Brazil – 1843 « Bull’s Eyes » 60r & 90r, the sensational assembly made up of 84 items, comprising:

60 réis: one negative glass cliché in brown-red dated Feb-34, and ten glass support clichés with the image reversed in predominantly dark brown and red, of which two dated August 1941, and two of higher interest with notes including « passable qq. copie rereretouché » (fair -result- some copies ‘rereretouched’, which probably caused some frustration in Sperati) and « tiré 10/42 » (‘issued’ in Oct-42), the other showing a quite clear impression and annotated « 23 x 5 x 1’30 »  » (5% of a chemical substance, light exposure of 1 min 30 secs under 23°C temperature); six clichés on celluloid with three being negative, in shades from black and red, including notes « expo. (…) 15″ verm x 2 » (we presume that he only exposed to light the cliché to light for 15 secs twice (?)) and indicating that it was ‘issued’ in Oct-42, which is a coincident date in other two clichés being negative; two trial exposures on photographic paper and 21 essays or ‘die’ proofs on wove paper also including multiple impressions and combined with cancellations.

90 réis: an exceptional master negative which also exhibits a static cancellation highlighted in yellow –an extraordinary feature in the Sperati archive-, with the denomination and the four spandrels being extensively retouched, annotated in pencil « Alpha » which refers to a type of celluloid from the « Ilford » brand which he coukd not obtain during WWII as a result of the restrictions on circulation of merchandise (this is dated 1941 and also 10/42, which makes this use rare in this period), and other notes about the usage of a double film in formol and otehr element for one night; also one glass cliché with « 17° x 5% x 2′  » (exposure to light during 2 mins under 17°C, with a 5% of a chemical substance) and cliché on celluloid, both in black, as well as three trial exposures on photo paper from the negative master of this lot, which was also used in the three essays on paper also presented here (one in pair) and numbered from 5 to 7 incl. one 6bis.

Cancellations: four types including framed « Maceio », « Pelotas » straight-line, « Correio Geral da Corte » cds and « Victoria straight-line, with two negative glass clichés, one dated 11/43, and 11 clichés on film/celluloid, some in negative and/or with two strikes with dates of production ranging from 10/42 to 6/45and 19 essays on pelure or mainly medium white wove abundant notes in pencil by Sperati.

Certainly the largest assembly of the Sperati production for Brazil recorded, of great delight and fascination as the « Bull’s Eyes » represent the first issue of the American continent; only few trial exposures were gathered in the « Ultimate » collection with no previous elements of the process of reproduction, and in the Musée de la Poste of Paris no clichés or matrices are found for Brazil; the B.P.A. does not mention any matrix or cliché in its book.