2c Brown with wing margin at left, fresh colour on crisp white paper, unused with much original gum. Very fine. SG.1, Cat. £375. PHOTO

8c Yellow-buff with wing margin at right, strong colour for this, very fresh unused, regummed and microscopic inclusions. SG.2, Cat. £650. PHOTO

12c Pale greenish blue with wing margin at left, showing frame breaks at left, reperforated, unused without gum. SG.3, Cat. £500. PHOTO

18c Lilac with wing margin at right, bright colour on white paper, unused with characteristic streaky yellowish original gum. Very fine - a gem. SG.4, Cat. £550. PHOTO

24c Green with wing margin at left, showing frame break at top over "G" of "KONG". Strong colour, unused with part disturbed gum, few small rust spots or soiling on front and transparent grease spot from hinge. SG.5, Cat. £1,000. PHOTO

48c Rose with wing margin at right, delicate pastel colour, unused without gum. Trace of rust in margin at top and short perf. at left. Fine for this difficult stamp. SG.6, Cat. £2,750. [Ex Ryohei Ishikawa]. PHOTO

96c Brownish-grey with wing margin at right, intense colour, unused with part original matt gum. A few short perfs. at left and small corner defect at top left where corner perf. has been put back. SG.7, Cat. £3,750. PHOTO

THE UNIQUE DE LA RUE ARCHIVE SPECIMENS - MOST BEING IMPERFORATE; Extract from De La Rue Private Day Book of 2 March 1864 comprising cut out piece bearing perf. 2c and 8c, and imperforate 4c, 6c, 12c, 18c, 24c, 30c vermilion and 96c brownish-grey (on separate piece) overprinted "SPECIMEN" (Samuel Type D3) in small seriffed capitals (15mm x 1_mm). Brilliant colours; an extremely fine and important archival item relating to the issue and delivery of these stamps to the Crown Colony. PHOTO 1 PHOTO 2 PHOTO 3

THE 18c IMPRIMATUR; Imperforate imprimatur 18c lilac, fresh colour, large to ample margins, much original gum. Very fine. Illustrated in Webb Plate 3. [Ex George E. Burghard & Ishikawa]. PHOTO

THE 24c IMPRIMATUR; Imperforate imprimatur 24c green. Strong bright colour and sharp impression with large to ample margins (a little irregular at left), light vertical crease at right. [Ex C. Derek Houston]. PHOTO

THE 30c IMPRIMATUR; Imperforate imprimatur 30c vermilion, mainly large margins, much original brownish gum just showing through to front. Fine. PHOTO

THE RARE "SPECIMEN" OVERPRINTS; 2c to 18c and 30c mauve, 48c and 96c brownish-grey with additional shade of 12c overprinted "SPECIMEN" (Samuel Type HK4) in sans-serif capitals diagonally, one 12c with handstamp applied horizontally. 18c particularly vivid colour (trimmed margin and diagonal tear) and the 96c shows apparent plate damage to lower left ornament. Fresh unused and some trivial peripheral red marks from where originally mounted. A very rare and desirable assembly. SG. 8s, 12s, 12bs, 13s-14s, 15s-17s, 19s. (10) PHOTO 1 PHOTO 2

2c Brown, very fresh unused with much original gum. SG.8a, Cat. £110. PHOTO

4c Slate, centred to lower right, fine unused with brownish streaky gum, some disturbance. SG.9a, Cat. £100. PHOTO

4c Bluish slate, well centred, very fine unused with part original gum. SG.9d, Cat. £450. PHOTO

THE EXCEEDINGLY RARE 4c SLATE PERF. 12_; 4c Slate perf. 12_. An excellent example of this rarity with part gum, deep intense colour and heavy impression, remarkably with clean perforations all round. One of the few very fine and sound examples which have survived. R.P.S.L. Certificate of Genuineness (2001). SG.9e Cat. £9,000. [Ex Colonel E.H.R. Green and Admiral George C. Dyer]. PHOTO

6c Lilac unused, lovely colour, centred to lower right, disturbed gum. Very fine mint appearance. SG.10, Cat. £375. PHOTO

