The cost of an individual copy is determined by experts, the main criteria for high price a limited edition, a small number of surviving stamps, a unique defect (a typo or deviation from standards) are considered. As a rule, blank stamps are of great value, but in some cases canceled (devalued by the post office) copies are considered truly expensive.
First stamps
The very first stamps issued in the Soviet state are also among the most expensive stamps in its entire history - today their price is almost 72 thousand US dollars. They were in circulation until 1922 and had a symbolic image for that historical period: a hand with a sword that cuts an iron chain (can be correlated with the image of the victory of the new Soviet authorities over the chains of capitalism). Soviet stamps with this image were issued by order of the Provisional Government in two colors: dark brown and blue, and modern world much more often found in unextinguished form.
The stamp is valuable, but it was not widely used in postal communication
Stamps for the first exhibition of philatelists in Moscow
In 1932, the capital of the USSR, Moscow, was to host the first exhibition of philatelists (people who collect postal forms of payment, including stamps), and for this event a limited edition of 525 souvenir stamps was issued. They were printed on very thick paper (for which these Soviet stamps were called “cardboards”), and 25 of them were truly unique - they were personalized and with the inscription: “To the best drummer of the All-Union Society of Philatelists.” Only one copy with this overprint has survived to this day, and it was sold at auction for 776 thousand dollars.
Unregistered copies are also very valuable, now their value is 35 thousand dollars
"Limonka"
Postage Stamp with the funny name “Limonka” is the most expensive and rare of all those issued in the Soviet Union (at least according to modern philatelists). Like many other rare collectibles, its value has been affected by defects (it was released in a limited edition, it is very rare these days and therefore is so expensive). Due to a technical problem with the perforation machine, the batch was not completed, which is why such a small number of copies were produced. It was issued with the aim of sending it to distant regions of the country, where collecting was not common at all, and the stamp could be used exclusively for its intended purpose. This USSR postage stamp received its characteristic name “Limonka” for its lemon-yellow image of a peasant.
At the time of issue, its face value was 15 kopecks, but now its auction price ranges between 15 and 20 thousand dollars
"Blue Gymnast"
For the most part, the most expensive stamps of the USSR are copies that were not released into wide circulation. These include the rare “Blue Gymnast” stamp, first issued for the 40th anniversary of the Soviet Circus. It was not put into wide circulation due to the uncertainty of the release date, and after a certain number of years it was released again - already on the sixtieth anniversary of the founding of the circus. This Soviet stamp is considered a true rarity in collecting circles and was auctioned in 2008 for US$13,800.
The stamp is decorated with an image of a gymnast in blue color
"Be a hero!"
It’s easy to guess from the name that these USSR postage stamps were issued during the Second World War (the first issue was dated August 12, 1941). Such a small number of copies, as well as their great value, can be explained by the fact that most of them were destroyed during one of the bombings of the capital during the war years. Afterwards, the Ministry of Culture declared this Soviet stamp a rarity and banned its export outside Soviet Union.
"250 years of victory at Poltava"
In 1959, this postage stamp was already ready for issue, but just at that moment diplomatic relations with Sweden began to improve, and the authorities considered it incorrect to put into wide circulation a military souvenir of the victory over the now allied state. According to official data, the USSR postage stamp “250 years of the Poltava Victory” did go on sale, though only for a few minutes. After this, almost the entire circulation was destroyed, only forty copies survived.
In philatelic circles, the value of a stamp is estimated at 15 to 20 US dollars
"Study of auroras"
From July 1957 to December 1958, the International Year of Surveyors was declared, and in honor of it, many states issued a limited edition of postage stamps. The USSR was no exception, and a number of blue postage stamps “Study of the Polar Lights” with a face value of 10 kopecks were issued. Now this stamp is considered one of the most expensive since the times of the USSR, and its auction price is 14 and a half thousand US dollars.
