383rd Auction

1857, stampless folded cover, postmarked on reverse with St. Thomas despatch c.d.s. (28 Jan), neatly-struck on front with FRANCO in circle, to Judge A. Sorgensen in St. John’s, a fine and scarce strike, with only nine examples recored; with 1989 Nielsen certificate.

1861, folded letter, datelined St. Thomas, 28 September, to Carupano [Venezuela],  with oval “Gruner & Co” (forwarding agents) sender’s handstamp, ship endorsement at lower left, reverse with fine strike of large oval “ST. THOMAS / EXPRESS / OFFICE”, horizontal fold and small stain on back clear of postmark, a rare marking, with only seven examples recorded on mail originating in St. Thomas.

1862, folded letter datelined October 26, struck on reverse with St. Thomas double split-ring despatch in black (28 Oct), to Lubeck, front with blue oval handstamp of forwarding agents Schon, Willink & Co, carried via London (14 Nov), Ostende, and Aachen (15 Nov), British “10” in black at upper left, Prussian “12” (silbergroschen) converted to “16” (schilling) in Lubeck, some light edge wrinkling and crease to back, but a scarce entire.

1863, folded letter to New York, datelined Caracas, 7 September, struck on reverse with oval ST THOMAS EXPRESS OFFICE, “New York Ship Letter / 4” c.d.s. on front (27 Apr), adhesive removed, portion of front with datestamp cut to allow for display with reverse of cover; approximately 29 covers are recorded with this Express marking, many of which are unclear strikes.

1863, folded letter to New York, with printed contents from Charles Bennett, Surveyor, General Post Office, indicating to the recipient that a parcel is awaiting shipment but can only be carried onwards upon payment of 24c due, suggesting to the recipient that one of his “correspondents in this Island to call at my Office between the hours of 10 o’clock and 3 o’clock, and pay the above postage,”postmarked on reverse with St. Thomas c.d.s. (12 Jan), filing folds, an unusual entire.

1864, folded letter datelined St. Croix, November 5, to Madeira, endorsed “via Lisbon / p. Brazil mail”, prepaid 1/4 to London and struck with “Lombard Street PAID” c.d.s. upon arrival (8 Jun), Lisbon boxed transit backstamp (13 Jun), struck “320” (reis) in black indicating postage due from the recipient, filing folds an light edge creasing, an uncommon destination.

1872, folded entire, dated 27 April, to Copenhagen, Denmark, postmarked with black St. Thomas despatch c.d.s., endorsed “p. Steamer via Bremen” and struck with boxed “Aus Westindien / uber Bremen”, manuscript “6” (silbergroschen) in red converted in Denmark to “34” (skillinge) due from recipient, backstamped Bremen (15 May), Copenhagen (17 May) and Copenhagen - Christiansh (17 May), fresh and fine.

1860, 3c carmine, two singles, margins generally close to into, tied to folded cover by black target cancels, to Norfolk, England, endorsed “p. Steamer” and struck with crisp Frederiksted c.d.s. (11 Sep), “2/-“ United Kingdom tax mark in manuscript on front, reverse with St. Thomas c.d.s. (12 Sep), same-day St. Thomas double arc of the British Post Office, London (27 Sep) split-ring transit and next-day Thetford c.d.s. receiver in blue, an attractive and rare cover, being one of only a small number of examples franked with multiple 3c Arms adhesives; with 1996 Paaskesen and 1996 Nielsen certificates.

Provenance:

Collection “Hogensborg”, Heinrich Kohler, 25 September, 2019, lot 6034.

1860, 3c dark carmine, clear to very large margins, showing portion of adjoining stamp at left, tied to folded letter to the Burgher Council in Christiansted by five-ring target cancel, postmarked with neatly-struck Frederiksted c.d.s. (6 May), a striking franking and fresh letter; with 1979 Arno Debo certificate. 

1860, 3c carmine, four ample to large margins, tied to folded cover by clear target cancel,  postmarked Frederiksted (20 Apr), to the Burgher Council at Christiansted, the odd trivial spot, else very fine and scarce.

1866, 3c rose, four good to large margins, tied to folded letter, datelined “St. Thomas, 16 November, 1866”, to Christiansted, St. Croix, horizontal filing fold well clear of adhesive, fine and scarce, believed to be the earliest recorded example on cover, pre-dating the 21 November, 1866 recorded by Engstrom; with 1978 Copenhagen Philatelic Society certificate.

