A selection of especially interesting seldom-offered items in particularly nice quality. All are available for approval viewing. Scott numbers have been used unless otherwise mentioned.
Please also see the other Gallery pages and the Specialized Stamps pages for other high-quality stamps including both Specialized and non-specialized items.
Select Stamps - Scott #38-45: 1889-1899 "Three Numerals" Perforation 12.5
39 [1890 5p green 3-Numerals, Perf 12.5] Mint, extremely lightly hinged, with VF centering. Very fresh and bright. Examples this nice can be hard to find.
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43.00
245790
39 Light Green [1890 5p green (shades) 3-Numeral, Perf 12.5] Mint, moderately hinged, with F-VF centering. Very fresh and bright.
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34.00
245791
40 Bright Aniline Red [1890 10p red (shades) 3-Numeral, Perf 12.5] Mint hinged, with VF centering. Very attractive with brilliant color. Mint examples of this workhorse 10p stamp are surprisingly difficult to find in nice quality.
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80.00
248043
40a Rose [1890 10p rose 3-Numeral, Perf 12.5] NEVER HINGED with VF centering. Excellent centering and wonderful color, perforations, gum and freshness with very distinctive color. This has been protected for the last 134 years as part of a block that has just been broken (because it was falling apart). The 10p has only one printing/color, Facit #29a, that can fit in the category of "rose" as listed by Scott (#40a). Mint examples of this workhorse 10p stamp are surprisingly difficult to find in nice quality -- and NH examples of this quality are "very scarce". This color is missing from most collections.
119.00
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245792
40a Dark Rose [1890 10p rose 3-Numeral, Perf 12.5] Mint, moderately hinged, with F-VF centering. The 10p has only one printing/color, Facit #29a, that can fit in the category of "rose" as listed by Scott (#40a); it is a dark rose such as this example. Very attractive with fresh appearance. Mint examples of this workhorse 10p stamp are surprisingly difficult to find in nice quality.
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80.00
248045
42 [1889 25p ultramarine 3-Numerals, Perf 12.5] Mint, lightly hinged, with VF centering. Brilliant color and wonderfully fresh and bright. An outstanding example of a workhorse stamp that is now quite difficult to find in nice quality.
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74.00
244530
44 IMPERFORATE PAIR [1890 5 mark 3-Numeral] Yellow Green and Light Rose (Facit #33b) of the second (1894) printing. Mint, without gum -- appears to never have been gummed. Huge, even margins. This is an actual stamp printing, in the correct color on stamp paper, not a color proof (unless the color was identical) and absolutely not a private print from a discarded plate. Though imperforates are known to exist [per Waris] for all the 3-Numeral denominations except the 2 penni, Facit only lists some of them. Where Facit does list them, the prices are up to SEK 1200 per mint hinged SINGLE and up to SEK 1600 per NH SINGLE -- in all cases, these values are far too low compared to market demand. The 3-Numeral 1889 Series handbook by Pentti Waris (1998) surprisingly mostly ignores the imperforates (probably due to lack if information; it also ignores proofs) and just makes a general statement: "It is not easy to explain the origin of completely imperforated [sic] stamps, but they were probably illegally taken from the stamp printers." That accusation may be true in at least some cases, perhaps for the imperforates Facit chooses not to list, however, lack of information is not proof to condemn items. After 129 years in the case of this particular stamp printing, I believe it is time to accept such stamps for what they look like: Imperforates. Not withstanding the status of such items, imperforate examples are exceedingly scarce and seldom offered! This is the only example of this imperforate that I have recorded having in 48 years.
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Reference
For reference only. NOT for sale.
This and all other imperforates are wanted.