L1305s

Cats

American Shorthair Persian

Fred Collins Signature 

Summ2024 Mail Sale Commentary  

Lot 9 L1301 to L1305 — Cats — (L1301 is included free with L1302 to L1305) — 2-5-88 

This endearing commemorative set of cat stamps includes four different first day covers with one stamp on each as well as a cachet which is surrounded by all four stamps. Each of the stamps features two different breeds. When they were issued, a blurb was released by the Postal Service stating: "Cats have been held in high esteem for thousands of years. The ancient Egyptians worshipped cats and frequently had them mummified whey they died. Cats are very independent animals — so much so that it's been said that no one 'owns' a cat — it just lives with its human counterpart through mutual consent. These U.S. postage stamps were issued to pay tribute to cats and feature eight of the over 40 recognized breeds." It was a very busy trip, and my flight home just beat an incoming February snowstorm!

My L1301 cover shows a playful kitten in a colorful flower garden swiping at a just-outof-reach vibrant butterfly Flanking the center-positioned hand-painted cachet are two stamps on each side. And each of the stamps showcases two breeds of cats. Two of the wonderful close-up stamps are postmarked with the New York City official cancel. The L1301 is still available at this time but is being included free with this lot. The two remaining stamps are postmarked with a wonderful unofficial first day cancel with killer bars from Paw Paw, Michigan. The unofficial is a large black cancel with killer bars and the quality is very good. The other four hand-painted covers each have an individual stamp and adorable cachets. L1302 has the Siamese Cat and Exotic Shorthair Cats on the stamp. The-cachet is of two cats playing with colorful balls of yarn. The stamp on the L1303 shows Abyssinian and Himalayan Cats. The cachet shows two cats sitting on a windowsill contentedly licking their paws with a snowy winter landscape outside the window.

The stamp on my L1304 cover highlights a Maine Coon Cat and Burmese Cat. In the cachet, a cat sits on a table attempting to "play" with tropical fish in the family's fishbowl. The final stamp in the mini-set shows American Shorthair and Persian Cats. The cachet is a marvelous close-up of a fluffy Persian show cat. Several of the individual covers have been in previous mail sales from 2017 through 2021