The William H. Gross Collection: United States Multiples continued...

DESCRIPTION

3¢ Brownish Carmine, Type IV (26A), Positions 41-42/51-52/61-62/71-72L11i, block of eight from left pane of Plate 11 Intermediate with "Toppan, Carpenter & Co. ANK NOTE ENGRAVERS. Phila. New York, Boston & Cincinnati" imprint and "No. 11." plate number, original gum, three stamps Mint N.H., rich color, well-centered

PROVENANCE

Siegel Auction Galleries, 4/28/1965, Sale 286, lot 33

Rudolph G. Wunderlich, Siegel Auction Galleries, 1/29/1976, Sale 484, lot 287

Walter C. Klein, Christie's Robson Lowe sale, 9/27/1988, lot 120, to Piller

Stanley M. Piller, Siegel Auction Galleries, 3/25/1993, Sale 748, lot 108, to Zoellner

Robert Zoellner, Siegel Auction Galleries, 10/8-10/1998, Sale 804, lot 117, to Chapin

John C. Chapin (collection sold privately to Shreves and then to Mr. Gross, 2002)

CENSUS

Chapin census no. 156

CERTIFICATION

The Philatelic Foundation (2000)

CONDITION NOTES

Very Fine appearance; top pair crease ending in small tear, bottom left stamp small thin

SCOTT CATALOGUE VALUE (2019)

$12,500.00 (Image)

Search for comparables at SiegelAuctions.com

Get Market Data for [United States 26A]

DESCRIPTION

5¢ Red Brown (28), C/D Reliefs, block of six, original gum, rich color in the 1856 shade of Red Brown, centered to right, bottom perforations trimmed off but a wide even margin remains

PROVENANCE

George H. Worthington, J. C. Morgenthau sale, 8/21-23/1917, lot 157

Alfred H. Caspary, H. R. Harmer sale, 1/16-18/1956, lot 661, to Cole (for Lilly)

Josiah K. Lilly, Jr., Siegel Auction Galleries, 2/7-8/1968, Sale 327, lot 28

Siegel Auction Galleries, 1993 Rarities of the World, 10/3/1995, Sale 745, lot 409

CERTIFICATION

The Philatelic Foundation (1994)

CONDITION NOTES

Fine; natural vertical preprinting paper crease in lefthand pair and bottom right stamp has tiny flaw in left margin (possibly natural and not noted on certificate)

SCOTT CATALOGUE VALUE (2019)

Single at $60,000.00 = $300,000.00 Pair at $125,000.00 = $375,000.00 Average-Fine block at $90,000.00 based on 2009 sale

HISTORY AND COMMENTARY

The Rarity of Perforated 5¢ Type I Red Brown Blocks

The 5¢ Type I Red Brown Imperforate was issued sometime in the first quarter of 1856. It seems likely that all of the stamps distributed to post offices were from the initial print run of 600,000 made by Toppan Carpenter at their Philadelphia plant, because there is virtually no variation in the Red Brown shade of the imperforate stamps.

In 1857 the Post Office began issuing perforated stamps for all denominations, and they started by perforating the existing stock of imperforate sheets on hand. In the case of 1¢ stamps, the use of old stock produced perforated versions of stamps printed from plates associated with imperforate issues--Plates 1L, 2 and 4--and collectors can readily identify those early perforated stamps by their plate characteristics. However, since only one plate was used to print 5¢ Type I stamps, something other than plate criteria must be used to identify perforated stamps made from imperforate stock.

The key is the color shade. The photograph at left shows the four Red Brown shades associated with 5¢ Type I Perforated stamps. The 1856-57 Red Brown at the far left and the 1858 Red Brown to its right are both listed under Scott 28, but they represent two different printings--the block offered here is the 1856-57 shade. The Bright Red Brown, Scott 28b, is really just an intermediate shade from the 1858 printing, with the regular Red Brown, Scott 28, at the lighter end of the spectrum, and the Indian Red, Scott 28A, at the more intense end.

