The Hanover Collection of Superb-Quality United States Stamps continued...

EXTREMELY FINE GEM. THIS IS QUITE PROBABLY THE FINEST MINT NEVER-HINGED EXAMPLE OF THE 1857 PERFORATED ONE-CENT TYPE I, WHICH COMES ONLY FROM PLATE 12. THIS MAGNIFICENT STAMP IS GRADED XF-SUPERB 95 BY P.S.E. -- THIS IS THE ONLY GRADED MINT NEVER-HINGED STAMP IN THE P.S.E. POPULATION REPORT, AND THIS IS THE HIGHEST GRADE AWARDED IN ANY CATEGORY.

The defining characteristic of Type I is that the entire design is printed, including the scrolls and plumes at bottom. Among the plates used to print imperforate stamps, only one position out of 1,000 can claim that honor (Position 7R1E, Scott No. 5, offered as lot 4 in this sale). Type I perforated stamps are only known from certain positions on Plate 12. Due to the narrow spacing between perforations and difficulties of production, this issue is usually found with part of the design cut off by the perforations. The wide margins of this stamp leave the Type I characteristics around the perimeter almost completely intact.

With 2007 P.S.E. certificate (XF-Superb 95; unpriced in SMQ in Mint N.H. condition. The highest price in SMQ is for a hinged 90, which is not even remotely relevant.). The highest grade awarded in any category is 95 (eight used plus this N.H. example). We have offered only five other Mint N.H. examples since keeping computerized records, and probably none would grade higher than 75 or 80. Scott Retail as hinged (Image)

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EXTREMELY FINE GEM. THE 1857 ONE-CENT TYPE Ic IS AN EXTREMELY DIFFICULT ISSUE TO OBTAIN IN SOUND AND CENTERED ORIGINAL-GUM CONDITION. THIS IS THE ONLY SOUND ORIGINAL-GUM SINGLE WE HAVE OFFERED SINCE KEEPING COMPUTERIZED RECORDS.

Type Ic is similar to Type Ia, which has the design complete at bottom, but the bottom right plume of Type Ic is incomplete. Two Type Ic positions are in the bottom row of Plate 4 (91R and 96R4, F Relief) and are listed under Scott 19b as the "best examples." Six or seven Type Ic positions are from E Relief positions on the plate, and these are listed in Scott as "less distinct" examples. The full detail of the bottom plumes was slightly erased either by plate burnishing prior to printing or plate wear during printing.

This stamp is far scarcer than its catalogue value would suggest, especially in sound well-centered condition. Power Search found only two singles, one with perfs partly trimmed and the other with faults. The on-line P.F. records contain only one other that compares favorably to the example offered here.

With 2006 P.F. certificate (Image)

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EXTREMELY FINE GEM. AN EXTRAORDINARY 1857 PERFORATED ONE-CENT STAMP WITH IMMENSE MARGIN WIDTH. SUPERB IN EVERY RESPECT AND WITHOUT QUESTION ONE OF THE FINEST EXAMPLES OF A TYPE II PLATE 11 STAMP IN EXISTENCE.

According to Neinken, Toppan, Carpenter produced Plates 11 and 12 in November 1860 to replace plates that had become too worn for use. In laying down the new plates, Toppan, Carpenter evidently abandoned the six-relief transfer roll and used two different three-relief rolls. With recent scholarship revising some of the old accepted concepts about 1851-57 plate production, we will go no further in explaining the mechanics of Plate 11, from which this stamp was printed.

Some of the unusual features of Type II stamps from the top row of Plate 11 are seen in this example. The strong horizontal and vertical guidelines and guide dots are visible at the upper right. The enormous margins show the complete T Relief (Type II) characteristics. This relief was used to enter only the top row (20 subjects), and the Neinken book (p. 467) notes, "The design of the T relief was a perfect example of Type II, and in this respect, none of the plates furnished finer examples of this type than those from the top row of Plate 11. They are quite scarce, as the plate was only in use slightly over six months. In addition, each sheet of 200 stamps only furnished 20 of these scarce top row Type II stamps."

Ex "Scarsdale". With 2002 P.F. certificate. The Scott Catalogue premium for an unused Type II stamp from Plate 11 is insufficient, in our opinion. (Image)

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EXTREMELY FINE GEM. A SUPERB ORIGINAL-GUM EXAMPLE OF THE 3-CENT 1857 ISSUE IN THE CLARET SHADE.

Until Toppan, Carpenter made new 3c plates with wider spaces between stamps to accommodate the perforations, they simply perforated sheets printed from the earlier Type I plates, beginning in early 1857. Unlike its Type II counterpart, examples of 3c perforated Type I stamps are rare in original-gum condition. These are extremely difficult to obtain with precise centering, due to the narrow spacing on the plate.

