harbour grace

Lot 274, Newfoundland 1930 fifty cents on thirty-six cents olive green Columbia Flight, F-VF NH

by

Lot 274, Newfoundland 1930 fifty cents on thirty-six cents olive green Columbia Flight, F-VF NHLot 274 Newfoundland #C5 1930, 50c on 36c olive green Columbia Flight, from Position 1 of the setting of four, full never hinged original gum, rich deep shade, a lovely and fine-very fine example of this airmail rarity; with 2001 Philatelic Foundation and 2004 B.P.A. certificates.

A LOVELY EXAMPLE OF THIS IMPORTANT NEWFOUNDLAND AIRMAIL RARITY.

Only 300 examples of the 35¢ Caribou stamp were overprinted to commemorate the transatlantic flight of the Miss Columbia, a Bellanca monoplane piloted by Captain J. Erroll Boyd and Lieutenant Harry P. Connor, who departed Harbour Grace, Newfoundland, with the aim of completing a non-stop transatlantic flight from Newfoundland to England. At the urging of the postmaster, a bag of mail was carried aboard the flight; 48 stamps were reserved for covers posted at Harbour Grace, with a further eight stamps (two blocks of four) given to the pilots. The remaining stamps were placed on sale at the St. John’s post office on 25 September 1930. Of the original 300 examples, approximately 100 are believed to have been used on cover, and many of those remaining of the balance lack the freshness of the example offered here. Unitrade C$ 16,500

Lot 573, Newfoundland 1909 OHMS cover from Harbour Grace to Riverhead, sold for C$468

by

Lot 573, Newfoundland 1909 OHMS cover from Harbour Grace to Riverhead, sold for C$468Lot 573 Newfoundland 1909 (22 October), O.H.M.S. cover from Harbour Grace to Riverhead, with mining lease document, for a one-year period, for “the whole of the Island known as Makkovic Island, Labrador,” with a hand drawn and coloured map of the leased area. The document is franked with $1 green Edward VII (NFR12) revenue stamp and cancelled with a nicely-struck “Department of / Agriculture & Mines / OCT 22 1909” marking. A beautiful mining document suitable for exhibition. Fine to very fine. Estimate C$150, sold for C$400.00 plus 17% buyer’s premium.

Lot 1198, Newfoundland 1930 Columbia flight cover, Harbour Grace to London

by

Lot 1198, Newfoundland 1930 Columbia flight cover, Harbour Grace to LondonLot 1198 Newfoundland #C5 1930 Columbia Flight, Harbour Grace to London, England, Job Brothers & Co. cover mailed at St Johns on SEP.25.1930 and addressed to London England. It was carried to Harbour Grace by automobile, received an OCT.9 c.d.s. there and was then flown to England on the “Miss Columbia” and older Bellanca monoplane by Capt. J. Erroll Boyd and pilot Lt. Henry Connor. The cover is franked with a very well centered specially prepared 50c Columbia Air Post stamp (from setting position 3), of which only 300 were printed, properly tied by the St Johns slogan machine cancel. This is certainly one of the nicest examples of this scarce flight cover, and is accompanied by certificates from Giulio Bolaffi (1963), Enzo Diena (1980) and Fiorenzo Longhi (2017), and there are four expert signatures on the cover (the three aforementioned plus Alberto Diena). A lovely addition to any serious Airmail or Newfoundland collection and a world rarity. Rsv. $6,000. Unitrade $16,000.

Lot 561 — Newfoundland 1930 50c on 36c olive green Columbia FFC

by

Lot 561Lot 561 Newfoundland #C5 1930 50c on 36c olive green Columbia First Flight Cover. C5 stamp is tied by SEP.25.1930 St John’s slogan machine cancel. Parker & Monroe corner card cover is addressed to London England via Harbour Grace (backstamp dated October 9). Vertical and horizontal creases are away from stamp and light overall ageing. The cover is endorsed on front “Per air Mail Columbia / Harbour Grace, N.F. to London Eng. / Sept 25th 1930”. The Unitrade catalogue states that first flights from Harbour Grace command a premium of 20%. Accompanied by a 2009 Philatelic Foundation certificate. Unitrade CV$17,500

Mint Canada #CLP6, 1927 Semi-Official Airmail

by

We are approaching the end of lotting and input for Auction #12, with catalogue preparation to follow shortly. While we do not have a firm auction date yet, we expect a March auction and will make an announcement soon.

The first of our Auction #12 previews showcases a seldom-offered Canadian rarity.

Canada #CLP6

Canada #CLP6 1927 LONDON to LONDON FLIGHT 25 cents green and yellow. In 1927, Carling Breweries offered a $25,000 prize to the first Canadian or British pilot to fly from London, Ontario to London, England. A Stinson SM-1 was christened Sir John Carling and attempted the flight starting August 29, 1927, flown by pilot Terrance Tully and navigator James Medcalf.
Postal Authorities approved the printing of a special label to be applied to the envelopes which were to be carried on the flight. Only 100 labels were printed and approximately 87 were affixed to envelopes.

The flight had difficulties with fog and returned. It restarted on September 1 and made a landing in Maine, then later in Harbour Grace, Newfoundland. On September 7 the flight set off across the Atlantic, never to be seen again. No covers on that flight survived.

The special label which was officially approved features portraits of Tully and Medcalf and shows the proposed route.

The example we offer is very well-centered, has full original gum which has never been hinged and has very fresh and deep colour, unlike some other surviving examples.

The stamp has two certificates. In 1987 it was “in perfect condition” and Enzio Diena lightly initialed the stamp on the back. Since then the stamp has acquired small stains on Tully’s forehead, a light vertical crease and very slight soiling. All of these are mentioned (accurately but somewhat harshly) in a 2006 Greene Foundation certificate.

Despite the faults this is an attractive, well-centered example of this very rare stamp of which only 13 unused examples are known. Unitrade Catalogue Value is $100,000.