large queen – Page 45 – Sparks Auctions

Highs and Lows

July 24, 2020June 17, 2011 by Ian

No, we’re not referring to pharmaceuticals.

With only a few days to go we decided to examine the opening bids and look at one high and a bunch of lows.

1893 8c violet black Small Queen, selected with precise centering within four oversized margins, light cds cancel, an extremely fine gem. Unitrade CV$6.00

Yesterday I spoke with a customer in the store who asked about this lot and he volunteered that he had bid $40 and wanted to know his chance of success. I told him that I thought he would be the under-bidder. It is now opening at $160 which more than 26 times full catalogue. Unless he has changed his bid he is certainly no longer the under-bidder. I have no idea what the high bid is (it might be $160). I do know there are at least a few lots with already respectable openings where the high bid is quite a bit higher than the current opener. There are also many lots which may or may not have one bid but still show as opening at $2 because there is only one bid on the lot. Here are three groups (and I could have chosen many) which deserve more consideration — and bids — from our customers.

1868-1875 ½c to 15c Large Queen issue, basic set of 9 different values in matched horizontal pairs, used with a variety of cancels including four with cds cancels, the ½c is on thin crisp paper, overall fine-very fine but we note small faults on the 12½c. A difficult group to assemble. Unitrade CV$1940.

A nice complete set of Large Queens in pairs is actually quite difficult to assemble. This lot and from the same consignor Lot 155 which is pairs of the Small Queens are two of the early lots which deserve better than an opening of $2.

Alberta Hunting Stamps 1964-1994, 63 stamps, 26 different. Most are for resident big game, deer, elk, moose and game birds. All used, in mixed condition, as they were affixed to licenses. Listed, but unpriced by Van Dam, largely due to their scarcity. Estimate $750.

A well-researched and extensive book on wildlife and conservation stamps will soon be published. It will open up a whole new area to consider collecting and add many hundreds of items to the listings of modern Conservation stamps which already receive a good philatelic following. Here is an opportunity to get in on the ground floor with this lot. It too deserves better than $2.

1992 43c Flag over Field, Leigh-Mardon printing, double printed grey cast. During a normal printing run of a high speed web press a double printing is impossible. However in preparation for the high speed press a “make-ready” is often fed through to check for ink registration. On this occasion a make-ready was fed through the press twice resulting in a weak impression and overlaying that with a normal strong impression. Normally make-readys would be destroyed but on this occasion two double printed panes were packaged, sent to Canada Post and sold to an Ottawa resident, who then, upon noticing the variety, sold the top blocks of 20. It is these two blocks of 20 with the doubling most pronounced upon which the Unitrade listing and valuation has been established. This part pane has a double printing with a grey cast. Mint never hinged, very fine. Unitrade CV $160,000. See also Lot 436 (block of 12 with the brown cast, the largest multiple from the top two rows) and Lot 438 (block of 80 with the brown cast).

With a catalogue value of $344,000 for these three lots there will obviously be lots of floor bidding if the opening remains at a paltry $2.

There are many more lows with a few days remaining. The opening bids can be easily accessed through this link to our listing on Stamp Auction Network. Once you see our Auction, click on the button at top left that says Opening Bids.

Certainty and Certificates

July 24, 2020June 13, 2011 by Ian

The great majority of all stamps can be identified with certainty. When one comes across a stamp which raises questions, however, certainty is often difficult. Questions may concern the catalogue number, whether genuine or not, with or without original gum, with or without postmark, evidence of alterations or repairs, etc. A certificate from a recognized authority can often answer these questions. Certificates are prepared by humans, however, and mistakes can be made between a determination of genuine and not (in either direction!).

Generally speaking one should prefer an opinion which is unequivocal — “is genuine in all respects” or “is a forgery” usually settles the matter. “Appears genuine as far as one can tell” or “no opinion” does not help much. Whole books have been written on the subject.

With this background in mind, we’ll look at two lots in our current auction. Both have certificates from the VG Greene Foundation which is the pre-eminent expert committee for the stamps of Canada and British North America.

