Heinrich Köhler & Corinphila rarities auction
"Shooting Stars" in London
It was the culmination of a remarkable stamp exhibition that had attracted visitors from all over the world to England. On 16 May 2015, the last day of EUROPHILEX 2015 in London, the oldest auction houses of Germany and Switzerland, Heinrich Köhler and Corinphila, together with their sister companies of the Global Philatelic Network held a stamp auction of superlatives. The exclusive rarities auction in the heart of London led to bidding battles hardly to be surpassed, from collectors from all over the world who in the room, by telephone and via the Internet drove up the prices. Only the most precious rarities, including numerous "world rarities" which already had caused a stir in the run-up to the sale, came under the hammer, and for the whole duration of the auction the room was almost filled with spellbound people, so that again and again the bids increased to dizzying heights, and the fascination of philatelic auctions was palpable.
The managing directors of Corinphila and Heinrich Köhler, Karl Louis and Dieter Michelson were accordingly satisfied after the auction:
"An auction like this is really not an everyday occurrence. In addition to the widespread participation, we are of course particularly pleased that the technical implementation, the networking of collectors from all over the world via the Internet, telephone and in the room in London has worked so well."
"On a level with the British Queen"
Lots 267 and 268 were without doubt among the absolute top items. Originally from the period of the German colonial stamps of Togo, the 3 and 5 mark stamps with the "TOGO - Anglo-French Occupation" overprint remained the only examples in private hands of this rare issue, only two copies of each stamp being known. The other two stamps are in the Royal Collection of Queen Elizabeth II. The two copies together were worth a fabulous 235,000 euros to a collector (starting price 20,000 euros each)! With these world rarities he may now regard his collection - at least in part - as being on a par with the Royal Collection of the Queen of Great Britain.
The pinnacle of international philately
Sensational results were also achieved with the issues of Romania (Lots 367-369). Three unused "ox heads" of 1858 were together knocked down for 92,000 euros. With Lot 355, a cover from Tokyo with fourteen (!) Japanese 200 mon "dragon" stamps of 1871, another world rarity changed hands. The spectacular hammer price amounted to 42,000 euros (starting price 20,000 euros) for this unique item.
Only five years ago, a cover dating back to 1855 as a "witness" to the biggest civilian maritime disaster of the 19th century in Norway, the sinking of the "Dampskibet NORGE", was identified. It is known that a mailbag had survived this accident, from which the letter mentioned, Lot 363 in the rarities auction evidently comes. The only cover from this shipwreck known today eventually changed hands after fierce a battle between room-, telephone- and Internet bidders for 38,000 euros.
The "Firsts" inspire
That the "first issues" are often highly valued by collectors is once again confirmed by the rarities auction. A Mulready envelope of 6 May 1840 (Lot 6), being the first postal stationery item in the world used on its first day of validity, reached a sensational price of 17,000 euros (starting price 5,000 euros).
Its counterpart in German-speaking countries, a "black one", Bavaria's legendary one kreuzer stamp, postmarked on the first day, 1 November 1849 (Lot 319), found a new "lover" for an impressive 40,000 euros.
The complete list of prices realized is available online at www.heinrich-koehler.de
Further information on the auction and all lots from:
Corinphila Auktionen AG, Wiesenstrasse 8, CH 8034 Zürich, Switzerland
Telephone +41 44 3899191, Email: info@corinphila.ch
Heinrich Köhler Auktionshaus GmbH & Co. KG, Wilhelmstrasse 48, 65183 Wiesbaden, Germany
Telephone +49 (0) 611 39381, Email: info@heinrich-koehler.de