6c LILAC BLOCK OF FOUR; Pale shade, extremely fine and fresh mint with gum displaying the characteristic yellowish streaking. SG.10 [Ex Burghard]. PHOTO

8c Bright orange unused with part original gum, a little disturbed. Vivid colour with slight colour suffusion at top left. Fine. SG.11b, Cat. £375. PHOTO

12c Deep blue, bright colour, centred just to left. Very fine and fresh unused without gum. SG.12b, Cat. £200. PHOTO

THE RARE UNUSED 18c LILAC; 18c Lilac, light shade, typical centring for this rare stamp unused, part original gum, slight disturbance and trivial paper adherence on reverse at lower left. A most desirable example. SG.13, Cat. £6,000. PHOTO

24c Green, bright colour, mint, slight gum disturbance. Fine. SG.14, Cat. £500. PHOTO

30c Orange-vermilion, nice colour, unused without gum, a few tiny black specks. Fine. SG.15a, Cat. £700. PHOTO

30c Mauve, vivid colour, unused with part gum, centred just to lower left. Very fine. SG.16, Cat. £200. PHOTO

48c Rose-carmine, deep bright shade and exceptional centring, unused without gum. Very fine and choice. SG.17a, Cat. £800. PHOTO

THE RARE 48c ROSE-CARMINE MINT BLOCK OF FOUR; 48c Rose-carmine block of four mint with gum displaying characteristic yellowish streaking, pulled perf. at top. Very fine and fresh, an exquisite block. SG.17a. [Ex Lt. Col. Rose-Hutchinson, Houston and Dyer]. PHOTO

96c Brownish-grey, strong brown colour, very fine unused with large part original gum. SG.19, Cat. £1,200.PHOTO

THE RARE 96c BROWNISH-GREY MINT BLOCK OF FOUR; 96c Brownish-grey block of four mint, bright colour and remarkably fresh, a few gum creases at right. Very fine and choice block. SG.19. [Ex Burghard]. PHOTO

16c ON 18c. LILAC; Variety space between "n" and "t" of "cents" (Gurevitch O6), unused without gum. Deep rich colour and typical centring, some blunt perfs. at right, otherwise very fine. SG.20a, Cat. £6,500. PHOTO

16c ON 18c LILAC; Non-constant variety thin "t" in "cents" and its horizontal bar practically missing, intense colour, on 1877 (16 June) envelope to Scotland (30 July) "via Brindisi", cancelled "B62" and showing index "A" despatch c.d.s. adjacent. Very fine and an outstanding cover paying the 16c. rate via Brindisi for which these provisionals were only in use from April to August 1877. SG.20var. PHOTO

16c on 18c Lilac pair, both stamps with "n" in "cents" missing top curve and therefore split letter type, on 1877 (29 June) envelope to England (11 Aug.) "via Brindisi", cancelled "B62" and showing index "A" despatch c.d.s. adjacent. The envelope a little roughly opened at top resulting in tear just extending into left stamp (only 2mm.). A rare and remarkable double rate cover with the provisionals. SG.20var. [Ex Franklin D. Roosevelt]. PHOTO

RARE 34c RATE (LATE FEE?) COVER TO G.B.; 16c on 18c Lilac with 1862-63 unwatermarked 18c. lilac on 1877 (1 Nov.) envelope to England (8 Dec.) cancelled "B62" and showing index "A" despatch c.d.s. adjacent. An incredibly rare franking, presumably the 16c rate via Brindisi plus 18c late fee. Faults at top. SG.4 & 20. PHOTO

RARE 16c YELLOW MULTIPLE FRANKING COVER; 16c Yellow, two singles, bright colour, on c.1878 envelope (embossed "Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank/Hong Kong" imprint on flap) to Cincinnati, Ohio (22 Feb.) "per City of Peking" via San Francisco (16 Feb.), cancelled "B62". A fine and rare franking which according to our records is the only recorded multiple franking of the 16c yellow used from Hong Kong. SG. 22. PHOTO

5c on 18c Lilac, fresh colour and usual centring to lower left, very fine unused with much original characteristic yellowish streaky gum. Some disturbance from the hinge is of no importance. SG.24, Cat. £800. PHOTO

