A marginal example of the 1882 £5 Orange has starred in a US philatelic auction, selling as top lot in the Great Britain section.
The November 8 sale was held in New York, yet saw strong demand for British stamps with almost all of the offerings selling well.
 The £5 Orange began life as a telegraph stamp |
The design for the 1882 £5 orange was first employed on telegraph stamps. The plate for the telegraph was later altered for the postage stamp by removing the word "telegraphs" from the top edge, replacing it with "postage" using a second plate.
The example at auction was a stunning left sheet margin example, lettered A-F. Having never been hinged and in post office fresh condition, it boasted perfectly white paper where earlier printings were blued. Excellent perforations further accentuated its very fine condition and, accompanied by a 1985 Dr Enzo Diena certificate, it sold for $20,000.
Paul Fraser Collectibles is currently offering an excellent used example of the 1882 £5 Orange, which is lettered AL and cancelled with a 13 December 1901 LANCASTER circular date stamp.
Also selling well was a vertical sheet margin pair of the 1846 10d brown, which was unused with full original gum. Having been lightly hinged and showing a tiny scissor cut between the two stamps, the lot sold for $9,000.
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