We are aware of only four unused blocks of Scott 28 (there are no unused blocks of Scott 28b or 28A):

1) Block of 6, original gum, bottom perfs trimmed, ex Worthington, Caspary, Lilly, offered in this sale

2) Block of 4, ex Hind, Ward, Klein, Whitman

3) Block of 4, left half of block of 9 illustrated in the Hill book (p. 44), no gum, ex Phillips

4) Block of 4, right half of block of 9 illustrated in the Hill book (p. 44), no gum, stain spot, ex Phillips

The block offered here is and likely will remain the largest surviving unused multiple. (Image)

Shades of 5¢ Type I from left to right: 1856-57 Red Brown (Sc. 12, 28), 1858 Red Brown (Sc. 28), 1858 Bright Red Brown (Sc. 28b) and 1858 Indian Red (Sc. 28A)

Search for comparables at SiegelAuctions.com

Get Market Data for [United States 28]

DESCRIPTION

5¢ Brown, Type I (29), Positions 12-13/22-23R1, block of four, bottom right stamp shows the transfer flaw (23R1), original gum, unusually choice centering, rich color and dark shade

PROVENANCE

Arthur Hind, Phillips-Kennett sale, 11/20-24/1933, lot 186, to Colson (for Caspary)

Alfred H. Caspary, H. R. Harmer sale, 1/16-18/1956, lot 683, to Weill

Order of U.S. Trust Company, H. R. Harmer sale, 5/27-28/1969, lot 207, to Klein

Walter C. Klein, Christie's Robson Lowe sale, 3/15/1989, lot 185, to Zoellner

Robert Zoellner, Siegel Auction Galleries, 10/8-10/1998, Sale 804, lot 124, to William H. Gross

CENSUS, LITERATURE AND EXHIBITION REFERENCES

ANPHILEX 1996 Invited Exhibits (Zoellner)

CONDITION NOTES

Very Fine except for tiny nicked perforation hole at bottom of top left stamp, small hinge marks and careful reinforcement of perforations

SCOTT CATALOGUE VALUE (2019)

$90,000.00

HISTORY AND COMMENTARY

The Four Surviving Unused Blocks of the 5¢ Type I Brown

The Brown shade, which has no red or orange hue, was the last printed from the original 5¢ plate, which had the full Type I design. Beginning in 1860, the trimmed reliefs were used, producing Type II stamps (Scott 30A and 30).

There are only four unused blocks of the 5¢ Brown, Type I, Scott 29--all comprising four stamps. Three were owned by Walter C. Klein, and two of the blocks contain the defective transfer variety, Position 23R1. Details of the four recorded blocks are as follows:

1) Block of 4, positions unknown, sound, each stamp well-centered, ex Worthington, Sinkler, Ward, Klein and Whitman (Sale 968, lot 39)

2) Block of 4, Positions 12-13/22-23R1, bottom right stamp showing the transfer flaw, tiny nick in perf hole at top left, ex Caspary, Klein and Zoellner, offered in this sale

3) Block of 4, Positions 13-14/23-24R1, bottom left stamp showing the transfer flaw, ex Caspary, Lehman, Klein, Hall (Sale 1096, lot 65)

4) Block of 4, positions unknown, regummed, 1993 Rarities of the World, Sale 755, lot 76

This is one of three blocks with original gum, of which two have the Transfer Flaw position (numbers 2 and 3 in the list above). (Image)

Search for comparables at SiegelAuctions.com

Get Market Data for [United States 29 var.]

DESCRIPTION

5¢ Orange Brown, Type II (30), Positions 49-50/59-60R2, block of four from right pane of Plate 2 with "(Toppa)n, Carpenter & Co. ANK NOTE ENGRAVERS. Phila. New York, Bost(on & Cincinnati)" imprint and "No. 2 P." plate number, original gum, hinge remnants, rich color in the 1861 shade of Orange Brown, beautifully centered

PROVENANCE

Sir Nicholas Waterhouse, H. R. Harmer London sale, 6/27-30/1955, lot 286, to Cole (for Hetherington)

Arthur Hetherington, "Quality" collection, H. R. Harmer sale, 6/5/1980, lot 534, to Chapin

John C. Chapin (collection sold privately to Shreves and then to William H. Gross, 2002)