10c on 12c Pale blue with short foot to "t" of "cents", unused with small part original gum. Fine. R.P.S.L. Certificate of Genuineness (1996). SG.25, Cat. £950.PHOTO

10c on 12c Pale blue, unused without gum, light rust on reverse barely shows through to the front. SG.25, Cat. £950. PHOTO

10c ON 16c YELLOW; Bright colour, centred to lower right, unused with gum which is disturbed in places. Fine and fresh example of this scarce surcharge. SG.26, Cat. £4,000. PHOTO

10c on 24c Green, bright colour, fresh unused with large part original gum, perfs. a little blunt at the foot. SG.27, Cat. £1,300. PHOTO

RARE SINGLE FRANKING 5c ON 8c COVER; 1880 (20 Nov.) "US CONSULATE/HONG KONG" corner card envelope to Shanghai (24 Nov.) bearing 5c on 8c bright orange, cancelled "B62" and showing index "C" despatch c.d.s. adjacent. The envelope is a little roughly opened (not affecting stamp) and part of flap at back missing. Nevertheless a fine 5c Treaty Port rate cover. Gurevitch records only 11 covers bearing this stamp. SG.23. PHOTO

VERY RARE SINGLE FRANKING 10c ON 16c COVER TO GERMANY; 1880 (17 Apr.) blue envelope to Germany (16 May) "via Brindisi" bearing 10c on 16c yellow, strong bright colour and well centred, cancelled "B62" and showing index "C" despatch c.d.s. adjacent. Very fine and rare stamp on cover. Gurevitch records only 11 covers with this stamp. R.P.S.L. Certificate of Genuineness (1990). SG.26. PHOTO

2c ROSE-LAKE AND 2c ANILINE-CARMINE; Each in a very fine mint block of four, the latter has a few minor adherences on reverse. SG.32 & 33a. PHOTO1 PHOTO2

THE VERY FAMOUS 2c ROSE-PINK PERF. 12 UNUSED; 2c Rose-pink perforation 12 on thick paper unused (ungummed as usual). A very fine example of this renowned and noteworthy stamp, which has attracted the attention of famous philatelists since its first appearance in the latter part of the 19th Century. One of the great rarities of the British Empire of which only six examples have been recorded, this being from the Worthington block which was split into singles. B.P.A. Certificate of Genuineness. (1981). SG.32ab, Cat. £70,000. [Ex Patrick C. Pearson, Ishikawa and Midas]. PHOTO

10c Deep blue-green, exemplary colour, unused with part original gum, light diagonal crease at foot and microscopic natural inclusion on reverse. Very fine appearance for this scarce shade. SG.37, Cat. £1,800. PHOTO

1891 10c Purple on red and 30c grey-green overprinted "SPECIMEN" mint, the latter has thin spot. SG.38s & 39as, Cat. £400. PHOTO

THE RARE 7c ON 10c GREEN DOUBLE SURCHARGE; 7c on 10c Green, variety surcharge double, the partially erased wide spaced double surcharge appearing in three corners, the central surcharge remains intact, unused. The usual faults endemic to this stamp; according to recent records only five examples of this remarkable variety have been recorded. SG.49b. [Ex Ishikawa]. PHOTO

14c on 30c Mauve, variety broken "4" in surcharge, creased corner perf., on 1891 (20 Apr.) envelope (small faults, a little reduced at right) to Portland, Oregon via San Francisco, cancelled by "HONG KONG/A" c.d.s. Scarce double rate cover at the incorrect 7c. rate which was valid only for the UK after 1 March 1891. SG.44. PHOTO

20c ON 30c GREY-GREEN; Vertical pair with sheet margin at top, top stamp variety surcharge omitted. Deep colour, unused with part original gum which is toned and barely shows through to front; thin perf. at foot. A striking variety. SG.48var. Yang 45f. PHOTO

THE RARE 20c ON 30c OMITTED SURCHARGE IN PAIR WITH "LARGE CHARACTER" VARIETY; 20c on 30c Grey-green pair with sheet margin at right, the right stamp has large character surcharge and the left has the surcharge omitted. Very fine unused with much original gum and a few reinforced central perfs. An extremely rare and stunning combination of varieties. SG.48var. [Ex Burghard]. PHOTO

