When the leaves turn and autumn arrives with its special atmosphere, a season of reflection and discovery begins for many collectors. Just as nature reveals its treasures, the catalogs of the Christoph Gärtner auction house open their doors to rare gems of numismatics and philately. From October 13 to 17, 2025, more than 10,000 lots will go under the hammer across seven catalogs. The joy of collecting often lies in the unexpected — in finding a long-sought piece, discovering special details, or securing the winning bid that meaningfully enriches one’s collection.

The 62nd Christoph-Gärtner Auction, held from June 2 to 6, 2025, featured exciting bidding duels, strong hammer prices, and generated great interest both in Germany and abroad. Eye-catching highlights included two collections from passionate philatelist Karl Heinz Schrader: "Great Britain" and "Old German States" were presented in appealing special catalogs.

We have already provided an initial insight into Christoph Gärtner's summer auction in our March issue (page 47), when we presented top items from the second part of the "Red Cross" collection as well as philately from the Middle East and the Gulf States. In this edition, we want to focus on two collections of a passionate philatelist, which will be detailed during the auction. These are the areas of "Great Britain" and "Old German States," which are presented in a special catalog and are also offered live via Philasearch.

The 61st auction held by Christoph Gärtner Auction House from February 17 to 21, 2025, once again attracted considerable attention both at home and abroad. The Asia and China sections performed particularly well, with high results and notable increases.