CENSUS, LITERATURE AND EXHIBITION REFERENCES

John C. Chapin, A Census of United States Classic Plate Blocks 1851-1882, census no. 159

CONDITION NOTES

Very Fine-Extremely Fine; natural inclusion spot in gum at bottom left and some reinforced perf separations

HISTORY AND COMMENTARY

The Mixed Up Order of Scott 30 and 30A

The first 5¢ Jefferson stamps were produced by Toppan Carpenter sometime in the first quarter of 1856. The 1856 Issue was imperforate and produced from the first plate with the full design (Type I). In 1857 the Post Office began issuing perforated stamps for all denominations, and they started by perforating the existing stock of imperforate sheets on hand. Looking at the earliest documented uses of the perforated 5¢ stamps issued from 1857 to 1861, there is a largely consistent pattern of new 5¢ printings at the beginning of each year. Printings from Plate 1 were made in 1858 (Red Brown) and 1859 (Brown); then in 1860 a new plate was made from a transfer roll with the design shortened at top and bottom--Type II. Plate 2 was used to print more 5¢ stamps in 1860 (Type II Brown) and 1861 (Type II Orange Brown). The Scott Catalogue transposes the chronological order of the Type II issues, with the Orange Brown listed first as Scott 30, followed by the Brown, Scott 30A.

Although a relatively large number of 5¢ Orange Browns reached collectors from unused supplies left over after the issue was demonetized due to the Civil War, multiples are scarce, and most have been broken to feed the market's desire for singles. The largest recorded multiple is a block of 32 from the upper right corner of Plate 2 (Positions 3-10/13-20/23-30/33-40R2) with corner sheet selvage. The plate block of four was detached from this block of 32, probably sometime before World War II, but at least by 1955 when the plate block appeared in the Waterhouse sale--the block of 32 appeared in the Caspary sale in 1956. Another block of four, with the top sheet margin, comes from Positions 1-2/11-12R2 in the original sheet. The three multiples are shown together in the digital reconstruction at left.

Only two plate number blocks of the 5¢ Orange Brown are known, the other of which (also a block of four) is in the Webster Knight collection, located in the John Hay Library at Brown University. The Chapin census lists a third plate block (of six) as Scott 30 (census no. 160), based on an incorrect auction sale description--the stamps are actually the Brown, Scott 30A (Siegel Sale 1090, lot 1163). (Image)

Digital reconstruction of plate block offered here with block of 32 and block of 4

Search for comparables at SiegelAuctions.com

Get Market Data for [United States 30]

DESCRIPTION

5¢ Brown, Type II (30A), Positions 41-43/51-53/61-63L2, E/F/C Reliefs, block of nine from left pane of Plate 2 with "(Toppan), Carpenter & Co. ANK NOTE ENGRAVERS. Phila. New York, Boston & Cincinnati" imprint and "No. 2 P." plate number, original gum with hinge marks and remnants, remarkably well-centered, deep rich color in the 1860 Brown shade, sharp impression

PROVENANCE

Rep. Ernest R. Ackerman (sold privately)

Henry C. Gibson, Sr. (listed in Ward inventory, October 1945, "superb plate block of 9, imprint and plate number 2P")

Henry B. Close, Eugene Costales sale, 6/23-26/1952, lot 129, to Cole

Harmer, Rooke sale, 12/11/1962, lot 143

Siegel Auction Galleries, 6/18/1964, Sale 272, lot 217

Rudolph G. Wunderlich, Siegel Auctions, 1/29/1976, Sale 484, lot 299

Walter C. Klein, Christie's Robson Lowe sale, 9/27/1988, lot 146

John C. Chapin (collection sold privately to Shreves and then to William H. Gross, 2002)

CENSUS, LITERATURE AND EXHIBITION REFERENCES

John C. Chapin, A Census of United States Classic Plate Blocks 1851-1882, census no. 163

CERTIFICATION

The Philatelic Foundation (1988)

CONDITION NOTES

Very Fine appearance; small thins, tiny hole in top left stamp

HISTORY AND COMMENTARY

5¢ Jefferson Stamps Printed from the New Plate in 1860

Beginning with the printing in the first quarter of 1860, a new plate of 200 subjects, divided into left and right panes of 100, was used by Toppan Carpenter to print 5¢ stamps. The siderographer followed the same procedure used to make the 1¢ Plates 5 through 10, in which a 6-relief transfer roll was modified by trimming the designs to reduce the stamps' dimensions. For the 5¢, the top and bottom of the design were trimmed from the reliefs, which distinguishes Type II from the earlier Type I. Entries on the plate were made from the transfer roll in vertical columns, ten to a column--when completed there were 10 columns and 10 rows in each half of the plate, separated by a centerline. Row 1 of the 5¢ plate was entered with the A Relief, followed by the B, C, D, E and F Reliefs for rows 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. The progression resumed with the C Relief for row 7, followed by the D, E and F Reliefs for rows 8, 9 and 10.

The 1860 printing was in Brown, and the 1861 printing in Orange Brown. Since there were few Brown sheets on hand in 1861 when the issue was demonetized due to the Civil War, it is much scarcer than the Orange Brown in unused condition. There are three recorded plate blocks:

1) Left margin block of 9, Positions 41-43/51-53/61-63L2, Chapin census no. 163, ex Ackerman, Gibson, Close, Wunderlich, Klein, Chapin, offered in this sale

2) Right margin block of 9, Positions 48-50/58-60/68-70R2, defective, Chapin census no. 162, ex Worthington, Silsby, Curtis (Siegel Sale 1084, lot 3145)

3) Left margin block of 6, Positions 41-42/51-52/61-62L2, Chapin census no. 160 as Scott 30, Siegel Sale 1090, lot 1163 as Scott 30A (Image)

Search for comparables at SiegelAuctions.com

Get Market Data for [United States 30A]

DESCRIPTION

5¢ Brown, Type II (30A), Positions 51-55/61-65/71-75/81-85R2, F/C/D/E Reliefs, block of 20 from right pane of Plate 2 with centerline margin at left, original gum, seven stamps Mint N.H. including a block of four (center stamp top row, three middle stamps second row, third and fourth stamps fourth row, center stamp fifth row), others have small hinge remnants, centered to bottom, deep rich color in the 1860 Brown shade, sharp impression

PROVENANCE

Frelinghuysen collection, Part 2, Siegel Auction Galleries, 3/29/2012, Sale 1021, lot 174, to William H. Gross

CONDITION NOTES

Fine overall; light horizontal crease at center partly along perfs affects three or four stamps, few toned spots mostly on back

SCOTT CATALOGUE VALUE (2019)

$109,500.00 as four blocks and two pairs without any premium for the seven Mint N.H. stamps

HISTORY AND COMMENTARY

The Largest Known Block of the 1860 5¢ Brown Type II

The new 5¢ plate made from the 6-relief transfer roll with trimmed reliefs--the clipped projections at top and bottom distinguish Type II from the earlier Type I design--was used to print stamps in Brown in 1860 and in Orange Brown in 1861. Since there were few Type II Brown sheets on hand in 1861 when the issue was demonetized due to the Civil War, it is much scarcer than the Orange Brown in unused condition, and unused blocks are exceedingly rare.

Prior to the emergence of this block of 20 in 2012, when the long-dormant Frelinghuysen collection came to market through Siegel, the largest multiples of the Type II Brown were the two plate number blocks of nine, one of which is offered in this sale as lot 43.

This remarkable block comes from the right pane. It comprises the first five vertical columns and rows 6 through 9, and shows the dividing line between the left and right panes in the imperforate left margin. All sheets from the plate of 200 subjects were trimmed vertically between the two panes of 100. Obviously, only one side of each sheet could show the intact centerline, as does this block. (Image)

Search for comparables at SiegelAuctions.com

Get Market Data for [United States 30A]

DESCRIPTION

10¢ Green, Types II/III/I (32/33/31), Positions 75-76/85-86/95-96R1, vertical block of six from the bottom three rows of right pane of Plate 1, including two Type Is at bottom with characteristic full shells in extra wide margin, original gum, stitch watermark, well-centered, bright shade

PROVENANCE

As block of 10 (Positions 66R and 74/84/94R removed): Wharton Sinkler, Eugene Klein sale, 5/17/1940, Sale 117, lots 55-58