The image of the Voyage of Peace and Friendship is a ship that, according to the inscription, is sailing on a friendly visit to Sweden, Denmark and Norway. This stamp was planned to be issued immediately after the cancellation of the Poltava Victory circulation in honor of intensified diplomatic relations with Sweden, N.S. Khrushchev was supposed to go there on a friendly visit. However, the visit never took place, and the stamp was removed from circulation - now it is one of the most expensive postage stamps.
At an auction in 2008, one of the copies was sold for $28,750
"Aspidka"
The USSR postage stamps issued in the series “Airship Construction in the Soviet Union” are of philatelic value. They depict an airship flying over the globe, and the standard edition was issued in brown colors, and its denomination is 50 kopecks. However, the first three thousand copies were printed with dark blue ink (aka slate), which is where the brand got its name. This limited edition is worth a lot of money, but the most valuable is the toothless Aspidok variant - there are only 24 of them worldwide.
Overprinted stamps
There are some Soviet stamps that have philatelic super value due to incorrect overprints applied to them.
One of them is a stamp issued in 1935 with a portrait of the pilot Levanevsky; the overprint on it contained some typographical errors: the inscription itself was upside down and read “Flight Moscow-San Francisco via North. Polyus”, where the letter “f”, contrary to the rules of the Russian language, was not capitalized. Now it is almost impossible to find such a copy, and they are among the most expensive postage stamps of the Soviet Union (in 2003, the cost of a stamp with an overprint good quality- $400, with a capital "f" - $600, with an inverted inscription - $10,000, and if you can find a copy with a capital letter "f" on an inverted inscription, then it can be sold for $50,000).
Another similar example is the “Consular Fifty Kopecks” series. These Soviet stamps belong to the series of consular stamps of the RSFSR, and some of them contain errors in the overprints: for example, “24 Herm. marks" instead of "mark" or the most expensive of the series - with a face value of 50 kopecks - with an overprint "1200 germ. stamps." It is these typographical errors that determine such a high value of these USSR postage stamps in the modern world.
Typos and errors made these stamps priceless
Airmail stamps
In addition to the “Aspidok” described above, there are several other airmail stamps that are of great value to collectors. For example, USSR aviation postage stamps, which were issued in 1923, had an image of a Fokker aircraft on them, but they did not go into circulation that year: air traffic was suspended in winter, and the stamps were put into circulation only in 1924. The denomination of this series ranged from 1 to 25 rubles, and some five-ruble stamps had a slight difference - the number five on them was larger and lower than on others. Instances with this distinction are very rare and valuable; their value in 2008 is 86 thousand US dollars.
You should also pay attention to the series of Soviet stamps of 1937 “Architecture of New Moscow”, which consists of eight copies, and in a number of blocks there is no mandatory inscription: “The First All-Union Congress of Architects Moscow-1937”.
Copies without an inscription in this series are the most expensive stamps of the USSR, their price is more than 40 thousand US dollars
The list of the most expensive postage stamps of the Soviet Union seems very impressive - after all, it would seem that almost every historical event a thematic series was issued, and in many of them a marriage or some kind of marriage was allowed distinctive feature– which means that if you pay attention to them, it is not so rare to come across a valuable brand. But such reasoning is extremely erroneous - after all, one only has to remember that the first postage stamps of the USSR in 1932 were made in honor of the philatelist society, which means that already in those distant times there were many people interested in finding rare copies that were defective or simply not issued in wide circulation. Of course, with the development of the country's history, their number increased, as well as the number of people interested in them, collecting became popular not only in Moscow and St. Petersburg, but also in more remote regions of the country.
If we talk about modern philatelic values, then almost all of the most expensive stamps of the USSR have been sold to private collections, and it is almost impossible to come across one of them by chance. As a rule, valuable specimens are now being sold at auction, and buying one of them is a reliable investment for long time, since depreciation of unique postage stamps is very unlikely.
Philatelists do not just collect stamps as such, but research, within the framework of their chosen direction, a set of postal payment marks, study the history and development of mail. Passionate people with early childhood They search for and collect stamps, ranging from the most common to the rare and expensive. Sometimes, philatelists can pay a fortune for one copy. This hobby can be a good investment! When collectors began to buy these small pieces of paper with ribbed edges, the stamps even began to be issued in separate series. For example, in honor of holidays or historical events and famous people.
