The Karl Louis "Card Index"
Describing Philatelic rarities calls for more than just quoting catalogue numbers and values. Provenance is a philatelic pedigree of former owners from the inception of philately until the present day. Those collections held in the highest esteem by their contemporaries and containing the great rarities, the modern day “Large Gold” exhibits, can be traced back to the collectors who once owned the particular rarity and the auctions where they were sold and changed hands. Frequently, the further back a philatelic pedigree goes, the more coveted the rarity becomes. Provenance is a quality seal. As in Art, Provenance is an indispensible attribute: in this case, of valuable Great Britain stamps and covers.
Provenance is a quality seal. As in Art, Provenance is an indispensible attribute.
Added Value by Proof of Provenance
Provenance-Certificates can be traced for the following stamps, covers and Postal History items:
GREAT BRITAIN
1840, One Penny Black & Two Pence Blue (Stanley Gibbons Cat.-No. 1-6)
unused: singles, pairs, multiples
used: strips or blocks of four and larger
covers: strips and blocks of four and larger
Special aspects:
Treasury competition essays, die proofs, Imprimaturs, Postal Notices, rainbow trial experiments, May-date-usages, inverted watermarks, Penny Black plate 11 in singles, pairs and covers, plate 5 „PB“ states and re-entries, mixed frankings, foreign destinations, Registered letters, 2d bisects.
1841, One Penny Red &Two Pence Blue „with lines“ (Stanley Gibbons Cat.-No. 7-15aa)
1d „Black plates“:
unused: singles, pairs and multiples
used: strips or blocks of four and larger
covers: strips and blocks of four and larger
1d later plates 12-177 and 2d. „with lines“:
unused: large multiples (2d. from pairs)
used: large multiples
covers: large, unusual and mixed frankings
Special aspects:
SPECIMEN overprints, Postal Notices, die proofs, Imprimaturs, plate 11 on Dickinson paper, 1d. plate 5 „PB“, plate 33 „PA“, plate 40 „KB“, plate 75 „LK“, plate 77 „BA“ (‚A‘-missing and corrected), 1d plates 175-177 from singles, 2d plate 4 states, 1d & 2d „lavender tinted paper“ and „violet-blue“, foreign destinations, Registered letters.
1848/53, trial separations (Stanley Gibbons Cat.-No. 16-16d)
unused, used from singles and covers:
- Archer Roulette
- Treasury Roulette
- Archer perforations
- Government trial separations
- Private separations
1854/63 perforated 1d. & 2d. stars (Stanley Gibbons Cat.-No. 17-42)
unused: large multiples (2d. from pairs)
used: large multiples
covers: large, unusual and mixed frankings
Special aspects:
SPECIMEN overprints, die proofs, plate proofs, Imprimaturs, reprints, 1d scarcer plates 53, 64, 65, 2d plate 4 states, perforation varieties.
1864, letters in all four corners ½ d., 1d., 1 ½ d., 2d. (Stanley Gibbons Cat.-No. 43-53a)
unused: large multiples
used: large multiples
covers: large, unusual and mixed frankings
Special aspects:
die proofs, plate proofs, Imprimaturs, SPECIMEN-overprints, reprints, Postal Notices, 1/2d. plate 9, 1d plates 77 and 225, 1 ½ d. unissued „rosy mauve“ and „OPPC“-error, perforation varieties.
1847/54, embossed 6d., 10d. and 1Sh. (Stanley Gibbons Cat.-No.54-61)
unused: singles, pairs and multiples
used: strips and blocks of four and larger
covers: large, unusual and mixed frankings
Special aspects:
essays, proofs, Postal Notices, unusual destinations, printing varieties.
1855/80, surface printed issues with corner letters, 2 ½ d., 3d, 4d., 6d., 8d., 9d., 10d., 1sh., 2sh. (Stanley Gibbons Cat.-No.62-125, 138-163)
unused: pairs and multiples (2sh. brown from singles)
used: large multiples
covers: large, unusual and mixed frankings
Special aspects:
essays, die proofs, plate proofs, Imprimaturs, Postal Notices, „abnormal plates“, unissued, 2 ½ d. LHFL error, perforation varieties, watermark varieties, destination covers
1867/91, surface printed „High Values“, 5sh., 10sh., £1, £5 (Stanley Gibbons Cat.-No. 126-137, 175-186, 212)
unused: singles, pairs and multiples (1884 on white paper and 1891, £1 green from pairs)
used: pairs and multiples (1882, £5 and 1884 on blued paper as well as 1884 10sh. cobalt from singles)
covers: every cover
Special aspects:
essays, die proofs, plate proofs, Imprimaturs, Postal Notices, perforation varieties, watermark varieties
1880, „provisional“ ½ d. –5d., 1881, „unified“ 1d., 1883/83, „lilac and green“ ½ d. –1sh., 1887/1900, „Jubilee“ ½ d. – 1sh. (Stanley Gibbons Cat.-No. 164-174, 187 – 211, 213, 214)
unused: large multiples
used: large multiples
covers: large, unusual and mixed frankings
Special aspects:
essays, die proofs, plate proofs, Imprimaturs, Postal Notices, perforation varieties, watermark and plate varieties, 1883, 9d. and 1900, 1sh. green and carmine on covers
1902 –1951, The Kings issues
1902/13, die proofs, plate proofs, Tyrian plum, 6d bright magenta, double printings, high values on covers, multiples and watermark varieties
Later issues: sporadic with some essays, die and plate proofs, shade-varieties such as ½ d. cyprus green, 1935 silver jubilee 2 ½ d. prussian blue, perforation and plate varieties
Official stamps 1840 - 1904 (Stanley Gibbons Cat.-No. V1, 01 - 0112)
1840, VR One penny Black:
unused: singles, pairs and multiples
used: singles, pairs and multiples
covers: any cover
Special aspects:
Imprimaturs, Postal Notices, cancellation removal experiments
1882/1904 Government department overprints
inverted overprints, covers, „High Values“ 5sh., 10sh. and £ 1: unused and used singles, pairs and multiples
Mulready lettersheets and envelopes
unused: pairs, part sheets and sheets of 12
used: pairs, additional frankings
Special aspects:
proofs, SPECIMEN, May dates, Registered and late usages, foreign destinations, reprints
Mulready caricatures,
pictorial envelopes,
House of Commons, House of Parliament, House of Lords envelopes
All kinds of material recorded
Cancellations
Local Maltese Crosses, London MC with numbers, coloured obliterations, trial cancellations, cds., Penny Postage, mail bag, foreign cancellations on British stamps, British cancellations on foreign stamps
Used abroad
Covers, mixed and combination frankings, 2sh. brown, 5sh.,10sh., and £1 used abroad
Postal History
Crimean war and soldiers‘ letters, wreck covers, covers to unusual foreign destinations 1855-1880, british and foreign mixed frankings (combination usages and re-adressed covers)