1868, 3c rose, three large margins, tied by target cancel to folded letter docketed “Mayaguez, 10 April” (Puerto Rico), carried to St. Thomas via forwarding agents George A. Phillips & Co, twice struck on reverse with their oval marking in blue, postmarked with St. Thomas c.d.s. (11 Apr 1868), endorsed “per Steamer” in manuscript and addressed to New York, unpaid and struck with “New York / U.S. 10 Notes” c.d.s. (21 Apr), light horizontal filing fold, adhesive creased, small piece from reverse torn due to removal of wax seal, but a scarce forwarding agent’s marking and rare entire, with only eight examples recorded to the United States with the domestic West Indies portion paid with the 3c adhesive.

1876, 3c carmine rose, margins largely close to into, large at top, cancelled with black target, postmarked St. Thomas (6 Apr), to New York, endorsed “via Havana”, the domestic rate only prepaid, thus struck with “New-York / Due 5 CTS” c.d.s. (17 Apr), a fresh and fine entire.

1930, 3c black Coat of Arms, horizontal plate proof pair for the 1930 Hagermann reprint, on ungummed, unwatermarked paper, four even margins, plate positions “85” and “86” in small pencil notations on reverse, an infrequently-offered proof, taken prior to the creation of the official reprints for the 1930 publication “Stamps of the Danish West Indies” by G.A. Hagermann.

1930, 3c black Coat of Arms, horizontal plate proof pair for the 1930 Hagermann reprint, on ungummed, unwatermarked paper, four balanced margins, manuscript “Thiele’s” in ink on reverse, with plate positions “27” and “28” in small pencil notations, a scarce proof taken prior to the creation of the official reprints for the 1930 publication “Stamps of the Danish West Indies” by G.A. Hagermann.

1872, 4c blue, imperforate vertically, horizontal pair, original gum with hinge remnants, nicely-centered and with pleasing pastel-like shade, fine-very fine; with 1977 Helge Witt certificate.

1902, 2c on 3c light blue and carmine, upper right corner block of twenty five, lower right stamp showing the normal frameline, the balance inverted, hinged in corners and reinforcing perf separation in places, leaving ten examples never hinged, normal frameline example hinged, bright and fresh color, several positions showing small varieties, a fine and scarce large multiple, ideal for plating study.

c. 1904, King Christian IX, 5c essay for unissued design, in black on thick carton paper, four large even margins, scarce and very fine.

c. 1904, King Christian IX, 5c essay for unissued design, in black on thick carton paper, approx. 110mm x 114mm, trace of fingerprint clear of design, scarce and unusual.

c. 1904, 5c King Christian IX, eight essays for unissued design, two impressions struck on cream-colored, gummed wove paper, hinged, with range of colors including light blue, two shades of violet/lilac, orange, black, red, brown, and olive-grey, hinged, the occasional corner crease, tone spot at top of darker violet example, else fine and most unusual group, believed to have been prepared by Alfred Jacobsen.

1905, 5bit light green to 5fr yellow & brown, perforated 12 or 12-3/4, watermark new crown, unused, several with part original gum, overprinted SPECIMEN in black by the receiving postal administration, various flaws, including small thins, 2fr with upper corner tear, many with heavily toned gum, a scarce set; with 1977 British Philatelic Association certificate.

1905, 5bit on 4c brown & blue to 4bit on 8c brown, part original gum, overprinted SPECIMEN in black by the receiving postal administration, the 5bit on 4c value with feathered perfs at left, all with heavily toned gum, yet a scarce set of very good appearance; with 1977 British Philatelic Association certificate.

1915/6, 5bit light green to 50bit yellow & brown, most with part or large part original gum, overprinted SPECIMEN diagonally in black by the receiving postal administration, various small faults, 10bit with rounded corner, 20bit with thin, 40 bit horizontal crease and crayon mark, yet a scarce set; with 1977 British Philatelic Association certificate.

1877, folded letter franked with 1c lilac-purple & green, 4c ultramarine & brown, and 7c yellow & lilac, cancelled with black target cancels, postmarked St. Thomas (17 Sep), to St. Johns (San Juan), Puerto Rico, neatly-struck oval datestamp of St. Thomas forwarding agents J.F.D. Jurgens & Co, indistinct c.d.s. backstamp, light horizontal fold, a scarce and pleasing three-colour franking; with 1988 Nielsen certificate.

1877, folded letter franked with 5c light green & grey and 7c lilac & yellow horizontal pairs, paying the 24c UPU double rate, each cancelled by black target, postmarked with Christiansted c.d.s. (2 Sep), to Copenhagen, Denmark, red London Paid transit in red struck on front (13 Oct), St. Thomas transit and Copenhagen receiver on reverse, vertical fold crossing one 5c adhesive, discolored portion on reverse, a visually appealing and rare franking; with 2001 Moller certificate.

