This sale marks 53 years since our first auction. Much has changed since 1972,
but one thing that will never change is our dedication to providing you with a
regular source of interesting material backed up by good old-fashioned service.
In August, my sons Chris and Scott and my grandson Mason (age 14) represented Vance Auctions at the Great American Stamp Show in Chicago. The show was sponsored by the APS and has become the largest show in North America.
It was Mason’s first time working at a stamp show. He did a great job and enjoyed the whole experience. Who knows? Mason may one day become
a fourth generation stamp dealer.
Pitcairn is one of a group of four small islands in the South Pacific. Its isolation, steep cliffs and small landmass - less than 2 square miles - kept European settlers away until 1790 when the mutineers of the Bounty sought refuge there. Originally inhabited by Polynesians centuries earlier, the island was deserted when Fletcher Christian and his eight fellow mutineers arrived along with a party of Tahitians. These 27 people and generations
that followed had very limited contact with the outside world because the volcanic island had no natural harbour.
Even after Pitcairn became a British colony in 1838, there was no official postal system. Residents had to rely on mail being picked up by occasional supply vessels and passing freighters. In 1927, New Zealand assumed responsibility for Pitcairn’s postal affairs, and for over a decade all mail from the island was franked with New Zealand stamps and routed through Auckland, over 3,000 miles away. Mailing a letter was still far from simple.
Mail had to be handed in to the island’s tiny post office, sealed in mailbags, and then rowed out in longboats to ships anchored offshore.
Pitcairn’s first stamps were issued in 1940. The island mail was now postmarked ‘Pitcairn Island’ but New Zealand remained in charge of Pitcairn’s postal affairs. It was not until 1990 that Pitcairn finally assumed full control of its own postal administration.
In 1927, Pitcairn’s population exceeded 200. Today, it has dwindled to fewer than
50 residents, all descendants of the original mutineers. The covers and stamps offered
in this sale provide a fascinating glimpse into the postal history of one of the world’s most remote communities. See the Pitcairn section, Lots 3439-3477.
This sale has many great sections including
New Zealand with advertising on reverse; French Colonies; Pitcairn Islands; Falkland Islands; British Africa; and Australia. The Canada, Provinces, and United States have many great items as well. Don’t miss the fine sections of Canadian Revenues and Canada Semi-Official Airmails. Good luck in this sale!
In August, my sons Chris and Scott and my grandson Mason (age 14) represented Vance Auctions at the Great American Stamp Show in Chicago. The show was sponsored by the APS and has become the largest show in North America. 
Even after Pitcairn became a British colony in 1838, there was no official postal system. Residents had to rely on mail being picked up by occasional supply vessels and passing freighters. In 1927, New Zealand assumed responsibility for Pitcairn’s postal affairs, and for over a decade all mail from the island was franked with New Zealand stamps and routed through Auckland, over 3,000 miles away. Mailing a letter was still far from simple.
Mail had to be handed in to the island’s tiny post office, sealed in mailbags, and then rowed out in longboats to ships anchored offshore.
Pitcairn’s first stamps were issued in 1940. The island mail was now postmarked ‘Pitcairn Island’ but New Zealand remained in charge of Pitcairn’s postal affairs. It was not until 1990 that Pitcairn finally assumed full control of its own postal administration. 
This sale has many great sections including