Mortimer L. Neinken, Siegel Auction Galleries, 11/19-20/1970, Sale 384, lot 249

Stephen D. Bechtel, Sr. (collection sold privately in 1993)

Siegel Auction Galleries, 1993 Rarities of the World, 11/20/1993, Sale 755, lot 78

Shreves Philatelic Galleries sale, 10/23-24/1998, lot 146

CERTIFICATION

The Philatelic Foundation (1971 and 1994)

CONDITION NOTES

Very Fine appearance; tiny thins in bottom stamps

SCOTT CATALOGUE VALUE (2019)

$100,000.00 for this block of six (Image)

Block of six (lot 45) superimposed over photo of larger block from Sinkler catalogue and additional adjoining block of 4

Search for comparables at SiegelAuctions.com

Get Market Data for [United States 31]

DESCRIPTION

12¢ Black, Plate 3 (36B), block of four, original gum, three stamps with hinge remnants, bottom right stamp lightly hinged, intense shade and impression, well-balanced margins for this difficult issue

PROVENANCE

Siegel Auction Galleries, 2005 Rarities of the World, 6/3/2005, Sale 895, lot 113, to William H. Gross

CERTIFICATION

The Philatelic Foundation (1998)

CONDITION NOTES

Very Fine and choice; perf separations and pencil "Superb" on back of one stamp

SCOTT CATALOGUE VALUE (2019)

$5,000.00 (Image)

Search for comparables at SiegelAuctions.com

Get Market Data for [United States 36B]

DESCRIPTION

1860 Issue, 24¢, 30¢ and 90¢ denominations, matching set of three blocks of four, each from the left pane with Toppan, Carpenter & Co. imprint and "No. 1 P" plate number, described in detail as follows:

(a) 24¢ Gray Lilac (37), Positions 41-42/51-52L1, E/F Reliefs from 6-relief transfer roll, unused block of four (no gum) with "(Toppa)n, Carpenter & Co. ANK NOTE ENGRAVERS. Phila. New York, Bos(ton & Cincinnati)" First Type imprint and "No. 1 P." plate number at left

(b) 30¢ Orange (38), Positions 41-42/51-52L1, C/B Reliefs from 4-relief transfer roll (entries from bottom to top), block of four with "TOPPAN CARPENTER & CO. PHILADELPHIA" Second Type imprint and "No. 1 P" plate number at left, original gum

(c) 90¢ Blue (39), Positions 41-42/51-52L1, B/C Reliefs from 4-relief transfer roll (entries from top to bottom), block of four with "TOPPAN CARPENTER & CO. PHILADELPHIA" Second Type imprint and "No. 1.P." plate number at left, original gum

PROVENANCE

24¢ block noted as ex Herbert R. Duckwall by Warren H. Colson

Alfred H. Caspary, H. R. Harmer sale, 1/16-18/1956, lots 778, 806 and 815, each sold to Weill

Benjamin D. Phillips (bought from Weills in January 1966; Phillips collection sold privately to Weills, 1968)

Siegel Auction Galleries, 11/25/1969, Sale 362, lots 308, 316 and 320

Siegel Auction Galleries, 1971 Rarities of the World, 3/23/1971, Sale 391, lot 43, to Grunin

Louis Grunin, H. R. Harmer sale, 12/14-15/1976, lot 2671-2673, sold as a group to Chapin

John C. Chapin (collection sold privately to Shreves and then to William H. Gross, 2002)

CENSUS, LITERATURE AND EXHIBITION REFERENCES

John C. Chapin, A Census of United States Classic Plate Blocks 1851-1882, census no. 174, 175 and 176

ANPHILEX 1971 (exhibition catalogue pages 24 and 26)

CONDITION NOTES

24¢ Fine-Very Fine appearance; some reinforced perfs and small thin spot in one stamp

30¢ Fine appearance; top pair has thin spots, slight crease in selvage, faint oxidation

90¢ Fine-Very Fine appearance; some reinforced perfs and small thins in top left stamp

