Encased Postage. Let's see 'um.
MWallace
Posts: 4,211 ✭✭✭✭✭
MWallace
Posts: 4,211 ✭✭✭✭✭
MWallace
Posts: 4,211 ✭✭✭✭✭
Comments
I have seen these before but not often. Looking forward to the other examples posted!
"But seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you" Matthew 6:33. Young fellow suffering from Bust Half fever.
BHNC #AN-10
JRCS #1606
Very cool.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
Don't see them much anymore ... but now that I know a friend who collect's 'em ...
Hope we see a bunch posted
“We are only their care-takers,” he posed, “if we take good care of them, then centuries from now they may still be here … ”
Todd - BHNC #242
If you're speaking of me, it's the only one I have. I wish I had more. For a couple of years I've been selling off much of my collection and slabbing the rest. I checked with them all and ICG is the only TPG that slabs them. My hat's off to them for doing so.
I'm not sure why PCGS or NGC never got around to slabbing them. They're a real part of our history, stemming from the same shortage of coinage that lead to civil war tokens.
I've never owned any, but that will likely change in the future.
Dead Cat Waltz Exonumia
"Coin collecting for outcasts..."
I agree totally. I won't say which one, but one of the other three TPGs responded to me in a sarcastic way when I asked if they slab encased postage, "We don't do stamps, we do coins!!"
I went to a small auction once. There was a lot of about 12 of them in there. I did a little research and found that one of them was very rare. Like this was the 3rd known. Estimate was $100-$200. I figured I would go to the auction and buy them cheap. That lot sold for $19,000+juice. No word of a lie. The person traveled from NY and I think he was going to win that lot no matter how much it cost. Everyone was stunned including the auctioneer.
It was a pretty cool experience.
WOW!! That's amazing. I guess at least two other people saw the rare one too. The seller must've been thrilled.
He was you could see it in his face. They arer all in great shape. I don't know how they grade them but by coin standards I would say xf/au. They still had all the silver coating on them. Just think rarest of the rare. This was an estate sale and all the numismatic items were from a chest in the attic. Classic attic find. I left with a bag of tokens. In that bag was a 1909 penny in one of those button type things that was super red and perfect. It's was fun. Auctions in person can get you in trouble that's for sure.
Encased postage stamps are very neat and a real part of Civil War era history but you have to be very careful when buying them. Some have been skillfully opened to replace a cracked mica window and some have been opened to replace a faded or stained stamp with a nicer stamp or with a stamp of higher denomination to enhance the collector value. Careful examination of the seam under high magnification is required to detect any evidence of a possible alteration.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
Great post
Never thought about these much but here is a great article by Dave Bowers from E-Sylum [2019] via the NNP.
.
https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/periodical/518804
.
"As to encased postage stamps, these were among several forms of substitute or emergency currency issued during the second year of the Civil War. By late 1861 the outcome of the war was uncertain. Both the Union and the Confederate States of America forces could claim victories. In England, the destination for much of the cotton produced in the South, CSA bonds denominated in British pounds found a ready sale. Citizens became alarmed, and gold coins were hoarded to the extent that by January 1862 they were no longer paid out by banks. Problems continued as the United States Treasury scrambled to raise funds by issuing Legal Tender Notes not redeemable in silver of gold coins. By late spring, all silver coins had disappeared from circulation."
.
THE BOWERS COLLECTION OF ENCASED POSTAGE STAMPS
.
Ayer's Cathartic Pills. Three Cents
.
B.F. Miles. One Cent
.
White the Hatter. One Cent
.
Successful transactions with : MICHAELDIXON, Manorcourtman, Bochiman, bolivarshagnasty, AUandAG, onlyroosies, chumley, Weiss, jdimmick, BAJJERFAN, gene1978, TJM965, Smittys, GRANDAM, JTHawaii, mainejoe, softparade, derryb
Bad transactions with : nobody to date
These are interesting. I have rarely seen mention of them, and have done no research. Had no idea that collectors could pay such premiums as noted above. Have never seen one at a show or shop. Cheers, RickO
There are several on eBay and they aren't cheap. I imagine their survival rate is very low.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
I remember seeing them regularly at medium sized shows 30-40 years ago, but like a lot of other things, they’ve disappeared. I recall thinking they were neat, but pricey even back then.
I was interested to learn that they were also made in Europe (maybe France) in the post-WWI years.
There are some foreign encased stamps currently on eBay. Apparently, they borrowed the idea from the US.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
>
Mike, yes, I was speaking about you. Doesn't mean you might not want another one, does it?
And yes, I remember what we talked about with the downsizing and such.
The funny thing is I saw three of these over the Christmas holidays in an antique shop we stopped by. I looked at them, but we were doing other things and I never even inquired about a price or studied them really close. Maybe I should have after reading the post from @Watchtower . I'll have to see if my Brother will be back up that way (they're not near me) and ask him to stop in to see if they are still there and send me some images (and ask what they want for them).
Kind of cool that ICG is slabbing them.
“We are only their care-takers,” he posed, “if we take good care of them, then centuries from now they may still be here … ”
Todd - BHNC #242