Queen Elizabeth To Sell Part of Her Collection

Stamps from the Queen's private Royal Philatelic Collection are to be auctioned according to The Press Association website.

Thirteen duplicates, including two mint Penny Blacks, would go under the hammer in London on June 12

In May 2001, the Queen's "swaps" raised more than £745,000 - double the expected price.

The duplicates and other unwanted stamps were sold by the Queen to raise £250,000 for a block of 10 Penny Blacks on a May 6, 1840 first-day cover.

Among the items which far exceeded pre-sale estimates was an 1861 Cape of Good Hope 1d stamp, with a printing error, which fetched £74,750 (estimate £18,000-£20,000), a block of 12 unused 2d Blue stamps which sold for £40,250 (estimate £18,000-£20,000) and a rare first-day cover, bearing a Penny Black, which realised £23,000 (estimate £6,000-£8,000).

The Royal Philatelic Collection, the most comprehensive selection of British and Commonwealth stamps in the world, is privately owned by the Queen and was inherited from her father George VI and grandfather George V, its founder.

It is not part of the Royal Collection of rare paintings, china, antique furniture and other works of art which the Queen, as Sovereign, holds in trust for the nation.

Shown above, July 1946: Princess Elizabeth looking through her stamp collection in the State Apartments at Buckingham Palace. (Photo by Lisa Sheridan/Studio Lisa/Getty Images)

To view the catalogue on line, click here.