50c ON 48c DULL PURPLE; Pair, left stamp variety surcharge on both sides and right stamp has surcharge omitted. Fine and fresh unused with much original gum, light gum crease and right stamp has minute speck in paper. SG.49var. [Ex Burghard]. PHOTO

50c on 48c. Dull purple pair, right stamp variety surcharge at left. Very fine unused with much original gum. SG. 49var.PHOTO

2c Carmine, mint, light gum crease in lower right corner, fine. SG.51, Cat. £425. PHOTO

2c Carmine [6], short "J" in "Jubilee", mint, horizontal crease at foot. SG.51a, Cat. £650. PHOTO

THE VERY RARE "SIDE BY SIDE" DOUBLE OVERPRINT UNUSED; 2c Carmine, variety overprint double, the "side by side" type with the two impressions distinctly spaced _mm. apart. Very fine unused with much original gum, a rare variety. Of the three types of double overprint listed by Webb (Gurevitch lists four), there is only one unused example of each of the first two types recorded (the first type contained in the Royal Collection), thereby meaning that the "side by side" double overprint is practically the only type of this variety accessible to the collector of mint stamps. Friedl Certificate of Genuineness (1980). SG.51e, Cat. £16,000. [Ex Midas]. PHOTO

2c Carmine vertical pair [6/12] probably from the first printing. Very fine and fresh mint. SG.51, Cat. £850+. PHOTO

RARE UNUSED BLOCK OF FOUR SHOWING THREE DIFFERENT VARIETIES; 2c Carmine, a remarkable block of four [11-12/5-6] from the sixth printing, [5] with space between "o" and "n" of "Hong", [6] showing short "J" and [12] with large part of "on" of "Hong" missing or broken; fine unused with much original gum (brown as usual). A very rare and appealing combination of varieties. SG.51,a,f. PHOTO

RARE UNUSED BLOCK OF SIX; 2c Carmine block of six [10-11-12/4-5-6] with sheet margin at right, from the third printing. Fine unused with much original gum, brownish as usual. SG.51. PHOTO

THE SPECTACULAR UNUSED BLOCK OF FORTY; 2c Carmine, the spectacular unused block of forty from the right of the pane with margins on three sides showing plate number "2", the forme of eight [3-4-5--6/9-10-11-12] repeated five times, from the fifth printing, [6] shows the short "J", much original gum. Having been in a picture frame (original New York framer's label accompanies the item), the colour is somewhat faded and the block toned, corner crease at top left and horizontal crease through 5th row, has small defects mainly restricted to one stamp. This block was acquired through the auspices of the Post Master General, as explained by the original letter which accompanies the lot:-

My Dear Father

I am sending you enclosed fifty (50) H'Kong Jubilee stamps which should be valuable in New York and in great demand by stamp collectors. They were issued on the occasion of our Jubilee for three days only,& no more can possibly now be made. Philatelists, as they are called, made a great rush for them at the Post Office,& no person was allowed to have more than ten stamps at a time. I got these through the Post Master General.

I have 100 all together and give you half.

Wrote you a long letter y'day. Silver is down again today, bad luck to it!

Your loving son.

C.A.Tomes"

An incredible historic relic, since, due to the unprecedented demand for the Jubilee stamps, very few blocks larger than twenty-five have survived. SG. 51a. PHOTO PHOTO 2

2c Carmine, the five distinct constant varieties comprising short "J", short "U", broken "1" in "1891", tall narrow "K" (colour a little pale) and space between "o" and "n" of "Hong". All cancelled by c.d.s. and a choice assembly. SG.51a/b/c/d/f, Cat. £1,775. PHOTO

2c Carmine [9] cancelled by day of issue c.d.s. (22.1.91). Fine. SG.51. PHOTO

2c Carmine [10] cancelled by day of issue c.d.s. (22.1.91). Fine. SG.51.PHOTO

2c Carmine cancelled "B62". Fine to very fine. SG.51. PHOTO

2c Carmine cancelled "B62". Fine. SG.51. PHOTO

RARE CANTON USAGE; 2c Carmine centrally cancelled by "CANTON"/*" c.d.s. (14.2.91). Very fine. SG.51. PHOTO

