Sale 1211 — The William H. Gross Collection: United States Postal History
Sale Date — Tuesday-Wednesday, 29-30 October, 2019
Category — 20th Century Issues
The only recorded cover with the 2¢ Type II Rotary Perf 11 x 10, Scott 539, an issue which is extremely rare in used condition2¢ Carmine Rose, Type II, Rotary Perf 11 x 10 (539), radiant color, wide margins and choice centering for this difficult issue, tied by "New York, N.Y. Grand Central Sta. Jun. 30 10PM 1919" wavy-line machine cancel on cover to Dr. B. D. Spence at 659 West 183rd Street in New York City, sender's 106 West 78th Street return address on top flap
Very Fine. The only recorded Scott 539 on cover and one of the great cover rarities of 20th century United States philately. Only 14 singles, a block of four and this cover are recorded in used condition.
At the beginning or end of a coil-stamp print run from the 170-subject rotary plates, some leading or trailing paper was left over that was too short for rolling into 500-stamp rolls. In 1919 the Bureau devised an economical plan to salvage this waste by converting the leftovers from coil stamps into sheet stamps. This was accomplished by cutting the sheets into panes and running them through the flat-plate perforator for the horizontal perforations, giving the stamps perforations on all sides. The Type III design was far more plentiful (producing Scott 540) but a small number of Type II (Scott 539) was also produced.
Since Scott 539 was put through two different perforating machines (perforated 10 vertically on the rotary perforator during the coil part of production and then perforated 11 on the flat plate perforator), most of the stamps are off-center. The rotary press sheets also had a natural tendency to curl, making perforating on the flat plate perforator especially difficult.
Our census of Scott 539, available at our website at https://siegelauctions.com/census/us/scott/539, records only fourteen used singles, one used block of four and this sole example on cover. Most are off-center--only two off cover have decent centering and are confirmed as sound. The stamp on the cover offered here is the only recorded example on cover, and it is in sound well-centered condition.
Ex Alan Berkun ("Alpha" collection). Census no. 539-COV-01. With 1994 P.F., 1997 P.S.E. and 1998 A.P.S. certificates. Scott value on cover is $60,000.00.