1851 3d red Beaver on laid paper, used with three jumbo margins and fourth well clear of outer frameline. 1978 Greene Foundation certificate mentions a “small hole” which is a pinhole not on this stamp, or in the margin but in the portion showing the next stamp at top right. A very fine example of Canada’s first stamp. Unitrade CV$1600.

A careful reading of our description explains how we interpret the rather unflattering description reading “small hole.” This is an example of a harsh Certificate. A Certificate which might be ambiguous about whether the gum is original would be an example of a generous Certificate. Generally speaking, the Greene Foundation is more likely to give a harsh rather than a generous Certificate.

1860 2c lilac, pair one bisected on cover From a new find, backstamped Liverpool, NS APR.22.1868. As the Large Queen issue was introduced in April 1868, many postmasters wished to use up the old Nova Scotia stamps. Three cents was the new Dominion rate. In 2010 the Greene Foundation wrote “the item could be genuine but the lack of a cancel tying the bisect line to cover prevents us from giving an opinion.” Not noted by the Greene Foundation was the lack of evidence of a scoreline in the event someone has used a scalpel or knife to create a bisect and also a faint staining which ties the bisect to the cover. Envelope has a stain and is damaged in upper left and lower left corners. Both stamps have some damage. Unitrade CV$3500.

Here is another example of a lot where we added commentary to the description. I concur with the opinion of perhaps the foremost authority on Nova Scotia postal history that this is genuine. Both of us have examined it thoroughly and have the oral evidence of it being a new find (see also Lot 1269). An April 22 date (the new Dominion stamps were first available April 1) and the fact of a 50% increase in postage at the same time for an in-county Nova Scotia letter suggests that no respectable and frugal correspondent would voluntarily put two of his old colonial stamps on a letter.

However all that background is lost once this envelope changes hands several times. The faint stain which ties the bisect is evidence when the envelope first surfaces but hardly evidence decades from now. The Greene Foundation did not err with its “no opinion.”

For some items a collector has to live without absolute certainty.

Highlight #12 — What Appeals To You? (Part 2)

July 24, 2020November 4, 2010 by Sparks Auctions

Sparks Auctions will have hundreds of bidders who will, we hope, place thousands of bids. Very, very few lots get multiple bids from different bidders. Some expensive lots will receive a number of bids from people realizing that, for example, $2000 in usable postage is a steal at only $2; so bids of $10, 20, 50, 100, 200 etc. might be placed. Other lots of real value might slip by the attention of most potential bidders and sell well below their real value. That is where placing lots of bids (perhaps combined with a limit on purchases) can result in picking up bargains.

And we have a exceptionally diverse group of lots and collections on offer. We offer collections from dozens of countries. Our usual offerings of extensive collections of Canada and to a lesser extent Great Britain and USA are tempting. There are strong collections of Barbados, Bermuda, Cuba, Fiji, France, Germany, Monaco, and New Zealand, to name a few. There are many others with a greater or lesser degree of specialization. Lot 1986 may very well be under-described because so many of the identified varieties are not Scott listed.

Lot 1986 — Eastern Europe 1860s-1960s Mint/Used Collections of Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia housed in three volumes, plus Poland, Croatia, Slovenia, Ukraine, Russia and Yugoslavia. Owner has identified stamps according to perfs, papers and watermarks which have not been verified by us. Some light duplication, average condition, some stamps affected by poor storage. Despite these negative comments, if you have an interest in this area, you will want to thoroughly inspect this lot as it contains many scarcer issues. Estimate $500.

Many collections are found in old albums dating from the 1800s to the period between the World Wars. Two examples are:

Lot 1957 — Four old-time albums, with two Scott Junior Internationals to about 1915, a Scott album circa 1900 and an Yvert and Tellier blank album with a few stamps from the 1920s. The first 2 each contain hundreds of stamps, though U.S.A. is stripped in each and Great Britain in one. We note quantities of early China and a few interesting covers. Condition varies. If you only have time to view one lot, this would be a good choice. Overall mostly about fine. Estimate $250.

