Trio of name collections, U.S. and worldwide stamps, postal history in Sept. 30-Oct. 2 Kelleher Flagship auction

By Charles Snee

Daniel F. Kelleher Auctions will present its Flagship sale of United States and possessions, British and worldwide stamps and postal history Sept. 30-Oct. 2 at its gallery in Danbury, Conn. Each day of this Flagship auction will commence at 11 a.m. Eastern Time.

The sale, which contains more than 1,300 lots, opens with enticing selections of stamps from Nepal, Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, British Commonwealth and British North America, Germany post-World War II occupations, Poland, Russia, Switzerland, Thailand and Western Ukraine.

United States stamps and postal history will be up for bids during all three days of the auction, beginning at 2:30 p.m. on Sept. 30.

According to Kelleher, the auction features three name collections: the Durbar Square collection of Nepal, the Khyber Pass collection of Afghanistan and the Mostar collection of Bosnia and Herzegovina. “Each offers a jaw-dropping array of specialist material, much of which has not been on the market for decades,” Kelleher said.

“Following a brief ‘round-the-world journey, we arrive at the US, which ranges from Postmasters’ Provisionals through Back-of-the-Book, with a wealth of highly graded singles, 19th century blocks, Essays and Proofs galore, difficult — and sound — plate blocks and full panes, and more besides,” Kelleher said.

Included in the auction is an extensive selection of definitive (regular-issue) stamps from the popular Washington-Franklin series, many of which are accompanied by graded expertizing certificates.

One of those stamps that is sure to tempt bidders is a mint, never-hinged 1915 11¢ dark green Benjamin Franklin with single-line USPS watermark and gauge 10 perforations (Scott 434) that has been assigned the grade of gem 100J, according to a 2025 graded certificate from Professional Stamp Experts in Las Vegas, Nev. (PSE).

The letter J appended to the numerical grade is shorthand for jumbo, meaning that the stamp has unusually large margins. The watermark is an abbreviation for United States Postage Stamp.

Kelleher describes the stamp as one “for the connoisseur, an immaculate jumbo with exceptional eye appeal, flawless in all respects.”

In addition, the stamp is the only mint, never-hinged example of Scott 434 to be graded gem 100J, according to the graded stamp population report maintained by Professional Stamp Experts. The PSE population report also records one used Scott 434 graded gem 100J.

A mint, never-hinged example of Scott 434 in the grade of gem 100 is valued at $2,700 in the Scott Stamp Values U.S. Specialized By Grade that is included in the Scott Specialized Catalogue of United States Stamps and Covers. The Scott Stamp Values does not value stamps in the grade of gem 100J.

Overall, stamps in the grade of gem 100 or gem 100J are seldom seen and typically sell for significant premiums over catalog value.

For context, a mint, never-hinged example of Scott 434 in the grade of very fine 80, the benchmark grade in the Scott U.S. Specialized catalog, is valued at $75.

Kelleher is offering this graded gem 100J 1915 11¢ dark green Benjamin Franklin stamp with single-line USPS watermark and gauge 10 perforations with an estimate of $4,500 to $6,000.

Up for bids in the U.S. airmail offerings is an unused 1918 24¢ carmine rose and blue airmail stamp (Scott C3) with the blue vignette of the Curtiss Jenny biplane shifted sharply down in relation to the red frame.

Collectors refer to this eye-catching printing misregistration as the “grounded plane” variety.

In the case of this stamp, the shift is so dramatic that the wheels of the plane extend below the word “CENTS” and completely cover the “C.” Closer examination shows that some of the blue background lines beneath the plane extend into the bottom margin of the stamp.

The stamp has a “natural straight edge at right from the rightmost column of the third discovery sheet — where all such ‘totally grounded planes’ originate,” Kelleher said.

Kelleher, with a touch of humor, describes the stamp as “a stratospheric rarity (that never took off?).”

Kelleher is offering this splendid “totally grounded plane” variety of the 1918 24¢ carmine rose and blue airmail stamp with an estimate of $3,000 to $4,000. Included with the stamp is a 1995 expertizing certificate from the Philatelic Foundation in New York City.

Kelleher has produced a single catalog for the three-day Flagship auction that is available for viewing and download on the firm’s website, www.kelleherauctions.com, with online bidding options available on Stamp Auction Network.

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