The Territorial Collectivity of St. Pierre and Miquelon, the only remnant of the former French colonial empire in North America, is comprised of two small groups of islands off the coast of Newfoundland. From a philatelic investment perspective, it is of interest because its stamps are popular in Canada and among collectors of French Colonies - both growing markets. The scarcest stamps of St. Pierre and Miquelon exist within two broad groups: the 19th century surcharges and overprints, and the 1941-42 "France Libre" overprints.
As with all overprints, some of these stamps have been faked at one time or another, so I recommend that stampselectors focus only on those which are worth getting expertized.
The first stamps of the colony were primitive surcharges. I've listed the better ones, along with their printing quantities (when known) and Scott '10 Catalog Values for unused, below:
- 1885 05c on 40c Vermilion on straw (Scott #1; 4,000; $ 140.- )
- 1885 05c on 35c Black on yellow (Scott #4; 1,500; $ 140.-)
- 1885 05c on 75c Carmine on rose (Scott #5; 1,800; $ 375.-)
- 1885 25c on 1fr Bronze Green on straw, surcharge type 'c' (Scott #7; 340; $ 13,000.-)
- 1885 25c on 1fr Bronze Green on straw; surcharge type 'd' (Scott #8; 300; $ 2,500.-)
- 1885 5c on 2c Brown on buff (Scott #9; extremely rare; $ 6,500.-)
- 1885 5c on 4c Claret on lavender (Scott #10; 900; $ 500.-)
- 1886 5c Black (Scott #12; Rare; $ 1,350.-)
- 1886 10c Black (Scott #13; Rare; $ 1,450.-)
- 1886 15c Black (Scott #14; Rare; $ 1,300.-)
- 1891 15c on 35c Black on orange, surcharge type 'e' (Scott #16; 850; $ 675.-)
- 1891 15c on 35c Black on orange, surcharge type 'f' (Scott #17; 850; $ 2,000.-)
- 1891 15c on 40c Red on straw, surcharge type 'e' (Scott #18; 5,000; $ 110.-)
Some of the other better 19th century issues, and the "France Libre" overprints, will be dealt with in future articles.
No comments:
Post a Comment