Auction 333-341 Western Australia & Great Britain - Day 3

1 d. black, plate 7, irregular reconstructed strip of eight on experimental paper, letttered BA-CA (marginal pair), BB-BD, and BE-BG, on experimental 28lb paper, with corresponding manuscript notation in sheet margin, cancelled with experimental ring cancellations, the stamps retaining large part original gum, a few minor imperfections do not detract from this magnificent multiple, unique in private hands, a similar block of ten being in the collection of His Majesty King Charles III, an imporant rarity  Gi. AS46.

Rowland Hill conducted printing trials from Plate 7 were in June, 1840, in order to experiment with paper weight and concentric ring cancellations.
Hassan Shaida was likely the first to realise that the three items pieces from these trials, rejoined in this lot, originally belonged together. When the Shaida collection was sold in 1993, the three items were "re-united" for the first time since they were, as far as one can say, sold by Pearson Hill, the son of Rowland Hill, from his father`s estate. The formerly adjoining pair, BH-BI, is housed in the collection of the Postal Museum in London.

Provenance:
For the vertical pair BA-CA:
Robson Lowe, 25-6 September, 1968, lot 1220
Collection Fisher, Phillips, 22-3 September, lot 103

For the adjoining strip of three BB-BC-BD:
Collection J.B. Seymour, Robson Lowe, 7 November, 1951
Harmers of London, 1-2 March, 1983, lot 124

For the adjoining strip of three BE-BF-BG:
Collection Henry C.V. Adams, Robson Lowe, February, 1956, lot 96.
Collection Michael Lea, c. 1978.