| Perfins on Covers |  Top |
| Item # |
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US$ | ||
401255 "View EXACT ACTUAL Image"){kind=small} |
Scott #2, 5, and 6 [1940/1941 20/1, 50/5, and 60/6 WWII-era Overprints] (VF) on a 17 October 1942 cover with neat, crisp, TRANGISVAAG bridge-style cancellations. The 20/1 STAMP HAS "V.L." PERFIN right-reading from front of stamp, of the Valdemar Lützen company (the major Faroese oil and petroleum products company at the time). The reverse of the cover bears the return address "A/S THORSHAVNS MÆLKEFORSYNING / OG MARGARINEFABRIK" [TMM] (Thorshavn Milk Supply and Margarine Manufacturing Company). The cover was originally addressed locally ("hr." within Trangisvaag), but was re-addressed to "Th." (Thorshavn). The cover is addressed to Mogens Lützen, a member of the family who created and used the V.L. perfins. Both Valdemar and his brother Axel had children named Mogens. Mogens Lützen (senior), was the son of Valdemar Lützen and served as the director of the family company for over 35 years, thus he would have had access to and authority to use such perfins. I have not been to determine if the Lützen family had any management or ownership interest in TMM, but since the Lützen family was very prominent in the Faroese business community, it is like that there multiple connections between the two entities, at least in both directions as both customers and suppliers. The Lützen company, founded in 1904, was and is a very important company in the Faroes, including having been the major supplier of petroleum products at one point, building materials, shipping services, etc. As of 2026, the company is still in business and is still run by the Lützen family. The three stamps on the cover (ignoring the perfin and scarcer cancellations) have VF centering and are in excellent quality. They would individually, off cover, sell for a total of $475! Perfins on any of the WWII-era overprinted stamps are "extremely scarce" even as singles and are "rare" on covers. Because of the high franking on the envelope, I must assume that this is a philatelic use, however, because the return address is of a company that operated an inter-island freight service (and issued their own freight stamps!), I have to wonder if this "letter" was actually accompanying a package of some sort and that it could possibly be a proper use. One aspect that causes me to consider such a possibility is that the reverse of the cover bears obvious wear and a horizontal fold line that is not typical of what one would expect on a philatelic cover. That is speculation, but what is NOT speculation is that, if the stamps were removed from the cover, they would sell for $475 plus a significant premium for the 20/1 overprinted stamp with the "V.L." perfin. ACTUAL item. |
SOLD |
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401256 "View EXACT ACTUAL Image"){kind=small} |
Denmark Scott #282 [1942 20 öre Christian X] (VF) on a 7 December 1944 cover, USED IN THE FAROES, with a slightly doubled THORSHAVN cancellation (making the month hard to read). The STAMP HAS "V.L." PERFIN right-reading from front of stamp, of the Valdemar Lützen company (the major Faroese oil and petroleum products company at the time). The cover is accompanied by the original contents, a 6 December 1944 receipt for a payment received from the addressee, issued by "Det Danske Petroleums Aktieselskabs", the major Danish oil products company, for which the Valdemar Lützen company acted as the representative in the Faroes. There are no markings on the reverse of the cover or the receipt. The cover was roughly opened at the right, but fortunately the stamp was not damaged. Though the rough opening is a negative, the presence of the matching receipt contents is a significant positive. In my experience, single loose used examples, of this "daily use" stamp, in this time period, with a VL perfin sell quickly for $40-50. Because of the rough opening, my price is essentially at the top end of the value of a single off-cover stamp! ACTUAL item. |
SOLD |