2019 Rarities of the World continued...

FINE-VERY FINE. A RARE PANE OF 50 OF THE 10-CENT TRANS-MISSISSIPPI ISSUE.

Like most of the Columbian stamps, the Trans-Mississippi Issue was printed from plates of 100 subjects and then divided into panes of 50 for packaging and sale at post offices. We have offered only one other pane since keeping computerized records.

Scott Retail as singles and plate blocks exceeds $21,000.00 (Image)

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Get Market Data for [United States 290]

VERY FINE. A BEAUTIFUL AND RARE COMPLETE SET OF PANAMA-PACIFIC SMALL DIE PROOFS FOR THE PAN-AMERICAN EXPOSITION SERIES. A RARITY OF THE HIGHEST ORDER.

From February 20 to December 4, 1915, the Panama-Pacific Exposition was held in San Francisco, to commemorate Balboa's discovery of the Pacific Ocean and to celebrate the opening of mankind's greatest engineering achievement, the Panama Canal.

The Post Office Department decided to prepare a limited number of proof sets showing every United States stamp printed up to the time of the Exposition. A total of 413 different designs were made. Only two sets were officially prepared, but it is widely recognized that between 3 and 5 of each were made. These included Officials, Newspapers and Periodicals, Philippines and other special use stamps.

The Pan-American issue was the first new stamps of the 20th century. The slogan of the fair was "commercial well being and good understanding among the American Republics", a theme not very different from that of the Panama-Pacific Exposition in 1915, for which these proofs were produced.

Ex Wunderlich. This set was offered in our 2001 Rarities sale. The last set we offered before that was in our 1983 Rarities sale. Each with clear 1985 P.F. certificate (Image)

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Get Market Data for [United States 294P2a-299P2a]

EXTREMELY FINE GEM. A STUNNING MINT NEVER-HINGED 4-CENT PAN-AMERICAN, GRADED SUPERB 98 JUMBO BY P.S.E.

The Pan-American Issue is notoriously difficult to find with anything even approaching the term "wide margins". Most high-grade copies have margins which measure equally, but are not what one would consider wide when compared to other contemporary issues. The stamp offered here, with essentially perfect centering and Jumbo margins, is a dramatic exception to that rule.

With 2017 P.S.E. certificate (Superb 98 Jumbo; unpriced in SMQ above the grade of 98, SMQ $5,500.00 for 98). This is the only stamp at this grade in the P.S.E. Population Report, with only two higher -- a 100 and the 100J we offered in our 2019 Spring "Gems" sale (Sale 1199, lot 1404, realized $28,000 hammer). We are surprised that this example did not garner a Gem 100 grade. (Image)

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Get Market Data for [United States 296]