Postage Stamp Chat Board & Stamp Bulletin Board Forum
 

Folks,

Didnt we all love waking up on Christmas morning as kids wondering what presents awaited us and the pleasure of the day.

Getting a package from Glen is very similar.

I received one last week that has some lovely items that I have been paying off for awhile.

I will post some great Kangaroo items in the relevant catagories over the next few days for others to enjoy.

Tim

Looking forward to it Didge!

Ewen

Sounds like a lot of fun ... and that a lot of other things will get put on hold.

Here's a guessing game.

Tim's package had in it one item, that today would be in the 5 figure $$ league at auction.

The man reason it is that price, is 100% verified by this tiny sticker - about as big as a small thumbnail.

Any guesses what it might have been?

I presume that's an advertising seal on the rear of a cover.

Didn't Fred Hagen operate in the Federation era and I recall he had some tie up with H.L. White and his incredible collection (most probably through selling selected items to him)

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Tony

Lakatoi is generally on the right track .............................

Glen,

I will post a scan of it after someone comes up with the right answer. The cover is at work and I am home today so it may be later in the week.

Come on folks help Lakatoi.

Tim

Just a wild guess, but was it a high denomination roo on cover

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Tony

Wildly wrong.
.

Ahah, then perhaps the other end of the roo spectrum

Low denomination roo but it would also have to be special in some other way I'm guessing.

Hagen dealt a lot in Aust. States I believe, so perhaps a mixture of a low value roo and a low value State stamp making up the normal 1d. postage rate of that era

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Tony

Nope sorry even more wildly wrong.

But it would be a 5 figure sort of single item on today's market, that bore that blue sticker, which narrows it down rather heavily.
.

Andrew,

Yes I was pretty pleased. I have had it put away for quite a while so it was nice to get it in my hot little hand.

Tim

Lakatoi,

Were you thinking of something like this? Nice Commonwealth/State combination with 2 x 1d Roos and a 1/2d South Australian stamp. Apparantly South Australian stamps are the rarest to find in the mixed frankings. This one would be in the $500 range but not four figures. Still a nice cover and I will post it on the other thread on mixed frankings as well. Postmarked at Pyap on 6 July 14. Home of the Murray River Paddlesteamers.

Tim

It wouldn't be a first day roo cover would it?

Wasn't Fred Hagen responsible for most of the first day covers with the kangaroo first issues?

Are there ANY Kangaroo first day covers?

Glen

Snaws,

Exactly mate. 1d Red First Day Cover. 2 January 1913. Its the only FDC of the Roo series that is recognised as such. Glen would be able to post a scan and comment. My parcel with it in it is at work.

Tim

C'mon Glen, put it up!

Tim - how much, or is that a rude question? Just post the price here in really small letters and I won't tell anyone?

Ewen

snaws .. was tasting your Roo knowledge.

There are in fact NO other First Day Covers of ANY Kangaroo issue from 1913 SG#1 until the series was replaced by the 1937 Definitives. Nothing for 26 years - except the 1d.

Not even one for when colours totally changed - from 6d blue to brown, or 2/- Brown to Maroon etc.

You'd think SOME PO staffer keen on stamps (and there were countless 1000s!) would have noticed the new colour stamps arriving into stock, and done some covers or even just one for themselves ... even if a watermark change was not apparent to them.

Nope. not a one. Bizarre.

Glen
.

Oh well, something to keep an eye out for then.

Ewen

Glen,

I dont mind if you post the write up that you did from your rarety site for others to read.

Tim

OK, with Tim's clear OK, here it is:






Australia 1913 1d Kangaroo FDC - possibly the finest known: Australia's very first FDC. Only 11 recorded. Three of those are in a well known Melbourne collection. Three of the other 11 are in institutions - two in the Australia Post archival Chapman collection, and one is in the Royal Collection.

Three were in Arthur Gray's superb collection auctioned in New York late February. Where an example in slightly lesser condition with wrinkling sold for $A12,750 - see small inset photo of that cover above, addressed to the same collector.

(Several 1d roo FDC's are addressed to Whiting - another noticeably foxed Gray example was identically addressed to mine - to "Mr. A. M. Whiting" -



Unlike the three Gray examples which were in fair to poor condition, this copy is clean and fresh as you can see - both sides. For near 100 years old it is in remarkable condition.

The reverse, as do all 11 known FDC's, has the attractive Fred Hagen scalloped dealer embossed seal. Australia's leading FD cover expert Frank Pauer advises me this is the only example recorded that has any arrival cds cancel.

The plain white envelopes Hagen used to mail all these FDC's via a street pillar posting box were incredibly flimsy. Very lightweight paper stock, which was prone to creasing, bending, wrinkling, and toning very rapidly.

Remember each envelope was manually type-written first, so they were likely a bit rumpled before they left his shop! The condition of this I repeat is exceptional, compared to the others I have inspected.

The 1d red is the only true Kangaroo First Day COVER. Gray had several 'earliest known dates' (which sold for $78,750 and were mostly in truly appalling condition) but they are not FDC's.

No Kangaroo from ANY other watermark - right up to the 1930s, exists on any FDC. Amazing, but true. If you want a real Kangaroo FDC this is all you have to select from. And the 1d was of course the first Kangaroo stamp issued. Indeed it is the very first Australian Commonwealth stamp issued.

All 11 existing 1d covers have identical Sydney machine cancels from "Sydney/Jan 2 - 5.30pm/1913". The cancel on this one is neatly placed - several other FDC are at an untidy angle. The "2" has not properly inked, which is of course irrelevant, due to the arrival handstamp.

This one has the wonderful verifying Friday arrival cancel of "North Melbourne January 3" (1,000 km away) proving original use on Jan 2 in Sydney - no other date was possible. Unique in this regard, and of course should be a PREMIUM to the $12,750 Gray example shown, for that reason.

This is about the cleanest of the 11 existing, so should naturally command a hefty premium for condition. As is common knowledge - the material sold at Gray sale often smashed ACSC values, and much of it sold for several times those catalogue figures - see here for fuller details and photos - http://www.glenstephens.com/arthur-gray-kangaroos
.

Very nice Tim, and thanks for the write up Glen. Absolutely stunning - Tim are you the new Arthur?

Ewen

Ewan,

Yeah right. I wish. If my collection was worth a tenth of his I would retire.

Nice thought though.

Tim

Hi Glen.
Just a lucky guess.
That is all my roo knowledge.
I remember reading the name [probably from an auction catalogue].
I dont own any kangaroo stamps or anything printed after 1912.

Didge.
Congradulations.
What a lovely addition to your collection.

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Regards snaws

Snaws,

Thanks mate and good detective work.

Tim

As I told Tim recently, even to sell this now would show him a very good profit.

He secured it at the right time, and for a huge chunk less than the very inferior Arthur Gray example shown above got.

The Anniversary of the Kangaroo stamps .. indeed the anniversary of the first "Australia" stamps is looming up very fast on us, and there are few more relevant pieces than this.

Mark my words 2013 (or more relevant, 2012) will see a TON of wide interest in these first Kangaroo stamps, and all key pieces related to them.

AP will go insane with Roo related stamp issues, and it will get wide media coverage.

Glen

Well I was partially right I guess

Didge,

A great cover and it's got me thinking I should check through the few that I have. To tell you the truth I hadn't even thought to check on first day usage , so you never know

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Tony

Lakatoi 4,

Yes close mate. I dont think there are any 1d Red FDC's known except for the Hagan covers. They must have existed though. Finding one would be brilliant. Hagan did some variations. There is one registered cover from memory.

Tim