12c Black (17). Positions 71/81-82/91-92R1, block of five from the lower left corner of the right pane of Plate 1 with large part of interpane sheet margin at left, large to ample margins all around, intense shade and proof-like impression on bright white paper, lightly cancelled by grids and tied by "Wheeling Va. Feb. 4” (1857) circular datestamp on buff cover to Wurttemberg, Germany, addressed to the district court in Horb am Neckar, double 30c Prussian Closed Mail rate with sender’s route directive "Per Prussian Closed Mail”, red "N. York 14 Am. Pkt. Paid Feb. 7” 14c credit datestamp--carried on the New York & Havre Line Arago from New York on February 7, arriving in Southampton on February 20--entered Prussian mail system at Aachen with red "AACHEN 21/2 FRANCO” framed transit datestamp (February 21), back of cover with Stuttgart (February 23) and Horb (February 24) transit and receiving datestamps, additional part strike of German transit backstamp (February 23), small scissors-cut between stamps

EXTREMELY FINE. ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL 1851-56 ISSUE IMPERFORATE COVERS EXTANT, WITH A PERFECT SHEET-MARGIN BLOCK OF FIVE OF THE 12-CENT 1851 ISSUE PAYING THE DOUBLE RATE TO WURTTEMBERG VIA THE PRUSSIAN CLOSED MAIL ROUTE.

Collectors are acutely aware of the rarity of blocks and large multiples of the imperforate stamps issued from 1847 through 1857, when perforated issues replaced them. The rarity increases significantly for blocks used on cover. We are currently aware of six blocks of the 12c 1851 Imperforate on cover. The largest is a block of six in the Charles A. Hirzel collection at the Swiss Museum of Communications in Berne, Switzerland. There is also a strip of six on cover in the James Allen collection. The block of five on the cover offered here is the second largest on cover and regarded by specialists as the finest in terms of quality.

No record of this cover has been located prior to 1983, when it was acquired from a European source by Duane B. Garrett and certified by The Philatelic Foundation. First offered in Christie’s Robson Lowe sale, Oct. 30, 1986, lot 329, to Zoellner; ex Robert Zoellner, Sale 804, Oct. 8-10, 1998, lot 92, to Gross; William H. Gross, Sale 1188, Oct. 3, 2018, lot 42, to Mr. Eubanks; exhibited at ANPHILEX 1996 Invited Exhibits (Zoellner).

With 1983 P.F. certificate. Small red "ALCURI” backstamps (Paul J. Alcuri, Great Britain).

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