U.S. collector uncovers third example of rare Canadian stamp

COLLECTIBLES
U.S. collector uncovers third example of rare Canadian stamp

RANDY BOSWELL

POSTMEDIA NEWS
  For nearly 80 years, there have been only two known examples of Canada's rarest stamp: the two-cent, 1868 "large queen" on laid paper, a postal treasure so scarce it's absent from the Canadian government's own collection — and estimated to be worth as much as $1 million.
  Now, an unidentified American stamp hobbyist has revealed his discovery of a third copy of every Canadian collector's wildest dream, creating a serious stir among postage specialists across North America and shedding new light on how a production anomaly 145 years ago — followed by the apparent distribution of this one-of-a-kind sheet of stamps from a Hamilton, Ont., postal station in 1870 — produced this country's greatest philatelic rarity.
  The idea that a new "large-queen¬on-laid" had been found was so startling to the Canadian stamp-collecting community it prompted a Toronto-based postal history research organization to conduct an exhaustive probe of the claim before issuing a 10-page report last month verifying the artifact's authenticity. The investigators concluded: "The purpose of the expertization of the submitted copy was
to determine if it was genuinely printed on laid paper. This has been successfully accomplished in our opinion."
  The two other documented specimens of the large-queen-on-laid were certified by the Royal Philatelic Society in London in 1935.
  The U.S. collector's coup is all the more remarkable because the stamp apparently cost him $5 after he spotted it in a local collector club's "circuit book" or catalogue. Instead of just pictures and prices of products available for order, a circuit book contains actual stamps and other postal, items and is passed between collectors, who can example and purchase any of the artifacts. In a sub-plot, the existence of the third large-queen-on-laid was first reported by the St. Catharines, Ont.  based Canadian Stamp News after rumours about the certification tests
began circulating in June.
  "The first story I wrote — strange enough for a stamp magazine — was one where I used anonymous sources," Canadian Stamp News editor Bret Evans told Postmedia News. "It's very rare that you sleuth out a stamp story," he added, describing his scoop as the philatelic journalism world's version of "Woodward and Bernstein stuff."
  The two-cent large queen from 1868 was part of the first series of Canadian stamps after Confederation in 1867, lending it special significance in the country's postal heritage. The green-hued stamp features a pro-file of Queen Victoria, and the' rare, ultra-valuable versions were printed — almost certainly by mistake — on a heavier, rougher sheet of "laid" paper in contrast to the run-of-the-mill large queens that were reproduced on more common "wove" paper, examples of which are worth $20 today.
  The value of the new-found large queen is difficult to determine. One major catalogue pegs the theoretical price at $250,000. But earlier this year, when it was announced Canadian stamp collector Ron Brigham would begin selling his set this fall, the value of the large-queen-on-laid in his possession — thought to be one of two in existence — was estimated at $1 million.

Vancouver Sun Saturday, 10 August 2013