One of the most elusive stamps for collectors of Germany is Michel A1, the "Vineta Provisional." It's one of the most controversial issues in German collecting, and either worthless or extremely valuable, depending on who you believe in the great debate!
First, a little history...
The SMS Vineta was a German Heavy Cruiser commissioned in 1897. In 1901, it embarked on a friendship tour of ports in the Americas. In January, the Vineta was in New Orleans during Emperor Wilhelm's birthday. There was considerable coverage in the local press, and many German crewmen sought to send copies of the local newspapers back to relatives in Germany. The newspapers didn't make it to the Vineta before she sailed, however. They caught up with her in Port of Span, Trinidad, in late March-early April, 1901.
The rate for mailing a newspaper at the time was 3 Pfennig. But German warships of the period didn't stock 3 Pf stamps. Instead, German postal regulations stipulated that since no stamps of the correct rate were available, the postage should be paid in cash. However, the Vineta's postal clerk, after consulting with the captain, bisected three sheets of 5 Pf stamps and used a rubber stamp to overprint each half "3 Pf", creating a total of 600 provisional stamps.
The German Postal Administration processed and delivered the items despite the unauthorized stamps, reasoning that because the captain was the highest authority available on the ship, his permission was sufficient. Since that time, however, the Vineta Provisional has become quite controversial, with many collectors and authors arguing that because it was never authorized postage, it's essentially worthless. For the rest of us, however, it's like an elusive white whale.
On 3 September, a Vineta Provisional on printed-matter wrapper was offered for auction by Württembergisches Auktionshaus in Stuttgart.
Final hammer price, €10,500 (US$14,688) + commission, etc. If only...
Posted 09/06/2011 9:02 pm
