C1602A

Migratory Bird

Lesser Scaups - Rabbit

Spring 2021 Mail Sale Commentary 

Lot 16 C1602a — Lesser Scaup — 1989 Federal Duck Stamp — Cottontail Rabbit Variety — 6/30/89

This is one of the most intriguing and desirable lots in the entire sale. If you are missing this cachet variety in your collection, now is one of the few opportunities you will ever have to acquire it. The bottom line is that only 73 exist with the Cottontail Rabbit cachet (C1602a). If you are a duck cover enthusiast, or if you like to seek out the scarcer Collins covers, this one is for you. Since so few covers were produced for each wildlife species, I look for these items to increase dramatically in value and also to become more difficult to find. If you need the Cottontail Rabbit, this is a very rare opportunity.

Summer 2024 Mail Sale Commentary 

Lot 10 C1602a — Lesser Scaup — 1989 Federal Duck Stamp — Cottontail Rabbit Variety — 6-30-89

This Federal Duck Stamp cover is one of the most intriguing and desirable lots in the entire sale. These covers came into being in a roundabout manner. I always try to use an appropriate stamp to meet the postal requirements on my Duck covers. At the time this cover was produced, I had a number of the attractive New Jersey Statehood stamps on hand. From that starting point, I decided to add a complementary stamp that would show species of wildlife found in my hometown of Hewitt. Also, I opted to add a mini-cachet to each cover showing the species depicted on the Wildlife stamp. In all, there are ten very limited varieties, although each is a complete Federal Duck cover on its own.

For my cachet design, I decided to portray a pair of Lesser scaup ducks taking off from a woodland pond. Although I did not assign different numbers (all are C1602), I felt that each of the covers needed to be individually identified. Each was assigned a letter suffix for the ten wildlife varieties. Nature has always been an important part of my life. There's an abundance of forest land in West Milford, NJ thanks to state parks and undeveloped watershed. This is especially true in the Hewitt section of the township where we used to live. Wildlife thrives there, and all animals shown on these cachets make their homes in the Hewitt area habitat. This was a personal project meant to document local animals on my cachets. Over time, these covers have turned into very sought-after items.

In addition to the cachet and Migratory Bird "Duck" stamp, this cover also has the New Jersey stamp mentioned above as well as a Cottontail Rabbit to meet postal regulations. On the lower left, there is a vignette of this cover's wildlife — the Cottontail Rabbit. And all of the covers have a wonderful pictorial cancellation from Duck Stamp Station, National Museum of American History, Washington, D.C. If you are missing this cachet variety in your collection, now is one of the few opportunities you will have to acquire it. The bottom line is that only 75 exist with the Cottontail Rabbit cachet (Cl 602a). If you are a duck cover enthusiast, or if you like to seek out the scarcer Collins covers, this one is for you.