Many stamps appear in limited editions. We present to your attention the most expensive postage stamps in the world. Many of them are equivalent to buying an apartment or a car, some can only be found in private collections. The price of stamps is determined by its condition: if it has already been used (it has a postage stamp on it) or has been damaged for other reasons, its value is reduced several times. Whole and pure stamps are valued more than others.
Mauritius
One of the most expensive brands. It was printed on the island of Mauritius back in 1847. But a mistake was made during printing, so the stamp became very rare.
The experts made a mistake in the inscription. They printed Post Office instead of Post Paid. Only 28 such marriages are known. Today, such a stamp can fetch about 20 million US dollars at auction.
Yellow Swedish stamp
Printed in 1855, it is one of the most expensive. The stamp was supposed to be green, but by mistake the series was painted green yellow and released into circulation.
In 1996, the yellow Swedish mark or "Yellow Treskilling" was purchased for $2.3 million.
Jenny
There is a block of four stamps. They depict a Curtis-Jenny airplane. But the value of a brand is in its typo. The airplane in the lot turned out to be upside down, so such copies are valued higher than the originals.
In 1954, all stamps were purchased for 18.2 thousand dollars. In 2017, their price is $3 million.
Tiflis stamp
Original and expensive brands have been found since the times of the Russian Empire. For example, Tiflis stamp. It was printed in 1857.
To this day, only three copies have survived - all of them belonged to the jeweler and philatelist Faberge. Now they are in private collections and it’s not so easy to even look at them.
Hawaiian missionaries
This is the first stamp to be issued in Hawaii. They appeared in 1851 and were called "Hawaiian Missionaries". Their peculiarity is that they are poorly printed.
Due to poor and too thin paper, they are quite rare today. Only 16 copies have survived to this day. Each one costs a fortune - about half a million dollars.
Benjamin Franklin Z Grill
The rarest postage stamp in the USA. There are only two of them in the world. In 1988, the Benjamin Franklin Z Grill, with a face value of just one cent, was sold in the United States for a record amount of $1.5 million.
Penny Black
Or "Penny Black" - the first official postage stamp, on reverse side which glue was applied. She was released in 1840.
She made a real revolution in the world of postage stamps. The stamp is not considered rare, but its cost reaches 200-300 dollars.
British Guyana One Cent Black on Magenta
The world saw this brand in 1856. It is printed on purple bond paper with black ink.
Audrey Hepburn
Good money can also be earned from postage stamps of our time. For example, the most expensive modern stamp is a German postal and charity stamp depicting actress Audrey Hepburn with a cigarette in her mouth and wearing a wide-brimmed hat. It appeared in 2001, but was not officially released into postal circulation.
This stamp was supposed to be part of a series that was dedicated to the actors: Marilyn Monroe, Charlie Chaplin, Jean Gabin, Greta Garbo, Ingrid Bergman. 14 million Audrey Hepburn stamps were originally printed. However, the publication was canceled because the actress’s son took away the publishing rights. He didn't like the fact that his mother was smoking a cigarette. The circulation was destroyed, except for 30 copies. They were sold to museums and archives, and their value is about 94 thousand dollars.
Louis Armstrong
The stamp of the legendary trumpeter and composer Louis Armstrong was released in 1995 as part of the “Legends of American Music: Jazz Musicians” series. The musician was also a pioneer of jazz singing in the scat style - improvising with his voice as musical instrument. In addition to Armstrong, this series included vocalist Ella Fitzgerald.
Philatelists also replenish their collections with Soviet stamps, the most expensive of which we will tell you about in the material below.
40 years of the Soviet circus
As planned, this stamp was supposed to go into circulation in 1959 - on the 40th anniversary of the appearance of the Soviet circus, but later disagreements arose about the date of its formation. In 2008, at the Cherrystone auction, a copy of this brand that came to collectors was sold for $13,800.
