5c Red Brown (12). Two blocks of four rejoined to form the original horizontal block of eight, top row C Relief, bottom row D Relief, ample margins to touched at left, rich color, manuscript cancels including "Oct. 28th", tiny scissors-cut between stamps at top of left block, light pre-printing crease in bottom right stamp

FINE-VERY FINE. THE UNIQUE BLOCK OF EIGHT OF THE 1856 5-CENT RED BROWN. ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT CLASSIC MULTIPLES EXTANT.

This block was originally part of an eleven-stamp multiple, joined with a strip of three at top right. It was affixed to a large piece with single 1c and 3c stamps (the full piece is illustrated in Brookman on page 152). After its appearance in a 1955 H.R. Harmer sale, the strip of three was removed and later the block of eight was separated into two blocks of four. The late Frederick R. Mayer reunited the two blocks while building his classic 5c 1856 Issue collection. As both a block of eleven and a block of eight, this was the largest recorded multiple. The largest intact used multiples now are blocks of six and five, both on cover (the block of six is lot 314 in this sale). Apart from this reconstructed block of eight, there are only five other used blocks of four, two of which are on covers (one is lot 311 in this sale). The largest unused multiple is the unique block of four.

Ex Filstrup, West, Klein, Mayer (book, p. 18) and Curtis. Left block of four with 1991 P.F. certificate. Scott value $90,000.00 as two blocks of four

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