Rare Stamp Certified by ASG Has Starting Price of More than $100,000 at Auction

A seldom-seen Chinese stamp with a highly sought-after error is among hundreds of philatelic rarities certified by Authenticated Stamp Guaranty® (ASG®) being offered in an upcoming sale. Bidding is already underway for John Bull Auctions' 2023 Winter Auction, which will be held in Hong Kong December 16-19, 2023.

The top ASG-certified stamp in the auction is a China Withdrawn 22 Fen - 5th Congress of World Students graded ASG VF/XF 85 Mint (lot 3168), with a starting price of HKD 900,000 (about $116,000). The stamps were recalled just days before their release date because it was discovered that they incorrectly listed the name of the International Union of Students event that they promoted. A very small number were already purchased prior to the recall, and today, these stamps are among the most valuable in Chinese philately.

Click image to enlarge.

This was one of the rare and valuable stamps submitted to ASG during an on-site grading event that ASG held in October in Hong Kong. At on-site grading events, ASG’s full expert and impartial authentication, grading and encapsulation services are offered on location with an extremely fast turnaround time. As part of ASG's continuing commitment to serving China's thriving philatelic community, another on-site grading event is scheduled in Hong Kong from December 13-27, 2023. To learn more, click here.

Other ASG-certified highlights in the auction include:

• a block of four China 1980 8 Fen - Year of the Monkey stamps graded ASG XF 90 Mint OG (lot 3800), with a starting price of HKD 40,000 (about $5,100)
• a group of eight China 1967 stamps graded ASG VF/XF 85 Mint OG to ASG XF 90 Mint OG (lot 3477), with a starting price of HKD 20,000 (about $2,600)
• a group of eight China 1962 stamps graded ASG VF/XF 85 Mint OG to ASG XF 90 Mint OG (lot 3268), with a starting price of HKD 20,000 (about $2,600)
• a China (1897) Qing Dynasty Red Revenue Stamp - 1 Dollar Surcharged in Black on a 3 Cent - Large Characters graded ASG VF/XF 85 Mint OG (lot 5179), with a starting price of HKD 20,000 (about $2,600)
• a China 1980 8 Fen - Year of the Monkey graded ASG XF/Superb 95 Mint OG (lot 3806), with a starting price of HKD 15,000 (about $1,900)
• a pair of China 1980 8 Fen - Year of the Monkey stamps graded ASG VF/XF 85 Mint OG (lot 3797), with a starting price of HKD 15,000 (about $1,900)

Starting prices are provided by the auction house. The $ symbol represents US Dollars.