This extremely rare vertical pair of 1941 Dr. Sun Yat Sen inverted center $2 black and blue stamps will be the star lot of Zurich Asia's auction of Stamps & Postal History of China, Hong Kong and Other Countries at The Excelsior Hong Kong from 13-14 October.
With the distinctively inverted central portraits of Dr. Sun Yat Sen, this offering is amongst the rarest and most valuable items of Chinese philately. It is one of the only two surviving multiples from the original sheet of 50 stamps with this error.
In March 2012, an inverted Dr. Sun stamp was sold for over HK$2.4 million at Zurich Asia, setting the world auction record for any Republic of China stamps. The present lot - in pristine condition with the light penciled initials of stamp expert Peter Holcombe on the reverse of each stamp and full original gum - is expected to arouse even stronger interest from discerning worldwide collectors and set another new auction record.