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 #64 1867 B. Grill 1867 3c rose, B. Grill, black grid cancel, accompanied by the original cover from Mason, Texas to Darmstadt, Germany (10c paid the rate to Hamburg, with additional 2c needed to pay for the transmission from Hamburg to Darmstadt), which contained a row of four of the 3c "B" Grill singles (the only four known copies). The cover is illustrated and extensively described in the 1966 "The United States Postage Stamps of the 19th Century" by Lester Brookman. The example offered here is centered to upper left (as all four copies are), has a natural straight edge at right, light diagonal crease, fine, with a photograph of the 1969 PFC for the original cover showing the four stamps (removed and hinged back) and 2019 PFC for this single copy. The emergence of this particular stamp along with the actual cover from which it originated is a major philatelic revelation, as both have not been seen in over 50 years. Recent realizations of singles include $575,000 (plus buyer's premium) in a 2015 Siegel Rarities sale and $900,000 (plus buyer's premium) in the Perry Hansen sale (Siegel Auctions, 2008) on which the current Scott catalogue value is based. This 3 Cent B Grill is one of the four discovered together on a cover to Germany. It is one of the rarest stamps in the world and a key to a complete collection of the United States stamps, O Catalog #82 Catalog Value $900,000 | Price Realized $575,000.00 |
