Sale 3031 United States & British Commonwealth Stamps and Covers

572, 1923 $2 Deep blue, plate number single (#14306) tied by wavy line Washington, DC March 20, 1923 machine cancel, typed addressed to Edward C. Worden, bit of mounting residue on reverse, Molesworth notation "Rare - only few known," Very Fine, a spectacular first day cover being offered on its own merits (Scott $17,500)rnThis cover is accompanied by a folder of correspondence that details its provenance and authenticity. The cover was purchased from Jack Molesworth in 1974 and sumbitted to the AFDCS for a certificate in 1977. Adam K. Bert, chairman of the Expertising Committee, wrote a full-page letter detailing the reasons he and others were skepical of the cover; specifically, the wavy line Washington, DC postmark was unlike any they knew to be used at that time, and the difference in impression between the lines and the circle raised red flags. Through correspondence with another collector (William S. Ahrens) it was revealed that this cover had a "sister," a 564-69 combination first day cover with the same type of Washington, DC cancellation.rnThe correspondence tantalizingly concludes with a letter dated June 7, 1982 from Ahrens to the owner, which reads:rn"I was fortunate to attend the AFDCS convention at Washington, DC. During a meeting Mr. Ed Siskin mentioned that there is now proof of a cancellation device existing in Washington, DC on March 20, 1923 which produced that thin wavy cancel. In other words your cover is legit. If you resubmit it you should receive a good certificate. P.S. It was one helluva convention."