The auction of Stamps and Covers from the Royal Philatelic Collection at Spink, London on 17 May 2001 was a much-anticipated sale. It was the first time that items with such an extraordinary and distinguished provenance were made available to collectors and as expected, many of the items realised prices that were well over the pre-sale estimates.

Of particular interest is a rare first day usage of the Penny Black (see below). The entire from Liverpool to Abergavenny cancelled with a red Maltese Cross on 1840 (6 May) quickly rose to close at £20,000 after fierce biddings. Its pre-sale estimate was £6,000-8,000.



Lot number 127, a Cape of Good Hope 1861 "Woodblock" 1d. pale Milky Blue error of colour in pair with normal (see right), had sparks flying. This is a classic rarity with a very fine "C/G H" cancellation. This is the same pair that was included in the display of the Royal Philatelic Collection at the Stamp Show 2000 in London and in the book by Sir John Wilson Bt.

Again fierce biddings, from the pre-sale estimate of £18,000-20,000, pushed it to close at the final £60,000.