1878, 3c light blue & carmine, tied to folded cover by crisp St. Thomas c.d.s. (23 Nov), further free strike beside, adjacent “Frederiksted / 24/ 11 78 / L K” manuscript cancellation, to St. Croix, “Christiansted” written in blue above, light horizontal fold clear of markings, the odd toning spot and small wormhole at upper right, else a fine and rare cover, believed the only known example of the Frederiksted emergency manuscript marking; with 2000 Moller certificate.

Note: During a riot in October, 1878, a fire broke out at the Frederiksted post office, resulting in the loss of the handstamp. As a result, the manuscript “Frederiksted” notation was used, and the cover cancelled in transit at the St. Thomas post office.

Provenance: Collection “Hogensborg”, Heinrich Kohler, 25 September, 2019, lot 6055.

1879, folded cover, franked with 7c lilac & yellow horizontal pair, tied by bold St. Thomas c.d.s. (17 Feb), to Rio Hacha, New Grenada [Colombia], “4” in red and “10” in blue manuscript accountancy marks on front, some light separation along folds, else a fine cover to an unusual destination; with 1996 Nielsen and Moller certificates.

1879, 5c green & gray, horizontal pair, tied to folded letter by St. Thomas c.d.s. (6 Jun), to Grimstad, Norway, some light wrinkles and filing folds, but an uncommon example of this rate, having been apparently accepted without postage due, despite the rate having been raised to 12c three months prior in March, 1879.

1879, 12c lilac & green, tied to folded letter from G. Guttormsen, Ship Broker, tied by St. Thomas c.d.s. (16 Mar), to Grimstad, Norway, red London Paid transit c.d.s. on front (29 March), a difficult single franking, fresh and very fine.

1880, 1c green & lilac-purple, horizontal pair, tied to cover by St. Thomas c.d.s. (21 Mar), paying the printed circular rate to West Arichat, Cape Breton (Nova Scotia), Canada, with split-ring arrival backstamp, a fine and visually-pleasing example of this difficult rate, to an uncommon destination.

1880, 7c red-lilac & orange, 10c on 50c Provisional, tied to registered cover by Frederiksted c.d.s. (11 Nov), from St. Croix to Copenhagen, Denmark, with Registered/London hooded c.d.s. (28 Nov) transit on front, c.d.s. arrival backstamp (30 Nov), fine.

1880, 5c green & grey, tied to folded cover by St. Thomas c.d.s. (15 Jan), to San Juan, Puerto Rico, endorsed “pr. Arno” in manuscript and struck with oval datestamp of forwarding agents J.F.D. Jurgens & Co, some ink erosion, vertical filing fold crossing adhesive, an uncommon single franking, which paid the rate for mail within 300 miles of the Danish West Indies.

1881, 3c postal stationery card, uprated with two 1c green & purple, tied by St. Thomas c.d.s. (25 Nov), to Funchal, Madeira, endorsed “pr. R.M. Str. via Barbados” in manuscript, backstamped with London transit (13 Dec) and oval Funchal receiver, Captain Becker / Superintendent / St. Thomas / Hamburg American Packet Company sender’s handstamp on front, the occasional tone spot of little importance, a most visually-appealing card to a rare destination.

1885, 2c postal stationery cover, uprated with 3c blue-grey & red, 5c green & grey, an 10c on 50c surcharge, tied by St. Thomas c.d.s. (30 Nov), registered to Stettin, Germany, with c.d.s. arrival backstamp (20.12), return address of a sailor on board the “S.M.S. Stosch, Charlotte Amalia (St. Thomas)”, quite fresh and scarce.

The S.M.S. Stosch was a Bismarck-class Corvette built for the Imperial German Navy in 1870s. Throughout the early 1880s, she was the flagship of the East Asia Squadron, later serving as a training ship for naval cadets, during which time she regularly cruised to the West Indies.

1887, 1c on 7c strip of four, strip of three, pair, and single, cancelled by St. Thomas c.d.s. (23 Nov), to Port of Spain, Trinidad, with c.d.s. receiver centrally-struck on front (Dec 2), some light water stains, mostly confined to reverse, an impressive franking in payment of the 10c rate, rare.

In April, 1887, a large purchase by a commercial firm led to a shortage of 1c stamps. To address the lack of 1c adhesives, the decision was taken to overprint the 7c values, which were in plentiful supply, given their usage was limited to the 14c rate to non-UPU members, or to pay registration fees. This cover is a particularly charming usage of these overprints, with only one other similar franking recorded, ex “Hogensborg” Collection, also to the same addressee in Trinidad.

1888, 3c embossed postal stationery cover, uprated with 4c brown & blue and 10c ultramarine and dark brown, each tied by St. Thomas c.d.s. (2 Jan), registered to Frankfurt, Germany, with c.d.s. arrival backstamp (23 Jan), a fine and scarce usage.