Tasty Tyrian Plum, Or How I Spent My Child's College Savings

I know, it isn't KGV, but I still like it. One of the great KEVII pieces is available at auction in a Grosvenor auction held today and tomorrow.

The unissued 2d King Edward VII in Tyrian Plum (that's a color, not a small town in England) was prepared for a 1910 issue, but the king died and the stamp was canceled. Gibbons says one was actually used.

It is a good looking stamp, but the catalogue is 85,000 pounds, and the estimate is 40-45,000 pounds.

Here it is, courtesy of the auction site:

Beautiful !
I could almost eat it !

Londonbus1.....well, you did say it was a plum...didn't you?

a used copy of Eddy 7 would be nice !!

Too bad he died.i think there were still one or two women in England he did not get to know yet !!

The two pence (2d) Tyrian plum is a postage stamp that was produced by Britain in
1910 as a replacement for the bi-coloured stamp which was in current use at the time.
Its longer appellation was given as it bore the likeness of King Edward VII.

A hundred thousand sheets totalling 24,000,000 stamps were printed and delivered to
the post office stores for distribution to Postmasters. The circulation of these new
stamps was delayed whilst existing stocks of the current stamp were used up so that
the change would take effect at one time and the amount of surplus stock of the old
value would be kept to a minimum.

Following the death of Edward VII, it was decided not to go ahead with this new
issue; almost all the stock was destroyed, and only a few examples survive.

A single used example is known used on a cover which was sent by the then Prince of
Wales, later King George V, to himself. This example is in the Royal Philatelic
Collection.

Its good to be king. Thanks for fleshing out the story of the one used copy. I wondered if it was held in the royal collection. And how.

I would have liked to hear the story behind the "Tyrian Plum" colour Collin, and how they came about it.
"Tyrian Purple" is a famous colour I researched a few years ago, that began in pre history, through Roman times, and today witnessed still in the robes in the Church etc.

maybe LB has another that he can auction in the forum in MNH of course