360 / Mai 2015 London

FIRST DAY OF USE OF GERMAN POSTAGE STAMPS: "NÜRNBERG 1. NOV. 1849", clear cds. on 1849, 1 kr. black, large to enormous margins, lower right sheet corner copy with 1-3 mm sheet margins; a faint corner crease, otherwise extremely fine and rare; only one entire and a further single copy are known used on the first day of issue. One of the most important items of German philately. Certificate Stegmüller BPP. DER ERSTTAG DER DEUTSCHEN PHILATELIE: "NÜRNBERG 1. NOV. 1849", OPD-Doppelkreisstempel. fast zentrisch auf 1 Kreuzer schwarz, Platte 1, allseits überrandige rechte untere Bogenecke mit allen Schnittlinien und 1-3 mm Bogenrändern, bis auf eine belanglose Eckbugspur völlig tadellos. Neben dem einzig bekannten Ersttagsbrief des 'Schwarzen Einsers' ist nur eine weitere Einzelmarke vom Ausgabetag der ersten deutschen Briefmarke bekannt; ein Renomierstück der deutschen Philatelie; Fotoattest Stegmüller BPP (2015).

1850/58, 1 kr. rose, 6 kr. brown and 9 kr. green, 6 kr. clear at right, otherwise good to wide margins (as far as visible), each with central cogwheel "196" on entire letter with adjacent "MARKTBREIT 21/10" (1855) to Venlo in Holland, showing on front blue notation "5" (cents) for the paid Dutch share; a very fine and scarce letter to abroad.

"Wandsbecker Chaußee", small straight line in blue with adjacent manuscript date "11/12.7-8.U." (1867) on reverse of envelope, franked with 1864, ½ sch. black, tied by blue cds. "HAMBURG ST. P. 11/12 67" and adjacent black cds. of the Prussian P.O. of the same day, to Altona; a very fine strike of the rarest of all Hamburg suburbian postmarks, we have only 4 entires recorded; signed HK and Lange BPP certificate.

1865, inscribed "HERZOGTH. SCHLESWIG" 1 ⅓ schilling rose, 15 copies, affixed overlapping, all tied by several clear strikes "HADERSLEBEN 30 11 65" and partly by oval transit mark of Hamburg to envelope via London (red "PAID" marking on front) to Montevideo, Uruguay; on front red "½" showing paid 2 d. British transit and 1 sh. Sea Postage; the franking partly small faults, where affixed at the edge of the cover and one adhesive fixed around the edge of the cover; a phantastic entire, the only known complete letter to South America and largest multiple franking of this stamp; certificate van der Linden BPP and opinion Maria Brettl.

1851, 3 kreuzer on yellow, fresh colour and full to wide margins tied by blue distribution mark "D4 28/10" with adjacent cds. "Ludwigsburg 28 OCT 1851" to entire letter to Zavelstein. The distributionmark of Ludwigsburg was used against the regulations for some time in autumn 1851 after introduction of postage stamps; a rare and beautiful letter, certificate Heinrich BPP

1881, 5 mark blue/black with 2 mark dark orange/black, 25 pfennig brown orange and 10 pfennig rose, tied by clear datestamps "STUTTGART P.A.No.1 26 MAR 88" to parcel card for a box with a living dog to Mainburg in Bavaria. The 5 mark value on entire is extremely rare; only 4 parcel cards and 1 philatelic registered letter are known. This is the only known 4-colour-franking with this stamp; a marvellous item in fresh and fine condition (small tear in the lower part of the parcel card only), signed Thoma BPP with certificate (1983).