[et_pb_section fb_built=\u00a0\u00bb1″ _builder_version=\u00a0\u00bb4.9.4″ _module_preset=\u00a0\u00bbdefault\u00a0\u00bb custom_padding=\u00a0\u00bb0px|||||\u00a0\u00bb][et_pb_row _builder_version=\u00a0\u00bb4.9.4″ _module_preset=\u00a0\u00bbdefault\u00a0\u00bb custom_padding=\u00a0\u00bb||16px|||\u00a0\u00bb][et_pb_column type=\u00a0\u00bb4_4″ _builder_version=\u00a0\u00bb4.9.4″ _module_preset=\u00a0\u00bbdefault\u00a0\u00bb][et_pb_text _builder_version=\u00a0\u00bb4.9.4″ _module_preset=\u00a0\u00bbdefault\u00a0\u00bb custom_padding=\u00a0\u00bb||0px|||\u00a0\u00bb hover_enabled=\u00a0\u00bb0″ sticky_enabled=\u00a0\u00bb0″]<\/p>\n
If our last<\/em><\/a> legendary collector had a philatelic personnel file as thick and hefty as an old oak tree, then our next legend is the polar opposite, not that his accomplishments were less weighty, because in fact they were substantially greater, but information surrounding the life of, Alphonse Mayer von Rothschild (1878 to 1942)<\/strong>, is so scant that, excuse the pun, it is as wafer thin and lightweight as a postage stamp. However, the philanthropist Alphonse, a member of the famous banking family, was a legendary Austrian Philatelist, who also amassed a phenomenal art collection, as well as a renowned library of classic literature, and assembled one of the most significant and comprehensive stamp collections ever formed – which, several decades after his passing, took a number of years to sell in substantial auction sales, totalling almost \u00a37m in sales. <\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n What is recorded about Rothschild the man is intriguing given his desire to remain private and avoid the bright lights of commerce and public notoriety. Of course he was extraordinarily wealthy, thanks to the legacy left to him by his father, whose grandfather was the founder of the esteemed Rothschild banking empire, and this unimaginable mountain of cash provided the funds to buy some of the world\u2019s great rarities, and enabled him more than a degree of flexibility on how to live his life. However, our shy stamp protagonist didn\u2019t shirk his national duty and it can certainly not be claimed his riches made him namby-pamby, the reality being when required he was vividly valiant. Firstly, he had a distinguished military career, serving in the Austro-Hungarian army for the duration of World War I, 1914 to 1918. He was called-up to the Imperial and Royal 6th Dragoon regiment as a Lieutenant on the eastern front against the Russians, before a spell with the 7th Cavalry Division, and later being promoted to the rank of Cavalry Captain and serving on the Italian front-line. It\u2019s a curious period in our legendary collectors time on this planet, because he clearly put his head above the parapet and indeed when discharged from the military in 1918 he was awarded the, \u2018The Ottoman War Medal\u2019 known in Austria as the \u2018Iron Crescent\u2019 (Kaiserlich-Ottomanische Kriegsmedaille), and the fact he survived four long years in the trenches, and with flying colours, or perhaps more appropriately sparkling stirrups, tells us he had a lot more about him than a family name and a healthy bank balance.\u00a0 It\u2019s also an enigma that our philatelic Rothschild was known to his close friends and family as \u201cBuster\u201d, which is perhaps not only a contradiction to his delicate public persona, but also a poke in the eye to the stereotype image of a stamp collector, because the nickname denoted that Alphonse was a \u2018tough guy\u2019.<\/p>\n Admittedly, insights such as these are rather limited when flicking through the available pages of his life file, which can not be said of the pages of the auction catalogues for his Italy, Italian States, Finland, Russia, German and of course Austria collections, to name but a few.\u00a0 It seems despite the world-class collection, his mark on the philatelic world was a reflection of his personal life in that he kept his activities on a need to know basis and very low profile, so although he was decorated for his courage on the frontline in the first world war, there are no medals or decorations to illustrate such a distinguished service in the mud, bullets and glory of stamps.