Ex Odeneal. With 2007 P.F. and P.S.E. certificates (both graded XF 90; SMQ $8,000.00 as the basic Rose shade). This is the highest grade awarded and only one other shares it. (Image)

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EXTREMELY FINE GEM. A STUNNING MINT NEVER-HINGED EXAMPLE OF THE 1857 3-CENT TYPE III, WHICH IS GRADED SUPERB 98 BY P.S.E. -- THIS IS THE HIGHEST GRADE ON RECORD.

With 2012 P.S.E. certificate (Superb 98; SMQ $3,400.00). This is the highest grade awarded and only two others share it. This is the only example in this grade we have offered in one of our auctions. Scott Retail as hinged (Image)

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VERY FINE AND CHOICE. THIS IS EASILY ONE OF THE FINEST ORIGINAL-GUM EXAMPLES OF THE 1858 5-CENT BRICK RED IN EXISTENCE.

Many collectors know this issue by type and shade, but few are aware of the order of production (or release). This state of confusion is partly due to the Scott Catalogue. The distinctive Brick Red shade of the 5c 1857 Issue comes first in the series of Scott-listed perforated 5c issues, but its true release date comes later in the sequence.

Based on dated covers, the 5c Type I shades were released in the following order: 1) Red Brown, Scott 28, EDU 8/23/1857; 2) Indian Red, Scott 28A, EDU 3/31/1858; 3) Brick Red, Scott 27, EDU 10/6/1858; and 4) Brown, Scott 29, EDU 3/21/1859, almost certainly the last printing from the first 5c plate. The second 5c plate was made from a new six-relief transfer roll with the design projections cut away at top and bottom, to varying degrees. The Type II Brown was issued first (Scott 30A, EDU 5/4/1860), and the Orange Brown printing from the same plate followed about one year later (Scott 30, EDU 5/8/1861).

After surveying dozens of classic United States sale catalogues, we found approximately twenty examples of Scott 27 with original gum, allowing for duplicate offerings and excluding the one known original-gum block. Of the stamps we counted, about half had perfs touching on two sides or were deeply cut into on one side. Almost two-thirds had stains or small faults.

We are confident that this stamp is one of the two finest original-gum examples of the 5c Brick Red. Compared with every other we located using Power Search, it has superior centering, and of course it is sound and fresh.

With 2012 P.F. certificate (VF 80). By way of comparison, the highest grade awarded by P.S.E. to an original-gum copy is 70 (only two are graded, the other is graded below 50). (Image)

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EXTREMELY FINE GEM. A STUNNING ORIGINAL-GUM EXAMPLE OF THE 1861 5-CENT ORANGE BROWN, WHICH IS GRADED XF-SUPERB 95 BY P.S.E.

5c stamps in the Orange Brown shade (Scott 30) were printed from Plate 2 in 1861. They were the last stamps of the 1857 Issue distributed before the U.S. Post Office Department demonetized all circulating stamps in August 1861. Unused remainders were discovered in the South after the war, and so unused copies are readily available. However, it is difficult to find this issue in sound and centered original-gum condition.

With 1982 P.F. and 2011 P.S.E. certificates (OGph, XF-Superb 95; SMQ $9,000.00). Only one has graded higher (at 95J, offered in our Curtis sale) and only one other shares this grade. (Image)

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EXTREMELY FINE. ONE OF THE FINEST KNOWN ORIGINAL-GUM EXAMPLES OF THE 1857 PERFORATED 10-CENT TYPE III. A SPECTACULAR STAMP IN TERMS OF CENTERING, COLOR, IMPRESSION AND GUM.

The first perforated 10c stamps produced by Toppan Carpenter from sheets printed from Plate 1 are notorious among collectors for their poor centering. They are also very scarce in original-gum condition because, unlike 10c Plate 2 stamps (Scott 35), there were no supplies on hand in 1861 when the issue was demonetized due to the outbreak of the Civil War.

Ex "Scarsdale". With 1992 and 2002 P.F. certificates. (Image)

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EXTREMELY FINE GEM. A SUPERB ORIGINAL-GUM EXAMPLE OF THE 1860 24-CENT GRAY LILAC. ONE OF ONLY TWO EXAMPLES GRADED XF-SUPERB 95 BY P.S.E., THE HIGHEST GRADED AWARDED.

Collectors looking for Gem-quality stamps (unused and used) from the 1857 perforated issue know that one of the most difficult denominations to obtain is the 24c value. The margins are often narrow, with the design almost always touched (if not in) at top or bottom. This is one of the finest original-gum examples we have ever offered.

With 2003 P.F. and 2008 P.S.E. certificates (OGph, XF-Superb 95; SMQ $7,000.00). This is the highest grade awarded and only one other shares this grade. (Image)

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