Spectacular Invert Collection Goes Up For Auction

Cherrystone Auctions of New York will be auctioning the Mahendra Sagar Collection, which they describe as "undoubtedly one of the greatest offerings of inverted centers of the world." The auction which will be held Oct. 5-6 features 578 lots with a number of unique items including the United States 1869 24c imperforate and 24c on cover.

Worldwide material is also well represented with many spectacular rarities such as the 1956 Olympics stamp from Poland which is shown above. It's pre-auction estimated value is $23,000.

According to Cherrystone, "An inverted center exists when a design element is inverted with respect to the rest of the design. This includes inverted embossing, background, colors, inscriptions, or values. Inverted Centers are often called the Aristocrats of Philatelic Errors. They are the most recognizable rarities in the world of philately. When exhibited, inverts immediately become a center of attraction. After all, who hasn't heard of the Inverted Jenny or 1854 inverted Queen Victoria from India? Less known, however, is the fact that such printing errors have occurred in almost all stamp-issuing countries. Most of them are rare and elusive, but can still be acquired for relatively modest sums. The key to creating a significant collection of inverted centers requires an eye for detecting such errors and patience to scan literally thousands of catalogs and lots."

Portions of the proceeds from the auction will go to charitable institutions like Vipassana Research Institute, Buddhist Global Relief and others that focus on education, poverty reduction and hunger elimination.

Click here to view the collection online. For more information, e-mail info@cherrystoneauctions.com or phone (800) 886-9313.