A sheet margin block of 12 two-cent carmine King Edward VII imperforate stamps (Scott #90db), half of which are inverted, is among the top highlights of Sale 29, which will be held later this month by Ottawa’s Sparks Auctions.
The 1903-dated stamps are unused – “no gum, as issued,” according to auctioneers – and its inversion results in a rare tête-bêche block that would have been used to create two booklet panes.
“Only 14 of these are recorded, but this is the unique example with sheet margins on three sides,” reads the auction catalogue, which adds the lot is accompanied by a 2013 Vincent Graves Greene Philatelic Research Foundation certificate.
It has a catalogue value of $13,000.
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
Other highlights of the Jan. 23-24 sale include:
- a collection of Canadian registration stamps;
- what’s described by auctioneers as “one of the most important collections Great Britain squared circle postmarks ever assembled”;
- a large offering of Canadian singles and sets with “many seldom-offered stamps,” according to auctioneers;
- an “advanced” collection of Graf Zeppelin postal history;
- Canadian fancy postmarks;
- a “very rare” inverted centre stamp from Mesopotamia, one of only five known to exist;
- a collection of “Number One Stamps of the World”; and
- a “high-quality” Italy collection with many certificates.