Auction Detail

13X1, Bridgeville, AL 5c Black & red, horizontal pair with pen cancels on neat 1862 folded letter to Columbia, South Carolina, light July 31 Bridgeville postmark at top left, horizontal crease away from stamp, right stamp with a pre-use vertical crease, very fine, described in the Caspary sale as "one of the outstanding Confederate items known" and illustrated in that catalogue's full-color frontispiece, this pair are the only two recorded examples of the Bridgeville Provisional either on- or off-cover, an extraordinary cover, 2022 Philatelic Foundation certificate (Scott $20,000, an outdated value) Provenance: Count Philipp von Ferrary (Gilbert Sale 4, 1922) Alfred H. Caspary (H.R. Harmer Sale 989, 1956) Josiah K. Lilly (R.A. Siegel Sale 317, 1967) David Carnahan (Sotheby Parke Bernet, 1978)

18XU1, Columbia, SC, 5c Blue entire, Type I, extraordinarily clear strike of provisional handstamp on orange cover to Charleston, South Carolina, matching "Columbia S.C. 27 Nov" datestamp and straightline "Paid", manuscript "In haste" at bottom left, very fine and choice, when sold in the Caspary sale in 1956 this cover realized $95 against a Scott catalogue value of $40 (Scott $900)
Provenance: Alfred H. Caspary (H.R. Harmer Sale 989, 1956)

20XU2, Dalton, GA, 5c Black entire, provisional marking at upper right with "Dalton Ga. Aug 14 1862" datestamp at left, cover addressed to Anderson Court House, South Carolina, docketing at top center reads "Rec'd Aug'st 17, Sunday, enclosed is Edward's first letter to Lucy", extremely fine (Scott $1,250) Provenance: "Atlanta" (John W. Kaufmann, 1981) John R. Hill, Jr. (Private transaction)

30X1, Gonzales, Texas 5c Gold on Dark blue, vertical pair tied by light strikes of Gonzales postmarks on large part of buff cover with military address in Corinth, Mississippi, manuscript "Paid 10" at top right, pair with vertical crease prior to use, cover roughly opened at bottom, just three covers are known with the 5c Gold on blue Gonzales Provisional, each with a pair and to the same addressee, these three covers were first announced and illustrated in Mekeel's Weekly Stamp News in February of 1898, a great Confederate rarity, 2022 Philatelic Foundation certificate (Scott $15,000) In his 2012 book, The Great Texas Stamp Collection, Charlie Deaton describes the history of the Gonzales Provisionals in detail. Gonzales, Texas used advertising labels from the firm of Coleman & Law as provisional stamps twice during the Civil War (first in 1861 and later in 1864-65). John V. Law, co-owner of the firm, also served as the town's postmaster. As these labels were also attached to the insides of books (and perhaps medicine bottles) there have been counterfeit covers produced over the years, and genuine uses on cover remain exceedingly scarce. 

32XU1, Greensboro, North Carolina 10c Red entire, mostly clear strike of provisional marking at upper right with matching "Greensboro N.C. Feb 22" datestamp at left, cover addressed to Raleigh, North Carolina, fine and rare, just nine examples of this envelope recorded (Scott $1,250) Provenance: Alex Hall (R.A. Siegel Sale 795, 1997)