Sale 1388 — The Boardwalk Collection of Outstanding United States Stamps–Part One–19th Century Issues
Sale Date — Wednesday-Thursday, 23-24 September, 2026
Category — 1861 Issue First Designs and Colors (Scott 55-62)
1c Indigo, First Design (55). Unused (no gum), deep rich color and detailed impression, tiny tear at top noted on certificate which does not note a small repair and rounded corner
VERY FINE APPEARANCE. AN ATTRACTIVE EXAMPLE OF THE RARE ONE-CENT 1861 FIRST DESIGN. ONLY 22 UNUSED EXAMPLES ARE AVAILABLE TO COLLECTORS.
Our census of Scott 55, available at https://siegelauctions.com/census/us/scott/55, contains a total of 26 examples. Three have target cancels and one is in the Miller collection owned by The New York Public Library. Of the remaining 22 copies, at least thirteen have faults ranging from serious defects to pulled perfs.
Census no. 55-UNC-08. With 1973 P.F. certificate.
Certificate
1973 PF No. 40284 View Cert
3c Brown Rose, First Design (56). Original gum, barely hinged, rich color, choice centering, Extremely Fine and attractive, with 1999 P.F. certificate
Certificate
1999 PF No. 0346726 View Cert
3c Dim Dusky Red, First Design (56 var). Original gum, lovely color which is distinctly different from normal Scott 56, unusually wide margins, Very Fine example of this sub-shade, ex Dr. Berlin, with 1974 A.P.S. certificate
Certificate
1974 A.P.S. No. 20288 View Cert
3c Brown Rose, First Design, Imperforate (65-E15g; formerly 56a). Single, original gum, ample even margins, deep rich color, Very Fine, with 1991 P.F. certificate, Scott value $1,750 for a pair
Certificate
1991 PF No. 0249930 View Cert
5c Brown, First Design (57). Original gum, h.r., intense shade and impression, well-balanced margins, tiny thin spot
FINE APPEARING EXAMPLE OF THE RARE 5-CENT 1861 FIRST DESIGN. ONLY 37 ARE RECORDED IN THE SIEGEL CENSUS.
Our census of Scott 57, available at https://siegelauctions.com/census/us/scott/57, contains a total of 37 copies of this rarity. Of these, one is in the Miller collection owned by The New York Public Library. Of the 36 available to collectors, two are cancelled, 19 have no gum, five have part original gum and ten have full (or nearly full) original gum.
Census no. 57-OG-23. With 1982 P.F. certificate.
Certificate
1982 PF No. 0115477 View Cert
10c Dark Green, First Design (62B). Original gum, lightly hinged, deep rich color and proof-like impression, diagonal crease at lower left, reperfed at right
EXTREMELY FINE APPEARING ORIGINAL-GUM EXAMPLE OF THE 10-CENT FIRST DESIGN, SCOTT 62B.
With 1980 P.F. certificate not mentioning the reperfing.
Certificate
1980 PF No. 92130 View Cert
12c Intense Black, First Design (59). Original gum, choice centering for this challenging issue with perfs well clear of the design on all sides, intense shade and detailed impression, tiny thin spot at top left
EXTREMELY FINE APPEARANCE. ONE OF ONLY FIFTEEN EXAMPLES OF THE 1861 12-CENT FIRST DESIGN AVAILABLE TO COLLECTORS, INCLUDING TEN WITH ORIGINAL GUM. A PHENOMENAL RARITY.
The 12c is the rarest of the 1861 First Designs and Colors, with a total of 16 examples recorded, including one in the Miller collection owned by The New York Public Library. Another has manuscript "New" written across the design, leaving fourteen. Our census is available at https://siegelauctions.com/census/US/Scott/59. Of the 15 copies available to collectors, only ten have full original gum. Of these ten, only three are sound. Only one of the no-gum stamps is sound (census no. 06). The example offered here, with gum, choice centering and a trivial thin that is virtually invisible, is highly desirable.
Census no. 59-OG-03. Ex Moody, "Ambassador" (Sale 300 in 1966), McNall, and from our 1977 and 1983 Rarities sales. With 1958 and 1992 P.F. certificates.
24c Dark Violet, First Color (60). Unused (no gum), intense shade and proof-like impression on bright fresh paper, choice centering, couple short perfs, small tear at bottom right
VERY FINE APPEARING EXAMPLE OF THE 24-CENT 1861 FIRST COLOR. AN EXTREMELY RARE STAMP.
The Dark Violet trial printing and Violet regular issue shades are often confused, and the Scott Catalogue adds to the confusion by putting the Dark Violet (the old Scott 60) in the Trial Color Proofs section as 70TCe, while the Violet gets a front seat as Scott 70c. In our opinion, there is no good reason to relegate the Dark Violet to the Trial Color Proof section.
With 1944 A.P.S. certificate.
Certificate
1944 A.P.S. No. 1125 View Cert
30c Red Orange, First Color (61). Unused (no gum), radiant color, deceptively reperfed at right
VERY FINE APPEARING EXAMPLE OF THE RARE 30-CENT 1861 FIRST COLOR. ONLY 34 ARE CONTAINED IN OUR RECORDS, OF WHICH 33 ARE AVAILABLE TO COLLECTORS.
Our census of Scott 61 at https://siegelauctions.com/census/us/scott/61 contains a total of 34 examples, including one in the Miller collection owned by The New York Public Library. Virtually all are centered to one side, and many are centered to one corner. A characteristic common to most examples of the 30c 1861 First Color is creasing, which in some cases is very severe and in others barely visible. Only ten stamps are confirmed as sound, with seven having original gum.
Census no. 61-UNC-07. Our census contains a photo of the stamp from the 1938 auction of the Cortlandt Bishop Collection, which shows the stamp with a straight edge at right. With clear 1951 P.F. certificate. Two additional clear certificates from 1962 and 1982 no longer accompany.
Certificate
1951 PF No. 2867 View Cert
90c Blue, First Design (62). Original gum, deep rich color, unusually choice centering
extremely fine. THIS IS WITHOUT QUESTION ONE OF THE FINEST EXAMPLES OF THE 90-CENT 1861 ISSUE FIRST DESIGN.
Our census of Scott 62, available at https://siegelauctions.com/census/us/scott/62, contains 22 examples, including one in the Miller collection owned by The New York Public Library and another copy certified as a privately perforated No. 62a, which comes from a set in the Col. Green sale that was signed by John Luff (we believe this stamp to be genuine). Another has been certified as genuine with a trial cancel. Excluding the NYPL copy and the ex-Green stamp just noted, only eight examples of the 90c First Design are available with original gum. Of these eight, only two are confirmed as sound (OG-09 and OG-05 offered here). One other (OG-02), known from a 1957 auction, needs to be examined for condition.
Census no. 62-OG-05. Ex Lilly, Seymour, Lessman and McNall. With 1949, 1972 and 1992 P.F. certificates.
90c Blue, First Design, Imperforate (72-E7g; formerly 62a). Unused (no gum), large even margins all around, detailed impression, Extremely Fine, for some reason Scott lists this only as a pair but it is mostly seen as singles, Scott value $4,500 as a pair
Certificate
1952 PF No. 3849 View Cert
90c Blue, First Design, Imperforate (72-E7g; formerly 62a). Unused (no gum), ample margins, deep rich color, fresh and Very Fine, ex Hewitt, with 1982 P.F. certificate as 62a, for some reason Scott lists this only as a pair but it is mostly seen as singles, Scott value $4,500 as a pair
Certificate
1982 PF No. 108416 View Cert