Month: October 2007

Featured Item #4

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Lot #1455 Bhutan 152-152F – Phonographic Records Issue. This small nation shocked the philatelic world with the release of this 1973 issue. Playable recordings of Bhutanese national anthem, history and folk songs. Unused self-adhesives, fresh and unplayed. Rarely seen. Scott Cat. $375

Ian’s comment: "This is a lot which would be spurned by the traditionalists. When the Canadian Postal Museum was getting established they wanted these for a display because of their appeal to the general public who were not ‘fly-speck’ philatelists. They asked me to find a set and I had a very hard time locating and purchasing one. "

Featured Item #3

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Lot 2061 Canada – 1947 “Salved from the Sea” Disaster Cover.

A truly magnificent, eye-appealing cover. The lot includes details as presented when this item was presented in philatelic exhibit, as follows: “A cover from the wreck of RMS Nascopie. She struck an uncharted reef during a storm on 22 July, all of the 54 passengers and crew were rescued but the ship was abandoned that day. Some of the mail was saved on 22 July, with more being recovered on 23 July. As were most such letters, this was marked, at Churchill Manitoba, with a rubber stamp bearing the words: SALVED FROM THE SEA. The cover was then postmarked with EAP oval cachet. This oval hammer was only used, in violet, from 1 August to 11 August 1947. The exhibit below is the first day of use of a very short-lived cancellation on a rare cover.” Obviously this item still warrants showpiece contention. Est. $500

Ian notes: “Most covers which have a ‘wow’ factor have rare stamps in exceptional quality. In the case of this envelope, it is the illustration which evokes the superlative.”

Featured Item #2

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Lot 1351 E/P VF – Sierra Leone #164P – King George V. Die proof of King George V vignette, adopted for the 10sh value of the 1933 William Wilberforce Issue. Contemporary ink notations for production, as applied at the Bradbury, Wilkinson Ltd. Printing firm. There is a small fault at upper right resulting from affixing the item into the production book. A very rare item, with only a few known and unique with the production notes. Est. $1,500

Ian comments: “This item with the production notes makes a wonderful Exhibition item for an advanced collection. To my mind, the fact that the ink notations have run adds character and interest to this lot.”

Featured Item #1

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Today we begin to feature items of particular interest in our inaugural auction. We will have one item each day leading up to the auction sessions.

Our first item is Lot number 773, Newfoundland #30 – Fishing Schooner – 13c Orange. A stunning lower margin inscription block of six. Incredible combination of brilliant colour, very fine margins and fresh tone. Original, never hinged gum, with natural light disturbance. Ex. Baillie. Unitrade CV$5,400

Ian’s comment: "I like this item because it combines scarcity and quality. Newfoundland #30 is notorious for poor centering and multiples are very scarce."

Welcome to Our Site

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Sparks-auctions.com will not be full-featured until the end of this week, but we welcome visitors and would like to give you an idea of what you can find here.

We have added the PDF version of our catalogue to the site, along with an Image Gallery of scans. You can find these in the links sidebar to the right.

Between now and the auction sessions, look forward to additional images, a tutorial on internet bidding, and featured lots from our inaugural auction. As well, we will publish an errata list with any corrections from the CD & catalogue, or additional clarification that might be required. Already we are aware that two or three catalogue pages did not render correctly in the PDF version contained on our CD and on-line, and we will provide those pages as soon as possible. [Update: We have now uploaded the correct pages for pp. 56-57, page 70, and page 181.]

Don’t forget to register with Stamp Auction Network if you are planning to bid on-line. If you are already registered, be sure to add Sparks Auctions to your list of preferred auction houses.

And please contact us if you have any questions or would like to receive the catalogue CD.

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