HISTORY AND COMMENTARY

The Last Stamps of the Antebellum Period

In May 1860 President Buchanan's postmaster general, Joseph Holt, issued a new order requiring prepayment by stamps on transient printed matter, and on all foreign and domestic mail, except letters permitted to be sent unpaid by international postal conventions. Holt's order sparked public demand for stamps, especially in denominations greater than 12¢, the top value in circulation at the beginning of 1860. In response, the Post Office issued the three top values of the series that started in 1851. The 24¢ design had already been submitted for approval in April 1856, and the 24¢ plate was produced in 1857 or 1858, but the stamps were not issued until June 1860. In July-August 1860 the 30¢ and 90¢ designs were approved, the plates were made, and the stamps were issued in August of that year.

About fifteen months later, in the fall of 1861, the federal government demonetized all previous issues of postage stamps and replaced them with new stamps that would be distributed only to post offices in loyal states. The purpose of demonetization was to prevent the South from using stamps as a medium of exchange.

The demand for the high-denomination stamps in 1860 was limited, and the Civil War demonetization policy cut their lives short. Unused examples would be great rarities today if not for a cache of sheets discovered in Washington, D.C., which had been found in Southern post offices after the war and returned to the Post Office. These sheets were sold and traded to stamp dealers, and many of the unused stamps from late pre-war printings come from this source.

Despite the survival of unused high-denomination remainders, multiples with the imprint and plate number selvage are extremely rare. Philatelists record only two 24¢ plate blocks and one each of the 30¢ and 90¢. All four blocks are offered in this sale of the Gross collection.

The set of matching left-margin plate blocks of four was featured in the 1956 Caspary sale and acquired by the Weills. Their client, Benjamin D. Phillips, purchased the set from the brothers in January 1966, according to the Phillips inventory. After the Weills bought the entire Phillips collection for $4.07 million in 1968, the set appeared in Siegel sales in 1969 and 1971. They were then displayed at ANPHILEX in 1971 and later featured in the Louis Grunin 1847-1869 exhibit, which won the Grand Prix National at INTERPHIL 1976. Later that year, when Grunin's off-cover material was sold by H. R. Harmer, the set was acquired by John C. Chapin for his classic plate number multiples collection. In 2002 the entire Chapin collection was acquired by the Shreves in a sealed bidding process and then sold privately to Mr. Gross. (Image)

Search for comparables at SiegelAuctions.com

Get Market Data for [United States 37-39]

DESCRIPTION

24¢ Gray Lilac (37), Positions 31-33/41-43/51-53/61-63L1, D/E/F/C Reliefs from 6-relief transfer roll, block of twelve with "Toppan, Carpenter & Co. ANK NOTE ENGRAVERS. Phila. New York, Boston & Cincinnati" First Type imprint and "No. 1 P." plate number at left, original gum, bright and fresh color, exceptionally choice centering for this issue and for a multiple of this size

PROVENANCE

George H. Worthington, J. C. Morgenthau sale, 8/21-23/1917, lot 197

Joseph T. Lozier (sold privately by Ward)

Wharton Sinkler (sold privately by Ward)

Henry C. Gibson, Sr. (sold privately by Ward; listed on 3/27/1928 Ward invoice to Gibson, priced at $3,000, along with other blocks)

Philip H. Ward, Jr. (bought from Gibson, estate sold to Weills in 1963)

Benjamin D. Phillips (bought from Weills out of Ward estate, 1964; Phillips collection sold privately to Weills, 1968)

Siegel Auction Galleries, 10/8/1974, Sale 459, lot 157

John C. Chapin (collection sold privately to Shreves and then to William H. Gross, 2002)

CENSUS, LITERATURE AND EXHIBITION REFERENCES

John C. Chapin, A Census of United States Classic Plate Blocks 1851-1882, census no. 173

CONDITION NOTES

Very Fine-Extremely Fine; minor hinge reinforcements, a few faint gum soaks and tiny thins in two stamps in right vertical row, inconsequential since they are outside the plate block of eight

SCOTT CATALOGUE VALUE (2019)

$32,500.00 for this specific block, which is not based on any recent transaction--this plate block has not sold publicly since 1974

HISTORY AND COMMENTARY

Delayed for Two Years and Valid for Fifteen Months

In April 1856 Toppan Carpenter sent a die proof of "the new 24¢ stamp" to Third Assistant Postmaster General John Marron for official approval. The printers described the 24¢ engraving as "entirely original in lathe work" and "as perfect a piece of geometric lathe work as can be produced." Other correspondence indicates that the design was approved and the plate was manufactured in 1857 or 1858, but no 24¢ stamps were produced until 1860.

