An 1860s Confederate States "Ten" block of 10 sold for $26,000 in Robert A Siegel's sale of the Brandon Collection in New York on November 21.
The stamps display a profile of Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederacy during the American civil war. "Ten" refers to the value of the issue, which is spelled out.
 The 'Ten' issue displays an image of Confederate president Jefferson Davis |
Earlier issues were printed with numerals. The issue was discontinued shortly after release.
Siegel commented prior to the sale: "This is the largest multiple we have offered in one of our auctions since the 1990's.
"We offered a block of 20 in 1970, but that may have been broken. When blocks do come up for auction they tend to be faulty. The multiple offered here is not only a rare 'TEN' multiple, it is exponentially rarer when condition is a factor."
The collection included a number of early American covers, including an "Our Homes and Protection" Confederate patriotic Mulready - which made $20,000.
The lot is one of only two known examples of the cover, which displays a scene of a Confederate soldier defending his homeland.
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