Raritan Stamps Auction Features von Steiden Collection

UPDATE:  The sale of the Georg von Steiden Collection was very successful with total realization over $300,000, which significantly exceeded pre-auction estimates.

On February 11-13, 2010 Raritan Stamps is holding auction #42 featuring the Georg von Steiden Oustanding Collection of Carpatho-Ukraine.  This is the best collection of this region and will offer rare and truly unique material. 

Mr. Georg von Steiden, a UPNS member, is the most knowledgeable expert in this field.  His monograph on Carpatho-Ukraine stamps (Spezialkatalog Karpaten - Ukraine) issued in 2000 brought him a world reputation as the most competent and trustworthy specialist in this area.  Mr. von Steiden received a BPP status of German Expertization Union and is also the Carpatho-Ukraine expertizer for the Ukrainian Philatelic and Numismatic Society. 

For additional information, visit Raritan Stamps.

Iron Cross, Ukrainian National Republic, sold

A first edition of the Iron Cross (No. 48) was sold on June 20, 2008 by the Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co auction house for €12,000 ($18,753).

The Iron Cross was a military order established by Otaman Symon Petliura on 19th October 1920 for military valour or patriotic service in the First Winter Campaign. The order was minted in Warsaw, Poland. The Army of the Ukrainian National Republic was made up of various armed volunteer units, but was never a regular, well-structured organization compared to theUkrainian Galician Army (Ukrainska Halytska Armiia - UHA). In the fall of 1919, the UNR Army found itself near Chortoryia in Volhynia, surrounded by Polish troops, by the Bolsheviks, and by Anton Denikin's army. Without any possibility of maintaining a regular front, it was forced to resort to guerrilla warfare. From December 6, 1919 to May 6, 1920, the UNR Army under the command of Gen Mykhailo Omelianovych-Pavlenko, commander in chief, carried out an underground operation known as the First Winter Campaign in the Kirovohrad region against the Soviet 14th Army. In this campaign the following divisions took part: Zaporozhian Division, Volhynian Division,Kyiv Division (Peasant), and some detachments of the Sich Riflemen. In May 1920, 2,680 men returned from the campaign. The war of independence continued until Nov. 20, 1920 when the UNR Army retreating from the Red Army, crossed theZbruch River in Poland.

Fusco Auctions - Public Stamp Auction #104

Dear UPNS members,

As you may remember, I wrote to you this past May about a large amount of Ukrainian philatelic material that had recently come onto the market after the death of a Ukrainian collector. At that time, I mentioned that I would let you know when the remaining material would appear at auction.

The balance of this collection appears in the current Fusco Auctions catalog, Public Stamp Auction #104, Saturday, December 8th, 2007 at 1:00 p.m. The Ukrainian material consists of trident overprints, classic Ukraine covers, postal cards, money orders, some Western Ukraine, and some scarcer provisionals, revenues, etc. This materials is described in lots 2425 through 2486.

Auction catalogs can be requested by emailing Paul Fusco at: pfusco@fuscoauctions.com The website is: www.fuscoauctions.com

Please note that this message DOES NOT represent an endorsement by the UPNS. I only wish to notify UPNS members of this opportunity to obtain some rarely-seen Ukrainian philatelic material.

Sincerely,
Andrew Martyniuk
Executive VP, UPNS