In May 1860 President Buchanan's postmaster general, Joseph Holt, issued a new order requiring prepayment by stamps on transient printed matter, and on all foreign and domestic mail, except letters permitted to be sent unpaid by international postal conventions. Holt's order sparked public demand for stamps, especially in denominations greater than 12¢, the top value in circulation at the beginning of 1860. In response to a letter received from the Philadelphia postmaster, the new Third Assistant Postmaster General, Alexander N. Zevely, contacted Toppan Carpenter about producing new high-denomination stamps. The printers responded that they could furnish stamps within three weeks of the order being received, which they were able to do since they already had the 24¢ plate from two years earlier. Zevely ordered 24¢ stamps in a "lilac" shade, and the firm stated that they would be ready by June 15, 1860. The earliest documented use is July 7, 1860.

Five months after the 24¢ was issued, in November 1860, an Illinois lawyer and one-time U.S. congressman named Abraham Lincoln was elected president on a Republican platform dedicated to preserving the Union and to laying the foundation for the eventual abolition of slavery. It was too much for the South. On December 20, 1860, South Carolina formally voted to secede from the Union, and other slave states soon followed. By April the first guns of the war were fired on Fort Sumter during Lincoln's "I dare you" attempt to resupply the fort.

The 24¢ stamps issued in June 1860 were one of the war's early casualties. In August 1861 the federal government demonetized all previous issues of postage stamps and replaced them with new stamps that would be distributed only to post offices in loyal states. The purpose of demonetization was to prevent the South from using stamps as a medium of exchange.

Demand for the high-denomination stamps in 1860 was limited, and the Civil War demonetization policy cut their lives short. Unused examples would be great rarities today if not for a cache of sheets discovered in Washington, D.C., which had been found in Southern post offices after the war and returned to the Post Office. These sheets were sold and traded to stamp dealers, and many of the unused stamps from late pre-war printings come from this source.

Despite the survival of unused high-denomination remainders, multiples with the imprint and plate number selvage are extremely rare. Philatelists record only two 24¢ plate blocks: the block of four offered in lot 47 and the block of twelve offered here. This block was once part of the famous Worthington collection, from which it passed into the Lozier, Sinkler, Ward, Phillips and Chapin collections. In 2002 the entire Chapin collection was acquired by the Shreves in a sealed bidding process and then sold privately to Mr. Gross. (Image)

Search for comparables at SiegelAuctions.com

Get Market Data for [United States 37]

DESCRIPTION

24¢ Gray Lilac (37), block of nine, original gum, dark shade, small hinge remnants, exceptionally fresh

PROVENANCE

Possibly Henry C. Gibson, Sr.

Alfred H. Caspary, H. R. Harmer sale, 1/16-18/1956, lot 779, to Weill (for Phillips)

Benjamin D. Phillips (Phillips collection sold privately to Weills, 1968)

Order of U.S. Trust Company, H. R. Harmer sale, 1/19-20/1971, lot 100

Louis Grunin, H. R. Harmer sale, 12/14-15/1976, lot 2628

Siegel Auction Galleries, 1979 Rarities of the World, 4/4/1979, Sale 544, lot 61, to Ishikawa

Ryohei Ishikawa, Christie's Robson Lowe sale, 9/28-29/1993, lot 326, to William H. Gross

CERTIFICATION

The Philatelic Foundation (1977)

CONDITION NOTES

Fine-Very Fine; gum is brownish in places, small thin spots in top left pair and minor gum soak between the top right pair, center stamp has natural inclusion

SCOTT CATALOGUE VALUE (2019)

$17,750.00 as block of four, pairs and single (Image)

Search for comparables at SiegelAuctions.com

Get Market Data for [United States 37]