Canadian Stamp Auctions

14 December, 2007 - Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries

As this report is being written, we have received news that Robert Siegel passed away on January 4, 2008 at 80 years of age. His name and excellent reputation are well known to collectors in Canada. We will miss him and his ability to bring outstanding material to collectors worldwide.

The New York Times reported:

“Mr. Siegel started collecting stamps as a hobby at age seven and went into business for himself when he was sixteen. In 1934 he opened a dealership and auction house in New York .By his own estimate, the company bearing Mr. Siegel’s name sold more than $200 million worth of stamps during his 63 years in the business. One, the unique British Guiana “One-Cent Magenta” was auctioned by him twice. The second time around, in 1981, it fetched $935,000, which set a record at the time.”

In the months leading up to his death, Mr. Siegel’s firm was very busy with a total of four stamp auctions taking place in New York. This is no small feat. The one held on December 14th contained some very nice Canadian material which we feature below and in the accompanying highlights.

6p Albert - new record price!

Lot 1032 Scott 5 Catalogue $1,250 Realized $2,626

What a beauty this stamp is with its huge borders, including part of the adjoining stamp at the top. The price just barely topped the previous record of $2,600 set, in 2005

Two Scott 7s - Which is better?

Lot 1033 Scott 7 Catalogue $1,500 Realized $1,919

Lot 1034 Scott 7 Catalogue $1,500 Realized $1,818

Talk about a hard choice. Two “Jacques Cartiers”, each described in glowing terms.

The first of the two (lot 1033) is an “Extremely Fine Gem”, a superb example with large margins. The second (lot 1034) is also “Extremely Fine”, with large margins. Both came with Certificates.

The difference seems to be that the first is a “GEM” and has the identifiable “16 “grid cancel of Hamilton. The bidders agreed and gave the first a slight premium. We’d be happy with either, principally because of the generous margins they possess.

Large Queen Imperforate

Lot 1041 Scott 29d Catalogue $1,150 Realized $1,414

We recently featured The Large Queen Imperforates in our Commentary No. 100. Shown above is a great example of the 15¢ imperforate which appeared in the Siegel sale. It had original gun, was lightly hinged and had large margins. It sold for more than its catalogue value but, looking at our pricing records, the $1,414 is a fairly average price. This is a bit surprising, given the great interest in Canada’s imperforates these days.

20¢ Jubilee

Lot 1051 Scott 59 Catalogue $500 Realized $960

Until just over a year ago, the best price for the 20¢ Jubilee was $775, set back in 1999. All that changed in 2006 when the price for some outstanding copies took off, eventually reaching $2,400.

The above stamp is a gem. The only negative is that there is a slight crease in the selvage. This should not be a factor as the stamp itself is perfect and the selvage could easily be removed. Whoever bought this stamp got quite the bargain!

2¢ Edward VII Booklet

Lot 1054 Scott 90b Catalogue $1,750 Realized $1,717

The centering on this booklet pane is unusually good. It is so seldom we see this in this particular booklet; we felt we had to inspect it again and again. We can’t remember more than a very few over the years that are this good. It was very fine, but had a small natural paper wrinkle in one stamp.

Take a good look at this excellent example. You may not see one again for awhile of this quality.

Quebec Tercentenary Set Cover

Lot 1057 Scott 96-103 on cover Estimate $750-1,000 Realized $1,313

Talking about Quebec, we should mention the fact that the Province’s capital, Quebec City, is celebrating the 400th anniversary of its founding. It is one of the oldest cities in North America and anyone who has visited it knows that it is one of the most beautiful cities in the world!

Please note that the prices realized in this sale were converted at $1 US = $1.01 Cdn.

For more details, please click on the Highlights button.

There were 2 new record prices in this sale: