Lot
2670 
Postal Card, 1920, 1¢ on 2¢ red on cream, clear surcharge, cancelled by "Long Beach Calif. Mar 21 1921" way machine cancel to local address, back of card with Long Beach Public Library notice notifying recipient that his book is reserved until Mar. 24, small light creases at top center and bottom, Very Fine, ex-Falberg; with 2006 P.F. certificate. Scott No. UX36 $75,000.
THOUGHT TO BE THE FINEST OF ONLY THREE CONFIRMED EXAMPLES OF THE ERROR SURCHARGE ON THE 1911 2¢ GRANT INTERNATIONAL POSTAL CARDS. THE KEY ITEM IN THE FIELD OF POSTAL CARD COLLECTING.
As part of the postal rate increases that were put in place to help fund World War I, the domestic postal card rate was increased from 1¢ to 2¢. New 2¢ Jefferson cards (Scott UX29 and UX30) were created to meet this rate. When the war ended, prewar rates were restored, including the 1¢ card rate. In at least 46 cities, leftover 2¢ cards were subsequently surcharged "1 cent" using special revaluing dies that were fitted into local canceling machines. The country was being flooded with with revalued postal cards from many different cities and dies, but a few examples of genuine error entered the mail stream from the Los Angeles post office, where the 1¢ surcharge was applied not just to the proper 2¢ Jefferson cards, but also to a few copies of the 2¢ Grant international card of 1911. The card offered here was discovered in 1992 by an auction describer in a balance lot that the owner had suggested contained nothing but junk, and last sold in 2010 for the record price of $109,250.
The four recorded examples including the unconfirmed:
1. Mar. 21, 1921. Long Beach Cal. to local city address. Long Beach Library notice, ex-Falberg, the card offered here.
2. Mar. 22, 1921. Long Beach Cal. to local city address. Long Beach Library notice, ex-Clark H. Stevens, Scarsdale.
3. 1921, Elk Club notice, ex-Dr. Mitchell
4. 1921, Elks Club notice, discovery copy by Elks Club member, perhaps discarded and lost to philately as not seen since 1923.
Realized: $80,000