The Alfred F. Kugel Collection, Part Three
February 11-12, 2025

Welcome to the third sale dedicated to material meticulously assembled by Alfred "Al" F. Kugel over a multidecade effort to build an expansive collection of philatelic and postal history items focused on military conflicts of the 19th and 20th centuries.
Upon his passing in 2022, Al Kugel entrusted the American Philatelic Society (APS) with his entire philatelic estate, including 180 boxes of philatelic literature and military postal history material. Much of the material offered across the first three sales has not appeared on the market for decades, many of the items originally acquired through Cherrystone Auctions, where Al was a frequent and valued client. Now, this exceptional collection returns to the marketplace, offering collectors a rare opportunity to acquire significant pieces enriched by Al's extensive scholarship and research.
Al's collection spans global conflicts and military mail from the late 19th century through modern times, with a focus on the break-up of Austrian, German, Ottoman Empire and Russian Empires, military campaigns in the Balkans, with Bosnia & Herzegovina, Serbia and Montenegro, Allied Interventions in China during the Boxer Rebellion and in Russia during the Civil War as well as the two World Wars and their aftermaths. An extraordinary array of regional Military and Naval mail from those violent actions form the core of Al's exhibits, China, Japan, and other nations.

This sale will take place via CherrystoneLIVE

ImagesDescriptionCurrent Bid
Lot #5098
BELGIUM Military Mail
1915-17 "Corps Expeditionnaire Belge en Russie" (Belgian Expeditionary Corps of Armored Cars), collection of 65+ covers or cards on pages and loose, showing variety of markings in Cyrillic and in French, incoming mail, destinations, unit cachets, some detailed information, also copies of the actual vehicles, troops in transit, research articles and variety of other collateral material, mixed condition, interesting group, excellent exhibition potential (following an agreement between King Albert and Tsar Nicholas, the entire Armored Corps of about 400 vehicles was transferred to the Russian Front, where it saw action against German and Austrian forces. In early 1917, the ACM got caught up in the Russian Revolution. Unable to cross German territory to return to Belgium, the men traveled home via Ukraine and Siberia on a trans-Siberian train, arriving in Vladivostok on 20 April 1918. Five days later they boarded U.S. Army Transport ship "Sheridan", arriving in San Francisco on 12 May 1918 where they were greeted as heroes)
Envelope
Price Realized
$6,250.00

Lot #5099
BELGIUM Military Mail
1919 (14 July) folded mourning announcement (Freiherrn Ferdinand von Wolff-Metternich) sent from Xanten during Belgian Occupation, with 5pf franking, violet "Cantonement de Xanten Armee Belge d'Occupation" unit cachet, fine and extremely rare
Envelope
Price Realized
$150.00

Previous Country/Group Auction Index Next Country/Group

Back to Top