1855-57 No Corner Letters. 1856 6d imperf. colour trial printed in green on thin card with a "HELMSLEY / (Crown)" trial cancellation in deep blue, very fine and very rare (S.G. £7'500), ex Verus. (Image)

1855-57 Wmk Emblems (inverted) 6d deep mauve imperforate plate proof, good margins, with neat trial cancellation "KF / AP-1 / 1856" cds, very fine and scarce (S.G. £7'500). (Image)

1862-64 Small Uncoloured Corner Letters. 1862 3d. pale carmine rose, pl. 2, top right corner marginal, left wing margined pane of twenty, lettered FI-JL, showing part sheet inscription; a few horizontal gum creases and some light tone spots as to be expected, nevertheless an extremely rare and most attractive pane of which there are only two in private hands with a third in the Royal Philatelic collection and all three appear to originate from the same sheet and are in the same state of preservation. Cat £54,000 as singles. (Image)

1862 3d rose pl.3 (white dots) EG, a superb imperforate example from the foot of the sheet, mint o.g., exceptional (S.G.£5'500). (Image)

1865-67 Large Uncoloured Corner Letters, Wmk Large Garter & Emblems. 1865-67 6d Lilac pl.5 IE/JH in mint lower marginal block of eight (four stamps mint n.h.), with marginal inscription "POSTAGE SIX PENCE", faint horizontal crease along top of bottom row of stamps, tone spot at lower right, a very rare and attractive multiple (S.G. £9'600+). (Image)

1867-80 Large Uncoloured Corner Letters, Wmk Spray of Rose. 1870 3d die proof in mauve on white matt card, 60x90mm, produced by De La Rue for the 1870 International exhibition; very rare with only one or two examples of each colour in private hands. (Image)

1870 3d die proof printed in rose on white matt card, 38x38mm, produced by De La Rue for the 1870 International Exhibition, very fine and extremely rare, only one or two examples exist in each colour in private hands. (Image)

1873 3d rose pl.10 BL imperforate imprimatur, mint o.g., very fine and rare, one of only 22 possible examples many of which are in institutional collections. (Image)

1867-80 6d mauve pl. 8 IK-JL mint block four from the foot of the sheet showing part inscription "POSTAGE", lovely bright colour, a superb and rare block. (Image)

1867-80 wmk Spray 9d straw wmk Spray with superb Neath cds, very fine (S.G. £325). (Image)

1873 9d die proof (type B) in orange yellow on white glazed card 90x60mm produced by De La Rue for the proposed but subsequently abandoned issue with coloured corner letters; very rare with one or two examples in each colour in private hands. (Image)

1872 10d die proof in black on white glazed card, 90x60mm, vertical format with corner letters and plate numbers void, stamped "BEFORE HARDENING" and dated Dec 12, 1872 in black, produced by De La Rue for a proposed issue with coloured corner letters, the die was never used as the 10d value was withdrawn, very scarce. (Image)

1867 10d red brown pl.1 JA-JC mint horizontal strip of three, large part o.g., corner crease at the lower left of JA not detracting from the very fine appearance of this magnificent multiple (S.G. £10'800 as singles). (Image)

1872 2s die proof in black on white glazed card, 90x60mm, vertical format with corner letters and plate numbers void, stamped "BEFORE HARDENING" and dated Dec 19, 1872 in black; produced by De La Rue for a proposed issue with coloured corner letters, the die was never used as the 2s value was withdrawn, very scarce. (Image)

1867-83 High Values. 1867 5s rose pl.3 BA, a beautifully executed stamp size composite hand painted essay on card, the central vignette of Victoria's profile having been pinned into place then the rest of the "stamp" intricately hand painted in red and Chinese white around it with superb precision, an absolutely stunning exhibition showpiece which was discovered amongst some personal belongings in a disused cow shed, possibly the only known such essay extant. (Image)

1867 5s rose pl.4 AF, a magnificent marginal imprimatur from the top of the sheet showing small part inscription, mint n.h. (mounted in the margin only), a beautifully fresh example with lovely rich colour, very rare. (Image)

1867-83 5s rose, pl.1 GD mint n.h. "SPECIMEN" from the upper right corner of the sheet, with part inscription at top and at right, pre-printing blind spot at right presumably from a foreign body getting onto the plate, rare. (Image)

1874, 5s rose pl.2 AB, mint o.g., a fine and fresh example of this scarce high value (S.G. £9'500). (Image)

1867-83 5s rose pl.1 AA/DC, a superb used irregular block of fifteen, each stamp neatly cancelled by good strikes of "Manchester Knott Hill" cds, superb bright colour, undoubtedly one of the finest used multiples of this issue. (Image)

1867-83 5s pale rose pl.2, a magnificent mint with large part to full o.g. (hinged in the margins only), complete pane of twenty lettered AA-DE with full selvedge showing marginal inscriptions all round, overprinted 'SPECIMEN' (Type 9), also showing sheet number '294'; brilliant Post Office fresh colour; some slight perforation separation, wrinkling and a couple of stamps with creases as to be expected of an item this size, though in no way detracting from the superb appearance of this very rare and stunning exhibition showpiece. (Image)

1867-83 5s rose pl.2 mint, gum creasing and small amount of staining, a rare mint stamp (S.G. £15'000). (Image)

1878 10s De La Rue die proof in black on white glazed card, 92x60mm, dated "Apr 30, 1878", very fine and rare. (Image)

1878, 10s De La Rue die proof without corner letters or plate numbers in black on glazed card (60x92mm), dated at upper left "May 4, 1878" and endorsed "BEFORE HARDENING", very fine and rare. (Image)

1867-83 10s grey green pl.1 CE, a superb imperforate imprimatur with large margins all round, pressed crease in no way detracting from the superb appearance of this very rare imprimatur. (Image)

1878, 10s greenish grey pl.1 CD, a superb used example, neatly cancelled by a superb strike of a Perth cds for Christmas day 1882, delightful quality; cert. BPA (1997) (S.G. £3'200). (Image)