Author Archives for James Grist

Tonga, Going, Gone

The James Teron collection of Tonga offered at Grosvenor in the British Empire & Foreign Countries sale on September 24th and 25th attracted great interest and strong results. The 1895 1d. olive-green, horizontal pair imperforate between and used with  a scarce part boxed “PACKET BOAT” handstamp [lot 1967] realised £4,560. Included were a number of rare full panes and other multiples amongst which was the attractive mint block … Read more...

The Many Delights of June in London

The June auction week at Grosvenor produced a highly satisfactory total of £708,989.

First to be offered was the remarkable Collection of Malta formed by John Birkett Allan on June 3rd, a landmark sale with its sale catalogue of 1,376 lots certain to become an invaluable work of reference for years to come.

Many individual results caught the eye, including the important order issued in 1798 by Napolean Bonaparte … Read more...

Green Shoots of Recovery?

The Specialised Great Britain auction held at Grosvenor on April 23^rd provided some evidence for a possible upturn in prices, reaching a pleasing final sale total of £267,313. Collections led the way, some reaching remarkable levels but there were also single items, mainly covers, that also caught the eye.

Among the collections offered, an impressively in-depth study of the King Edward VII 1d. [lot 591] did not surprise with … Read more...

Constanze Dennis (1990-2024)

It is with deep sadness that we announce the death of Managing Director, Constanze Dennis, at the end of December 2024. She was a unique character whose determination and courage were an inspiration to all.

Constanze grew up in what she described as ‘the beautiful market town of Chesterfield’  and had begun to collect stamps before winning a place to read physics at Magdalen College, Oxford. A diagnosis of leukemia … Read more...

The Bigger the Better?

The Specialised Great Britain Postage Stamps and Postal History auction held over two days at Grosvenor on October 30 and 31 achieved a final sale total of £310,714, showing a good overall demand for material but also reflecting a continuing volatility with certain specialist areas continuing to wallow in the doldrums.

The section of Collections & Mixed Lots that opened the first day provided an impressive start. A huge accumulation … Read more...

The Right to be Choosy

The Right to be Choosy

 The September auction week at Grosvenor achieved a pleasing final sale total of £841,405.

Bermuda was the leading country from the Langton Hill Collection, presented as a single auction.  Many important items appeared for sale, the 1620 and 1628 letters sent to England by John Hanmer [lot 166], the first being the second earliest in private hands, sold for £16,120. The used example … Read more...

Dorothy Sharp (1928 – 2024)

The Grosvenor graphic designer Dorothy Sharp passed away on June 25th, having  celebrated her 96^th birthday earlier in the month. She had worked as part of our team for over 25 years, the front cover of the recent GPA 159 catalogue being her final contribution.

Dorothy Bertha Merriton Sharp was born in Kent in 1928 and was the granddaughter of noted English historian Samuel Rawson Gardiner. After the death … Read more...

Uprising

The exceptionally large British Empire & Foreign Countries auction, a three day sale of nearly 2,700 lots, achieved an impressive final total of £858,935.

Proving itself the star lot of the sale, the set of Orange Free State postal fiscals and postage stamps in full sheets with values to £5 [lot 2424], were brought to England after the Anglo-Boer War by Major Sir John Hubert Ward KCVO who … Read more...