The last auction from Raritan had some Armenian stuff. Three items and a collection: together four lots. All of them were sold and fetched prices well above the initial listing. This is good news, because it shows the market for Armenian philatelic material is well alive and kicking.
Lets have a look at those four lots.
Number 206
A full sheet of the black 25r surcharge on Romanov Dynasty 4k red. First impression: looks genuine. Sold for 675 USD not including the 15% buyer’s premium.
Number 207
Nice cover with 5 and 10k overprints on Second Essayan issue. First impression: looks legit. The realized price of 1800 USD not including the 15% buyer’s premium seems quite formidable and is far above the initial listing price.
Number 208
A nice money order from Karavasarai to Delishan with Trancsaucasian franking. Very clear cancel impressions. Went for 200 USD not including 15% buyers premium. This seems to be rather low in comparison to the price the letter received. Even if considering that this issues are not “pure” Armenian and this being “just a money order”. On the plus side, the item seems to be not philatelic inspired, this issue was not forged and it is a chance to buy a nice item for few money. First impression: genuine.
Number 209
A collection of about 2000 stamps. I did not count them, the figures are from the description of Raritan. They also note “The Collection contains some reference material, forgeries and stamps of questionable status”. This is obviously the case. I marked – without spending much time – the stamps of the first page that are looking forged. An exclamation mark is for the real stinkers – overprints that are so crudely made, it brings water to the eyes. The collection brought 2000 USD (again you have to add 15% buyers premium), starting was at 1300 USD. While this is just a bit more than 1 USD per stamp, I am still unsure if I would have bought this… Still a nice achievement for Raritan and the seller.
A question about the Raritan cover to Germany: is there a sixth 5k stamp missing at top left? (i.e. was it a block of 6?) The reason I ask is that I recognize 40 gold kopeks as a postal rate for registered mail abroad from other areas in the late Civil War era, e.g. the Far Eastern Republic, but since I know nothing about Armenian rates it’s pure conjecture…I’m also surprised by the absence of a Moscow transit marking.
That is indeed a good question. The paper below the removed stamp (assumed this was the case) seems to be in perfect condition. Also there is no leftover of a sixth cancel.
It certainly would be interesting to study this cover in more detail – which is only meaningful when holding the item in ones hands.