Auction features amazing philatelic items

Collectors found rare and exquisite stamps on auction at Stanley Gibbons this week. Held at the dealer’s auction house on the Strand, the sale gained a total realisation of £502,734 (including Buyer’s Premium), with numerous lots exceeding their estimated values.

Over 70 percent of the catalogue sold within two days of the auction, with a large majority of those lots sold online on the company’s live-bidding platform SG Live.

Stanley Gibbons has held auctions since 1901. Now, their team of experts cater to a large database of collectors with over 10 auctions a year. The valuation process is rigorous and exact. While countless collections are considered weekly, only a small percentage of those stamps are purchased or consigned, thus providing bidders with high-quality material.

The Australian 1914-22 1d die proof State 1 is the testament to this strict adherence to quality. The item represents a step in the artistic process of producing the stamp and is one of only two in the world. Similarly, a 1914-22 1d Die proof State 3 sold for over three times its estimate at £2,300.

Another lucky bidder secured a vertically bisected 1d lilac paired with a 1d. lilac and 1s. -- an item that can only otherwise be seen at the British Museum. The cover sold nearly six times its estimate at £6500.

Another notable aspect of the event: its success with Indian material. A very strong and vibrant market for the area resulted in lots from the region receiving special attention from bidders.

A 1/2a Scarlet Scinde Dawk from 1852 sold for £7,500 while an 1854 first printing 4a from Head Die 1 and Frame Die 1 sold for more than 180% its estimate for a staggering £34,000.

The Stanley Gibbons Auctions Department are to host two more auctions for the remainder of the year. On 26 November, a general collection on stamps and postal history of the world and on 10 December, a Signature Auction featuring issues from Indian states. More information on forthcoming auctions is available here.