector looking for colored cancels on superb classics, with 2005 P.F. certificate
12c Black, E. Grill (90). Intense shade, light target cancel, well-centered with wide margins, fresh and Extremely Fine, with 2003 P.F. certificate
2c Black, F. Grill (93). Almost perfectly centered with Jumbo margins, crisp impression, clearly-struck "Paid All" handstamp, Extremely Fine Gem, this issue is exceedingly difficult to find with the attributes of the example offered here -- wide margins, perfect centering, impression and a "Paid All" cancel -- with 2004 P.F. certificate and 2004 P.S.E. certificate (XF-Superb 95 -- in our opinion, this stamp meets all of the requirements for a Superb 98)
3c Red, F. Grill (94). Original gum, lightly hinged, pastel color, clearly-defined grill, choice centering for this difficult grilled issue, Extremely Fine, with 1978 and 2005 P.F. certificates
3c Red, F. Grill (94). Gargantuan margins all around, brilliant color, face-free cork cancel, Extremely Fine Gem, a huge stamp, with 2001 P.F. certificate
5c Brown, F. Grill (95). Block of four, original gum, clear grill points on every stamp, crisp color and impressionEXTREMELY FINE. A RARE ORIGINAL-GUM BLOCK OF FOUR OF THE 1868 5-CENT F GRILL. ONE OF THE LAST BLOCKS TO SURVIVE IN SUCH WONDERFUL CONDITION.
Original-gum singles and blocks of the 5c F Grill tend to be in rather poor condition, either in terms of centering, color or overall condition. The block offered here should be considered a condition rarity. It is increasingly unlikely that any other well-centered blocks will survive the demand for singles.
12c Black, F. Grill (97). Redistributed original gum, detailed impression, choice centering with well-balanced marginsEXTREMELY FINE APPEARING EXAMPLE OF THE 1868 12-CENT BLACK F GRILL.
With 2005 P.F. certificate
12c Black, F. Grill (97). Jumbo margins, crisp impression, bold cork cancel with trace of red transit at bottom left, Extremely Fine, with 1995 P.F. certificate
12c Black, F. Grill (97). Remarkably well-centered, bold leaf cancellation and bit of the rim of a red transit, Extremely Fine, with 2000 P.F. certificate
15c Black, F. Grill (98). Well-centered, detailed impression, light cancel, Extremely Fine example of this challenging issue, with 1988 and 2002 P.F. certificates