<\/p>\n Having said that, what he assembled is tough for any guy or girl to eclipse and could almost be described as heroic in scale and nature. Which perhaps is a better illustration of his adhesive achievements and poetically the albums containing his gigantic collection were taller and almost as hefty as our aforementioned old oak tree, the contents which resulted in there being more written about the Alphonse Collection stamps than about the man himself, which is a tad ironic given his name means \u201cready for battle<\/em>\u201d! What is apparent is that Alphonse Mayer von Rothschild, is a \u2018Heroic\u2019 philatelist.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=\u00a0\u00bb4.9.4″ _module_preset=\u00a0\u00bbdefault\u00a0\u00bb custom_padding=\u00a0\u00bb3px|||||\u00a0\u00bb][et_pb_column type=\u00a0\u00bb4_4″ _builder_version=\u00a0\u00bb4.9.4″ _module_preset=\u00a0\u00bbdefault\u00a0\u00bb][et_pb_image src=\u00a0\u00bbhttps:\/\/www.davidfeldman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/1852_Papal_states_sheet_stamps.png\u00a0\u00bb alt=\u00a0\u00bb1852 Papal States stamps\u00a0\u00bb title_text=\u00a0\u00bb1852_Papal_states_sheet_stamps\u00a0\u00bb _builder_version=\u00a0\u00bb4.9.4″ _module_preset=\u00a0\u00bbdefault\u00a0\u00bb max_width=\u00a0\u00bb57%\u00a0\u00bb module_alignment=\u00a0\u00bbcenter\u00a0\u00bb hover_enabled=\u00a0\u00bb0″ url=\u00a0\u00bbhttps:\/\/www.davidfeldman.com\/dfsa-auctions\/2021-autumn-auction-series\/all-world-and-collections\/40206\/papal-states-1852-1-scudo-carmine-rose-the-extraor\/?soff_session_keywords=papal+&soff_session_page=1&soff_auction_browse=1″ sticky_enabled=\u00a0\u00bb0″][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=\u00a0\u00bb4.9.4″ _module_preset=\u00a0\u00bbdefault\u00a0\u00bb text_font=\u00a0\u00bb||on||||||\u00a0\u00bb text_text_color=\u00a0\u00bb#8e8e8e\u00a0\u00bb text_font_size=\u00a0\u00bb12px\u00a0\u00bb text_line_height=\u00a0\u00bb1.3em\u00a0\u00bb text_orientation=\u00a0\u00bbcenter\u00a0\u00bb custom_margin=\u00a0\u00bb-16px|||||\u00a0\u00bb hover_enabled=\u00a0\u00bb0″ sticky_enabled=\u00a0\u00bb0″]<\/p>\n Papal States 1852 <\/a>1 scudo carmine-rose, the extraordinary complete sheet of fifty, once in the collection of Rothschild and sold in the David Feldman SA, December 2021 for 146\u2019400 Euros. Lot 40206<\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=\u00a0\u00bb4.9.4″ _module_preset=\u00a0\u00bbdefault\u00a0\u00bb hover_enabled=\u00a0\u00bb0″ sticky_enabled=\u00a0\u00bb0″]<\/p>\n You can catch-up on the previous 30 legendary collectors by clicking the links: Legendary Collectors: <\/em>Part 1<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 2<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 3<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 4<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 5<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 6<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 7<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 8<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 9<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 10<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 11<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 12<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 13<\/em><\/a><\/span>,\u00a0 <\/em>Part 14<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 15<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 16<\/em><\/a><\/span>,\u00a0 <\/em>Part 17<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 18<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 19<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 20<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 21<\/em><\/a><\/span>, P<\/em>art 22<\/em><\/a><\/span>, P<\/em>art 23<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 24<\/em><\/a><\/span>, Part 25<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 26<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 27<\/em><\/a><\/span>, <\/em>Part 28<\/em><\/a>, Part 29<\/em><\/a>, <\/span>and<\/em> Part 30<\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" If our last legendary collector had a philatelic personnel file as thick and hefty as an old oak tree, then our next legend is the polar opposite, not that his accomplishments were less weighty, because in fact they were substantially greater, but information surrounding the life of, Alphonse Mayer von Rothschild (1878 to 1942), is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":31,"featured_media":36000,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[311,624],"tags":[609,651],"class_list":["post-35992","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-famous-philatelists","category-digest_articles","tag-legendary-collectors","tag-papal-states"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n