The New Amsterdam Collection of United States Rarities
July 10, 2019
The New Amsterdam Collection of United States Stamps sold for close to $7 Million on 10th July 2019. Hundreds of floor and internet bidders competed for just 220 lots at auction which took almost four hours to complete. With the final hammer, the New Amsterdam Collection took its rightful place among the most valuable stamp collections in philatelic history.
The New Amsterdam Collection was formed over fifty years ago, its mission to complete spaces in a newly acquired Scott National Postage Album. Most of the material was acquired through Dumont Stamp Company, an old established and respected dealership which was in midtown Manhattan in the 1970s.
Competition was intense, especially for the top items. The absolute highlights of the auction were the two 1867 "Z" Grills, each with a pre-sale estimate of $750,000. The 10c green (Washington) fetched $1,150,000 and 15c gray black (Lincoln) $1,610,000, the latter setting a record for a single United States stamp sold at auction.
Additional rare Grills realized $661,250 for a 3c "B" Grill and $172,500 for a 30c "A" Grill. Other noteworthy results include $287,500 for 1869 30c Pictorial with Inverted flags and $402,500 for 24c Inverted Jenny. A rare 2c coil pair estimated at $300,000 was hammered down at $805,000. All results include Cherrystone's 15% buyer's premium.
| Images | Description | Current Bid |
 | Lot #150 1882 Special Printing 1882 5c gray brown, without gum as issued, deep rich color and proof-like impression, perfectly centered with wide margins, with 1957 and 2019 Philatelic Foundation Certificates, the latter graded "XF-S95". Only 18 examples have been recorded (Siegel Census 205C-UNC-17), this certainly ranking among the finest, if not the finest. This elusive Special Printing was the subject of an informative article by William E. Mooz in The Chronicle, February 1992. His research provides strong evidence that the stamps recognized as Scott 205C are a small part of the 2,463 sold as Special Printings through the Third Assistant Postmaster General's office, and that regular issues were used to fill the backlog of orders for the 5c Garfield, ex-Caspary (as block of four, this is a bottom right example) (SMQ $120,000) (Scott catalogue value for Graded XF-SUP95) (*) Catalog #205C Catalog Value $100,000 | Price Realized $37,500.00 |
