Rare Stamps & Postal History of the World

1846 5c black on buff, positions 9 and 10, each with three large margins, clear at bottom, canceled by red"Paid"straight-line, the stamp at top applied first and tied to lettersheet, the stamp below applied immediately after and struck again with"Paid", the impression ties through paper, and offset above, also on the back of the stamp, matching strikes of"Paid"and"Brattleboro Vt. Feb. 17"cds on 1847 blue folded letter addressed to James H. Wells at Hartford Connecticut, filing fold well clear of stamps and markings, v.f. Wells states"I received the inclosed letter yesterday", which substantiates the double 5c rate for weight exceeding a half ounce. It was discovered in 1936 along with two other folded letters to Wells in Hartford, each with a single Brattleboro stamp. The unpublished Brattleboro census by Philip T. Wall lists a total of 52 stamps, including 20 stamps on 19 covers. There are no recorded multiples of any size - this is the only multiple franking. Illustrated in Lidman's Treasury of Stamps (page 59) and Life magazine,"World's Rarest Stamps"(May 3, 1954), Ex Caspary, Weill, DuPuy and Wall, with 1989 Philatelic Foundation certificate, listed but unpriced in Scott. This is the only recorded cover with two of the Brattleboro Provisional stamps. Considered without exception as one of the most outstanding United States covers (last sold in a 2007 Siegel auction for $230,000 (including buyer's premium)
Estimate: $250000