Lot 20138 – Coamo Provisional. 5c black, complete sheet of ten

Coamo Provisional. 1898, 5c black, complete sheet of ten, types II-I-I-I-I / III-III-IV-II-II, exhibiting the design quite clear with faint strikes of the violet « F. Santiago » straight-line control mark of the Mayor of Coamo, ample to large margins with almost full original gum, very good impression and freshness, top right stamp with light staining caused by water, not mentioned in the certificate; one of only six complete sheets recorded; cert. PF (1976), signed Mekeel; Scott $10’000; ex Gándara and Acevedo.

Note: When the Spanish retreated, they took with them the stamps and postal devices, when they were not destroyed afterwards by the population. Before new issues under the American administration became available, few towns used provisional stamps or markings under the control of the the Mayors. In the case of Coamo, the mayor Santiago, applied his « F. Santiago » control mark on the issued stamps to avoid counterfeits. 50 sheets were printed for a total of 500 stamps issued; over half of those sheets were bough to the U.S. by Mr. Alfred Tittman, an American stamp collector, and Charles Havilland Mekeel, a well-known American stamp dealer and editor of numerous philatelic journals, sold much of the available items, also cutting up sheets into singles. The present block was signed on reverse « Guaranteed – CHMeekeel ».