RARE SWATOW USAGE; 2c Carmine [5] with defective "Ho" from the second printing, cancelled by "SWATOW/*" c.d.s. (16.2.91). Colour a little pale otherwise fine. SG.51. PHOTO

RARE SHANGHAI USAGE; 2c Carmine, two singles, one broken "1" in "1891", on piece, cancelled by "SHANGHAI/C" c.d.s. (15.5.00). Fine and scarce. SG.51c. PHOTO

2c Carmine vertical pair cancelled by c.d.s. (5.3.91). Fine. SG.51. PHOTO

2c Carmine block of four [1-2/7-8] from the first printing, cancelled by c.d.s. (23.1.91). Very fine. SG.51. PHOTO

THE VERY RARE 14c RATE FIRST DAY COVER TO G.B.; 1891 (22 Jan.) Envelope to Colchester, England (24 Feb.) bearing 2c carmine vertical strip of five and pair all positions 1 and 7, cancelled "B62", showing "HONG KONG/A" origin c.d.s. adjacent and arrival c.d.s. on reverse. A very fine and remarkable First Day Cover, one of only two recorded intact covers to England at the correct 14c rate. R.P.S.L. Certificate of Genuineness (1985). SG.51. PHOTO

LOCAL REGISTERED 8c COVER; 1891 (18 Aug.) Local registered envelope bearing 2c carmine vertical strip of three [5/11/5] and pair [5/11] cancelled "B62", showing "HONG KONG/C" c.d.s. and circular "R" h.s. adjacent. Fine. R.P.S.L. Certificate of Genuineness. (1986). SG.51. PHOTO

$1 on 96c Grey-black, variety surcharge on both sides, unused with much original gum. A fine and scarce variety. SG.53var. Yang 51e. PHOTO

EARLIEST RECORDED USAGE - ON 10c RATE COVER TO NOVA SCOTIA; 10c on 30c Yellowish green with Chinese character surcharge on 1898 (2 Apr.) envelope (light age spotting) to Sandy Cove, Nova Scotia (4 May) via Vancouver (27 May.), cancelled by "HONG KONG/C" c.d.s. clearly dated "Ap 2 98", the earliest recorded date of use. SG.54. PHOTO

2c Dull green wing margin at left, misperforated so as to leave right panels omitted and thereby show only the equivalent portion of the wing margin, mint, diagonal crease. Otherwise very fine and fresh. SG.56var. PHOTO

2c Dull green misperforated vertically so as to leave the right panels omitted and show the corresponding right panel of the adjacent stamp at left. Very fine mint. SG.56var. PHOTO

1938 $10 GREEN AND VIOLET; Block of four from the top of the sheet, exceptionally fresh mint with white gum (a little streaky as usual), lower pair unmounted. An extremely rare multiple in this state as very few blocks with white gum have survived. SG.161. PHOTO

1954-62 5c Orange imperforate pair from right of sheet, unmounted mint, horizontal crease in margin at foot where sheet originally folded well clear of design. SG.178a, Cat. £1,100. PHOTO

1954-62 10c Lilac variety watermark inverted, unmounted mint, transparent grease mark on lower right corner perf. SG.179aw. PHOTO

THE EXTREMELY RARE 1972 GLAZED PAPER $10 UNMOUNTED MINT BLOCK OF FOUR; 1972 $10 Multicoloured on glazed paper, an unmounted mint block of four from the lower right corner of the sheet, top right stamp has minute gum skip. Only available in the Colony and one of the great rarities of the current reign. SG.209d. PHOTO

1923 1c to 10c vertical pairs overprinted "SPECIMEN" (Samuel Type D16) sideways, each affixed to small card. SG.D1s-5s. PHOTO PHOTO 2

THE RARE 1879 "THREE" ON 5c ON 18c POSTCARD STAMP UNUSED; 1879 "THREE" on 5c on 18c lilac, strong colour, unused without gum, usual centring to lower left, few nibbled perfs. Very fine and choice. R.P.S.L. Certificate of Genuineness (2002). SG.P3, Cat. £6,500. PHOTO