Postiljonen’s April 3-4 auction includes Danish stamp rarity

By Michael Baadke

An important Danish stamp rarity is among the offerings in the upcoming public auction by the Postiljonen firm in Malmo, Sweden.

Collectors will bid on the only known used block of four of Denmark’s 1851 2-rigsbankskilling blue (Scott 1) during the April 3-4 sale. The block is from the Thiele printing, plate II, with each stamp lightly canceled with the three-ring numeral 1 (Copenhagen) postmark.

The block was formerly in the collections of Gene Scott and Peer Lorentzen, top international exhibitors whose respective collections of Denmark won back-to-back American Philatelic Society Champion of Champions competitions in 1990 (Scott) and 1991 (Lorentzen).

The block is the largest known multiple of Denmark’s valuable second stamp — two unused blocks of four also exist.

Lorentzen obtained the used block during the Sept. 29-30, 2000, Postiljonen auction of Scott’s Denmark collection for €290,000 (including buyers premium, roughly equivalent to $261,000 at the time).

With this prominent block in his exhibit, Lorentzen would win large gold and the grand prix national prize at the 2001 Hafnia exhibition in Copenhagen.

The block is closely trimmed on three sides with a margin at the bottom, and is currently mounted “in the same type of passe-partout that was used by Gene Scott as well as by Peer Lorentzen,” Postiljonen notes.

“The block had been hidden away for about a century in a childhood collection in North-Western Denmark when it came on the market at an auction in 1985,” according to the auction firm.

It is offered with descriptive certificates of authenticity from Lasse Nielsen (2003) and Carl Aage Moller (2007). The minimum bid at this sale is €40,000 (approximately $45,350 in mid-March).

The auction also presents material from the Niels Shou study collection of footpost mail from Copenhagen, postal history from Risto Pitkanen’s grand prix collection of mail routes from and to Finland, additional classic Scandinavian stamps and postal history, Danish West Indies and Faroe Islands, plus worldwide first issues, collections and large lots.

The Postiljonen auction will take place at Oresundshuset, the Postiljonen offices at Hans Michelsensgatan 9 in Malmo.

To view the current auction catalog with online bidding options, visit the Postiljonen website. Additional information is also available from Postiljonen AB, Box 537, SE-201 25 Malmo, Sweden.

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