3¢ Deep Violet, Orangeburg Coil (389), remarkably well-centered for this difficult issue, deep rich color, tied by "Orangeburg N.Y. May 22 5PM 1911" wavy-line machine cancel on light bluish gray cover with "Bell & Company Incorporated Manufacturing Chemists" corner card, typewritten address to a doctor in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Very Fine and choice stamp on a cover with usual minor edge wrinkles.

A beautiful example of the rare 3¢ Orangeburg coil on cover. Only 13 covers have been certified as genuine by The Philatelic Foundation.

The Orangeburg coil was made by the Post Office Department in 1911 specifically for use by the Bell Pharmaceutical Company. The 3¢ coil stamps were used to send samples of their products to physicians. Due to the quantity of mail, they were put through the first-class cancelling machine at Orangeburg, New York. The Orangeburg coil stamps' use on third-class mail, and the fact that philatelists were generally unaware of their production accounts for their rarity.

Ex Robert Zoellner. Signed on back by Ezra D. Cole. With 1987 P.F. certificate.

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