250 years of the historical Poltava victory of 1709
Rare and expensive stamp from 1959. The stamp was not released, since Khrushchev’s visit to Sweden was scheduled for that time.
Limonka
A factory defect caused the appearance of a rare stamp, which philatelists call “Limonka”. In 1925, the first standardized issue of “Gold Standard” stamps was issued in the USSR, which included postage stamps in 20 different denominations - from 1 kopeck to 5 rubles. While printing blocks of 15-kopeck stamps with a lemon-yellow portrait of a peasant, the perforation machine broke down. In order not to miss delivery deadlines, Goznak management sent the batch with only a few sheets of this stamp. Now the cost of “Limonka” is estimated at about $20,000.
Flight of peace and friendship to Denmark, Sweden and Norway
In 2008, a copy of the stamp “Flight of Peace and Friendship to Denmark, Sweden and Norway” was sold at the Cherrystone auction for $28,750. This stamp became a rarity for the same reasons as the “250th anniversary of the Poltava Victory” - it was not put into circulation because of Nikita Khrushchev's diplomatic visit to Sweden. IN in this case the planned visit did not take place.
Consular fifty dollars
Not only is it one of the three most expensive Soviet brands, but it is also considered one of the most unusual. Consular stamps appeared in circulation back in 1913 for registration of entry and exit documents. In 1922, after the conclusion of the Treaty of Rapallo between the RSFSR and Germany, the volume of correspondence between the two countries increased significantly, and therefore, in order to speed up the postal process, regular correspondence was sent to Germany by air mail with an additional payment, according to the tariffs in force in Germany. For this purpose, in July 1922, an additional red stamp was made on the consular stamps stored at the RSFSR Embassy. Initially there were 50-75 such stamps, but over time only a few copies remained - all postal items the consulates were considered secret and were destroyed. At one auction, a copy of this stamp was sold for $63,250.
"Cardboard"
The record holder among lots of Soviet postal objects is the so-called “Carton” - a souvenir sheet with four stamps. In 1932, the postal department issued these sheets in an edition of 500 copies; they were sent along with invitations to the first All-Union Philatelic Exhibition. However, 25 copies from the series were prepared for rewarding collectors who made a significant contribution to the organization of that exhibition - on these sheets there was an additional overprint: “To the best drummer of the All-Union Society of Philatelists.” Over time, most of the name blocks were destroyed, and to date the only block in the name of E. M. Nurkas is known. In 2008, this copy was sold on Cherrystone for $776,250 - a record amount for USSR issues.
Well, have you already checked your brands with those described in the article?
Prices for rare postage stamps are constantly rising, reaching several million dollars.
Stamp collecting is one of the most exciting hobbies. Passionate people meet regularly and discuss latest finds, make exchanges and in every possible way find a way to replenish their collection. Although such an activity seems simple and useless, it can become a significant investment in the future, because prices for rare stamps are rising every year.
In most cases high price the old stamp, so desired by philatelists, was caused by a defect in its printing.
"Holy Grail" - $2.97 million
The "Holy Grail" (Z-Grill) is a 1-cent postage stamp featuring the first postmaster, Benjamin Franklin, produced in 1868. Today it has been established that there are only two copies of this brand in the world. The first is in the New York Public Library, and the second belongs to the famous American collector Bill Gross, who exchanged a quart block of “Inverted Jenny” worth $2.97 million for it.
“Sicilian Color Error” - $2.72 million.
"Sicilian color error." From the name it becomes clear that the brand has a damaged color scheme, because Initially it was yellow, but for some reason a blue one appeared, which was released in 1859. To date, only 2 such specimens are known.
“Yellow Treskilling” - $2.3 million.
"Yellow Triskilling" Another brand where the colors are off. Instead of the original Swedish yellow stamp, of which there were only 7, a green one was printed.
"Baden color error - $2 million"
"Baden color error." This is another rarity that is rarely found in such ratings, but certainly has a great value. It belongs to the first stamp issue in the Grand Duchy of Baden and dates from 1851.
