This kind of policy can provide protection beyond fair market value, allowing you to assemble a collection of the most wanted rare stamps in the event of a covered loss. Contact American Collectors Insurance for more information and a free quote today. Have a collection of rare stamps you want to show off to our community? Buyer's Guides. The Inverted Jenny The Inverted Jenny, Source: Wikimedia Commons One of the best-known stamps in history as well as being one of the rarest stamps available, this issue saw an upside-down blue inking of the World War 1 era JN-4HM inverted on a single stamp sheet of the print run inside its right-side-up red frame.
Building a Collection of Rare US Stamps Rare stamps are highly condition-sensitive and need to be properly handled and stored to protect their value. Others may like historical issues that celebrate great moments in our culture.
For those who just like dinosaurs, the United States Postal Service has you covered. Other considerations include: Condition — Collectible stamps range from ones with significant fading, hinge marks, and other signs of use all the way to completely unused stamps. Gum — Gum refers to the adhesive backing on a stamp. Unused stamps will generally retain their original adhesive. These offer a glimpse of the stamp in its fresh-off-the-press glory that may increase the rarity of your collection in years to come.
Do Your Research — Limited edition runs and stamps that were heavily circulated but lightly collected can help you not only support your theme but add value. Issued in , only 27 are known to still exist, and they are one of the most famous and sought-after stamps in the world of philately. Surprisingly, little information about the stamp itself is available, but the stamp is said to be in excellent condition and one of only two known in existence. The stamp was supposed to be colored green, but a printer error caused the stamp to be produced in a yellow color, which was the color designated for the eight-skilling stamp.
Its true value is unknown, as it sold in for an undisclosed amount. In , it changed hands once more , again for an undisclosed sum. One hundred forty years later, the British Guiana 1 Cent Magenta sold for over 6. The stamp was printed in after the postmaster general of British Guiana ordered a set of three types of stamps to be made after a shipment from London was delayed.
This is the only stamp known to exist. Before its sale in , the stamp belonged to John E. He died in prison in , and the stamp was sold by his estate. Following severe critical attacks on the previous ornate issue, the Post Office Department released a series of stamps with a simple and cleaner design in It is widely known as the Washington-Franklin issue, since it mainly focused on these two politicians.
All stamps came with identical frames, which minimized production expenses and allowed for more effective use of steel printing plates.
These stamps are different from previous designs because they are printed on double line paper covered with the USPS U. Postal Service watermark. Since the letters were depicted across the entire sheet, very often only a portion of the watermark would appear on a stamp, usually in a backwards, sideways or topside position. We use cookies to personalize our content and to improve your user experience.
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According to philatelic experts, less than 30 individual copies of Post Office Mauritius have survived until today. This was a famous 'Bordeaux' cover of Mauritius that contains both a Mauritius one penny orange-red and a two pence deep blue. A used example of Mauritius 2d deep blue stamp on soft greyish wove paper, neatly canceled at lower left corner, was offered at Spink auction in June This is the highest price ever paid for a single philatelic item. In the end, we should claim that both deep blue and red-orange Mauritius stamps are extremely rare and worth a fortune.
Most valuable U. Another popular stamp associated with the Civil War issue is devoted to Benjamin Franklin, a famous political theorist, diplomat, author, scientist, and the president of Pennsylvania. The 1c Benjamin Franklin stamp issued in features a rare Z-grill with horizontal ridges, just like two other designs from the series depicting Abraham Lincoln and George Washington. At present, there are only two existing samples that are very high priced.
It is the only Z-grill in private hands, and the only other copy is kept in the New York Public Library. Like the Declaration of Independence, the Landing of Columbus is a copy of a famous painting by John Vanderlyn that depicts the historical arrival of the Spanish expedition to the shores of the New World. Columbus and his crew reached the previously unknown land in and thus put America on the map for the entire Europe. If not for that, the U.
Designed in blue and brown, 15c Landing of Columbus stamp features an unusual double-printed vignette, with both normal and inverted printing applied.
This interesting item has a G grill common for the pictorial issue and is available with double or split grill. Over a century ago, people could buy it for just 15 cents. The copy of the stamp with the inverted center, in an unused, very fine condition, considered as the only specimen with original gum, was auctioned by Robert A Siegel in October The Shield, Eagle and Flags stamp belongs to the pictorial issue that included ten items worth between 1 and 90 cents.
The series was the first to feature something other than national leader portraits. It also marked the first use of bicolor printing. Spelled out in red letters, the denomination number flows over into the blue-framed flags through the red shield. Due to the oddly placed denomination and the confusing arrangement of colors, the stamp was often criticized as an example of a bad design.
The new technique required double-pressing: to print the center design also known as vignette and to print the frame. Negligence in merging the two processes led to the appearance of rare inverts. The cent worth Shield and Flag piece with inverted flags is considered to be the rarest of the error stamp.
Incredibly popular nowadays, the pictorial series was ignored by the 19th-century public and soon withdrawn from production. Since the stamps were only in use for a year, they are almost impossible to find.
The Shield and Flag design features the G grill and is available in several variations, including split grill, double grill, and gum only. The first Hawaiian stamps appeared in These designs are now referred to as the "Hawaiian Missionaries" because they were frequently used by American missionaries on the islands to send letters back to the continental United States. The new stamps were released in Honolulu in three denominations 2-cent, 5-cent, and cent.
Benjamin Franklin , who along with George Washington graced the first stamps, has a fascinating history with the post, filled with intrigue. In , upon his return from England, Franklin was named postmaster general of the independent colonies by the Continental Congress.
But long before, the Crown had named him postmaster general of the American colonies in , a post he shared with William Hunter. The Stamp Act , passed by British Parliament in , often cited as one of the immediate causes of the American Revolution , was, in fact, a tax. While the money demanded by the act was quite low and the act was repealed the following year, the damage was done. The colonies were incensed at the notion that they could be taxed by anyone outside their elected assemblies.
Mob violence and intimidation followed, forcing stamp tax collectors to resign their positions and driving away ships carrying stamp papers at seaports.
Colonial orators, like Patrick Henry , as well as newspapers, seized on the issue of English tyranny taking the form of taxation without representation, building the wave to revolution some 10 years later.
Credit: Francis G. In the world of U. Between , when Congress established federally standardized rates for postage and , when the first federal postage stamps were produced, postmasters in counties and cities within the 29 states issued their own provisional stamps. Postmasters got creative with the designs.
For example, the St. Louis provisional stamps display the image of two bears holding the United States coat of arms between them.
Of particular interest are such provisional stamps from Alexandria, which was retroceded to the state of Virginia from the District of Columbia in these years. Stamp collectors love rarities, firsts and errors—and these stamps have all three, plus some politics.
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