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Auction: CSS22 - Fine Stamps and Covers of China and Hong Kong
Lot: 2864

Hong Kong
Telegraph Stamps
Great Northern Telegraph Company
1874 25c. grey, $1 orange-yellow, $3 green and $10 rose-lilac set of four, each value in complete sheets of twenty five with control numbers. Also complete sheets of twenty five imperforate proofs in the correct colours.


The perforated sheets are fine and unmounted mint with "Serie F" control numbers "0776-0800" (25c.), "1351-1375" ($1), "1301-1325" ($3) and "1026-1050" ($10). The imperforate sheets have larger margins and without gum; unusually the 25c. is printed with "Serie F" controls "1876-1900".


A remarkable and very impressive group and is quite probably the only complete set of these sheet in private hands. This would make an important and desirable acquisition for any collector of Asian telegraphs. Hiscocks 1-4a. Photo

These stamps were printed by Waterlow & Sons and depict Professor H.C. Orsted, the Danish pioneer of electromagnetism.



This company was set up in 1870 to carry out the Russian contract to connect Japan, China and Hong Kong to Europe via their cable which terminated at Vladivostoc.


Three cable ships, CS Great Northern, CS Cella and CS Africa, undertook the main cable laying work, with a Danish naval vessel, the Tordenskjold, laying some of the shore ends. This ship was the first Danish vessel to pass through the Suez Canal. Three cables were laid during 1870-1: Vladivostock - Nagasaki 772 nautical miles; Nagasaki - Shanghai 491 nautical miles and Shanghai - Hong Kong 950 nautical miles. They opened for traffic on 1 January 1872.

Estimate
HK$90,000 to HK$100,000