"Blue Mauritius - $1.15 million"
"Blue Mauritius". One of the few postage stamps issued on the island of Mauritius. The date of its creation is 1847, and only 6 such copies with a denomination of 2 cents are known. In 1993, it was acquired by a consortium of Mauritian banks and businesses for $1.15 million. Today, 20 years later, its price has increased significantly, but it is quite difficult to judge exactly.
“The whole country is red” - $1.15 million.
"The whole country is red." A relatively “young” 1968 postage stamp from China was never issued and was sold in May 2012 at the China Guardian auction for 7.3 million yuan (about $1,150,000)
Pink Mauritius - $1.07 million
"Pink Mauritius". Its actual color is orange. Its remarkable feature lies in the fact that it is the first printed stamp of the island of Mauritius. The defect lies in the fact that the inscription “Post Paid” was left on it instead of “Post office”. And this is not an engraver’s mistake, but an officially approved inscription. There are 14 copies of this brand in total.
“Inverted Jenny” - $977.5 thousand.
"Inverted Jenny" An error was made during the printing of this philatelic rarity depicting an aircraft. Aircraft“Curtis-Jenny” was printed upside down, for which the printers were punished, but this is precisely why the stamps of this series are so expensive. The original cost was 24 cents and over 95 years since its creation it has grown to 977.5 thousand dollars!
British Guiana - $935 thousand
There is a well-known legend among postage stamp collectors that in the tomb of one of the Egyptian pharaohs who lived 4.5 thousand years ago, a collection of all postage stamps that existed at that time was found, indicating the place where the letter was sent. Allegedly, this collection is now kept in the Cairo Museum. Historians still cannot find accurate information about the philatelist pharaoh, but several million people on Earth consider their hobby one of the most ancient. And throughout the history of philately, everyone interested in it has been haunted by questions: “Which stamp is the rarest? How much is the most expensive stamp in the world?”
"Princess" of philately
1856 Severe storms delayed ships en route from England to British Guiana, a colony located on the northeast coast South America. Among other things, the ships carried royal postage marks that were coming to an end in the colony. In order not to complicate the work of delivering correspondence, the postmaster from the capital of Guiana, Georgetown, E. Dalton ordered temporary stamps to be printed in the printing house of a local newspaper. On sheets of red and blue paper was printed the vignette that was used to design the newspaper - a three-masted schooner - and the denomination of the stamp was affixed: a price of one cent for newspapers and local items and 4 cents for out-of-town items.
The quality of the printing turned out to be very low, and in order to exclude counterfeits, the postmaster ordered the employees of the post offices to put their signature on the stamps. After 17 years, one of these stamps - with the initials of the postman Edward White - caught the eye of a 12-year-old boy from Georgetown, Vernon Vaughan. It didn't look very impressive, and someone had cut off the corners to turn the rectangle into an octagon (maybe Vaughan himself), so local collector N. R. McKinnon, who collected rare stamps, paid the young businessman only a few coins for it .
Record price
On July 17, 2014, a philatelic sensation took place at the Sotheby's auction in New York: the octagonal "British Purple One-Cent Guiana" was put up for auction. By that time, she had become a legend among collectors - the only surviving rarity from that batch, which received the names “Princess of Philately” and “Mona Lisa” for its uniqueness. Its value was indicated by the absence of the one-cent British Guiana in the collection of the Queen of Britain, which houses the most expensive postage stamps in the world - one of the most complete collections in the world. 
This brand, like many rarities in this specific world, has acquired its own history with an inevitable touch of mysticism. Thus, the last known owner of the “Princess”, the American rich man John Dupont, died in prison in 2010, where he was serving a sentence for the murder of Olympic champion in freestyle wrestling Dave Schultz, committed in 1996, allegedly in a moment of confusion. Because of this, the philatelic "Mona Lisa" for a long time was in uncertainty.
In two minutes of trading, an octagonal piece of red paper with a sloppy appearance was bought by an unknown buyer for $7.90 million (without the auction organizer's commission - $1.58 million). According to some reports, the buyer was a collector, not an investor, and he promised to display the stamp from time to time at philatelic exhibitions.
