Shropshire stamp collector's life's work go under the hammer at auction
A Shropshire stamp collector's life's work was going under the hammer today, as 29 albums covering more than a century are sold at auction.
The albums are expected to fetch between £1,600 and £2,000 and contain a some very rare gems, such as an unused 1920 Postal Union Congress £1 black stamp that is worth £400 alone.
The collection once belonged to a collector from Broseley who recently died.
The albums were today being auctioned at Halls' Auctioneers' Battlefield site in Shrewsbury.
Derek Ainsworth, Halls' stamps specialist, said: "The son and daughter-in-law brought in several boxes with the albums and other bits and bobs.
"This chap must have been collecting since he was a boy – I would think it must have been something of an obsession, it would have certainly kept him out of mischief, lets put it that way. He collected stamps from Britain, the Commonwealth, Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man and it's one of the best collections that we have been asked to sell for a number of years.
"They are high quality stamps and this collector obviously had very good taste."
He said one particular album includes stamps relating to the silver jubilee of George V in 1935 up to the 1948 Olympic Games, including World War Two victory stamps.
"That's quite an album," he said. There are also stamps relating to the Coronations of George VI and Elizabeth II
But among the rarest specimens in the albums is the £1 black stamp, he said.
"The £1 black stamp is in mint condition, and it's almost an iconic grade stamp. We have had one in before on its own and it fetched £400."
Another such specimen goes back even further, to turn of the century – and Edward VII £1 green stamp in used condition, valued at about £200.
"Not many people used the £1 stamp, back in Edwardian times the average wage was about 10 shillings (half a pound) a week. It would be an awful lot of money," Mr Ainsworth said.
"The collector has got stamps from 1840 right up to the present day, it's fairly rare that you find a collection so comprehensive."
