Corinphila Auction 291-297 Day 2

1873/74: Essay by William Bell for the proposed but unadopted 6 d. value on card (52 x 51 mm.), the head plate and vignette of the issued 1 d. printed in red, overlaid on hand-painted frame and VICTORIA in shades of red and carmine, with values '6d.' and SIX PENCE picked out in pencil. Signed W.B. in red at base by William Bell. See Geoff Kellow RDP 'Stamps of Victoria', with this Essay illustrated on page 189. A wonderful and quite beautiful Essay.rnProvenance: Collection J. R. W. Purves, RL, Zurich, 27 Nov 1980, lot 2160; Collection Rod Perry, DF, Geneva, 23-25 May 1988, lot 11141; Collection Richard Stevenson, Spink, London, 6 April 2006, lot 1326; Prestige, Melbourne, 24 Jan 2004, lot 591; Collection "Besançon", Corinphila sale 221, Zurich, 23 Nov 2017, lot 3466.