1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type I, strong colors, tied by cork cancels on fresh 1869 folded letter to Chalone sur Saone, France, with red "New York, Paid 12, May 1" exchange cds and French paquet octagon date stamp, transit and receiving backstamps, Very Fine and choice, an attractive and early usage of this 15¢ Pictorial issue. Scott No. 118  $1,900. $0 (Image)

1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type I, without gum, bright colors and wide margins, Fine, a scarce unused stamp. Scott No. 118  $3,500. $0 (Image)

1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type I, red and black "face free" cancels, virtually perfect centering, evenly balanced margins, strong bright colors, an Extremely Fine gem; with 2012 P.F. certificate. Scott No. 118  $800. $0 (Image)

1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type I, neat light target cancel, strong bright colors, Very Fine; with 1986 P.F. certificate. Scott No. 118  $800. $0 (Image)

1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type I, light cork cancel, well centered amid nicely balanced margins, bright colors, Extremely Fine; with 2004 P.F. certificate. Scott No. 118  $800. $0 (Image)

1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type I, light cork cancel, strong colors, F.-V.F. Scott No. 118  $800. $0 (Image)

1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type II, tied by "New Orleans La. Oct 30" duplex on blue 1870 light blue folded cover to Bordeaux, France, red "New York Paid All Br Transit Nov 3" exchange cds with matching large red "8" cent credit handstamp, red London (11.14) transit and matching "PD" paid direct oval handstamp, Calais entry cds, Bordeaux (11.17) arrival backstamp; 15¢ with some light toning, small paper loss at left, F.-V.F., A rare 1869 issue use at the 10¢ Phantom Rate of 1870. Scott No. 119  Estimate $750 - 1,000. This unannounced rate (referred to as a "phantom" rate) paid the letter to destination in France even though there was no treaty between the U.S. and France. $0 (Image)

1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type II, rich colors, tied by large NYFM circle of wedges cancel, red "New York Paid All Br. Transit Feb. 18" exchange cds on small 1870 cover to Florence, Italy, Milan (3.4) and Florence (3.5) receiving backstamps; stamp slightly affected from edge placement, Very Fine. Scott No. 119  Estimate $300 - 400. $0 (Image)

1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type II, tied by "Lafayette, Ind., Jun 27" origin cds and cork duplex on 1870 cover to Schloss Vippach, Germany, stamp additional tied by "New York, Paid All, Direct, Jun 30" exchange cds and red Bremen boxed transit date stamp, with original enclosure; cover a bit reduced at left and light edge wear, F.-V.F. Scott No. 119  Estimate $200 - 300. $0 (Image)

1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type II, wide margins, tied by "New Orleans, La., Apr 16" cds and quartered cork duplex on fresh printed address cover to Bordeaux, France, French transit and receiving backstamps, Very Fine. Scott No. 119  Estimate $200 - 300. $0 (Image)

1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type II, rich colors, tied by light quartered cork handstamp on 1869 folded letter sheet to Termini, Italy, red "New York, Paid All, Br. Transit, Nov 6" exchange cds and transit backstamps; portion of address panel restored, F.-V.F. appearance. Scott No. 119  Estimate $150 - 200. $0 (Image)

1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type II, in combination with 1869, 3¢ ultramarine on 1864, 3¢ pink entire to Upperville, Va., all cork canceled with matching "Wash'n D.C., Registered, Feb 10" cds at lower left; 3¢ stamp with small tear, F.-V.F., a scarce registry usage bearing the 15¢ Pictorial Type II issue. Scott No. 119+114  Estimate $300 - 400. $0 (Image)

1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type II, traces of o.g., gorgeous deep rich colors, Very Fine, an attractive mint stamp. Scott No. 119  $1,150 for no gum. $0 (Image)

1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type II, o.g., never hinged, centered low into perfs at bottom, rich colors and pristine freshness, Fine, still an immaculate stamp in never hinged condition. Scott No. 119  $3,250 for hinged. $0 (Image)

1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type II, positions 46-50//76-80, right margin block of 20 with guidemark imprint, full o.g., centered to lower right, very fresh with rich vibrant colors, some reinforced perf separations and light creases affecting center horizontal rows which are visible only on reverse, about Fine appearance, one of the four blocks of twenty known. Scott No. 119  $86,000 for blocks of 4 and pairs. ONE OF THE LARGEST 1869 15¢ TYPE II PICTORIAL BLOCKS IN EXISTENCE. This large multiple was originally part of a block of 50 that was last known to be intact in the 1920's. $0 (Image)

1869, 15¢ brown & blue, type II, red segmented leaf cancel, gorgeous rich color, large margins, Very Fine and attractive, especially so with a complimentary color cancellation; with 1998 P.F. certificate. Scott No. 119  $400. $0 (Image)