Lot 1962 — 1896 Excelsior Album 1840-1908. Apparently never added to or stripped out since about 1908 with many hundreds of classic stamps, strong, as expected, in the European countries, U.S.A. and Canada (1897 Jubilees to $1 unused but stuck down). Strength is in used which are hinged and typically have fresh colour and some postmark interest. A good representation from smaller British Commonwealth and some other smaller countries. Condition mixed as always in a collection of this kind. Estimate $750.

There are multi-album collections like Lot 1758, a 26-volume collection of British Commonwealth. There are accumulations found in bundleware Lot 1515 (with about one million stamps), and others in file drawers like Lot 1950, or still in envelopes like Lot 1928.

Lot 1928 — Collector’s worldwide accumulation, organized by country in envelopes mostly mint with some used throughout. An interesting accumulation filling half a large carton. Many stamps are in sets. We note the following: 1956 Jamaica definitive set, 1902-1903 Labuan crown set, 1935 st. Helena Silver Jubilee set, 1903 St. Kitts-Nevis first issue, a few French imperfs from the 1980s, 1937-1940 French Equatorial Africa pictorials, 1929-1940 French Guiana pictorials, 1938 Bahamas KGVI definitives, 1953 British Honduras QEII pictorial definitives, 1968 B.I.O.T. pictorial definitives and many more. Also includes a large envelope with the following: Gutter pairs from around the world, 1973 Princess Anne’s Wedding, 1972 QEII Silver Wedding Anniversary, 1978 25th Anniversary of QEII Coronation and the 1980 Queen Mothers 80th Birthday. A great selection of stamps. Estimate $500.

We have a Post Office sign in Lot 2114, any of several cartons of literature, topical and thematic collections, and many lots of useable postage. We think there is something for everyone; but if we made that claim too loudly then we would hear how we don’t have kiloware from the Malagasy Republic, or classic Mongolia on cover!

One final group is the 35 collections from the Lindhurst consignment which are written up in the catalogue on page 133. Unfortunately this text does not appear in the online catalogue but you can read the text by clicking on this link. Postal history lots 1387 and 1469 are also from the Lindhurst consignment.

Highlight #2 — “C in Circle” postmarks

July 24, 2020October 23, 2010 by Sparks Auctions

The scarce "C in circle" postmark is found on more than 20 stamps spread over 6 lots in the first session. It is found on Large Queens (Lot 281), Small Queens (Lots 281, 294, 315, and 321) as well as the 1897 Leaf (Lot 371) and 1898 Numeral Issue (Lot 391).

LOT 294 — CANADA #35 1889 1¢ yellow Small Queen, selected used with perfect strike of fancy "C" in twin rings cancel from Ottawa House of Commons, very fine. Estimate $40.

Many other postmark specialties can be found throughout the catalogue for Canada and worldwide. A sample of the Canadian ones includes Lots 1514, 1558, 1603, and 1644 to 1655.

LOT 1558 Canada Collections — Queen Victoria era group selected for cancels, mostly Large and Small Queens and some registered mail stamps. A wonderful selection for the collector interested in postmarks. There are over 130 Small Queens, mostly 2¢ and 3¢ values, but with high values to 10¢ and 8 Large Queens. Better items noted including 3¢ Large Queen with #43 2-ring, 15¢ Large Queen with Halifax straight line, 3¢ Small Queen with fancy "EM" cancel, 5¢ RLS with K in 2-ring from Kentville, two blocks of 3¢ Small Queens. Inspect for other better and interesting items. Estimate $250.

Lot 1539, Canada Collection, Estimated $750 — Realized $2185

July 24, 2020June 2, 2010 by Sparks Auctions

This was one that rewarded further inspection: Collection of CDS cancellations in three binders, an above average quality collection of over 4,250 stamps from Small Queens (great majority) to 1950s. Large portion are socked on the nose, fully dated cancels. Noted small Prince Edward County collection, cancels from most provinces. A nice collection. Estimate $750, hammer price $1900.