"Holy Grail"
Used postage stamps are canceled - that is, they are stamped with ink, usually with the post office number and date, and the ink must be washed off before the stamp can be reused. In the 60s of the 19th century, the American postal service decided to find a way to prevent such “savings”. It was proposed to apply special embossing on the stamps in the form of dots, through which the ink was absorbed into the paper fiber and could not be completely removed. This type of embossing is called waffling. Used different types stamps, and each type of embossing was assigned its own designation - a letter English alphabet(11 in total: from A to J and Z). This method of protection government money turned out to be very impractical, and soon the use of embossing ceased, and collectors were left with rare stamps of a special type. 
One of these stamps, with a face value of 1 cent, on which the image of one of the founding fathers of the United States, Benjamin Franklin, is printed, was issued in 1868 and had a Z-type embossing. It has become a rarity - today only two surviving copies are known, one of which housed in the New York Public Library. In 2005, this brand, which is commonly called the “Holy Grail”, or “Z-Grill”, became known at that time as the most expensive brand in the world. The second copy was exchanged for a block of 4 very valuable species- "Inverted Jenny." The catalog listed the cost of the “Holy Grail” as $3 million.
Million for a mistake
Among philatelists, as well as among other collectors, the condition of new acquisitions is valued: appearance and safety. In the case of postage marks, uncanceled copies and preserved copies are especially valued adhesive layer on the back side.
But the main philatelic rarities are stamps, the price of which is sky-high, having given name and a fascinating story, most often appeared as a result of technological errors during printing.
This is the “Sicilian color error”. For some unknown reason, several 1/2 grain Kingdom of Sicily postage marks were printed in blue color, which was intended for 10 grain stamps. This happened in 1859, and later a short time Sicily became part of Italy, which further increased the uniqueness of this brand. 
One of two copies known to collectors was sold at auction for $2.72 million. Today, the "Sicilian Color Error" is the most expensive stamp containing a printing error.
Multi-colored rarities
In 1855, they decided to print the first stamps in Sweden. And again, a printing error made one of the stamps a rarity. Small currency unit Swedish kingdom of that time was called skill, and the “correct” paper rectangle worth 3 skills had a nice green color. How the yellow stamp of this denomination appeared and why only one copy has survived is unknown. But in 2010, the most expensive stamp in the world was called “Treskilling Yellow”, or “Swedish Unique”, and it cost $2.3 million. 
The tiny but self-styled Great Kingdom of Baden also issued its own postage stamps in 1851. The 9 kreuzer stamps were printed on pink paper, but due to the absentmindedness of the manufacturer (or for some other reason), among the sheets desired color one green one got in the way. 
The resulting stamps were exquisite in color, printed in black on blue-green, and were given the name “Baden Color Error” by professionals. There are very few of them left, and the cost of one uncanceled copy found in 2008 reached $2 million. 
The name of the island of Mauritius appears in the unofficial but generally accepted names used to designate two highly valuable and rare collectible stamps: "Blue Mauritius" and "Pink Mauritius" (which is actually orange). Their high value, each valued at approximately a million dollars, is due to their antiquity (they were issued in 1847) and the non-standard “Post office” inscription, which has long been considered a mistake by the engraver who made the clichés. Subsequently, “Post paid” was printed on the stamps.
The cost of philatelic rarities is a fickle concept, and many legendary copies of printed materials with a unique history can lay claim to the title of “the most expensive stamp in the world.” For example, the same “Inverted Jenny” is an American airmail stamp, in the center of which the image of the JN-4 “Jenny” aircraft is printed upside down.
The most expensive stamps of the USSR
The philatelic history of any country contains pages that make the heart of a true collector tremble. 
When the First All-Union Philatelic Exhibition opened in Moscow in 1932, each participant received a souvenir sheet with four stamps. Some sheets were overprinted: “To the Best Drummer,” and several sheets were personalized. This block was printed on very thick paper, which is why it received the name “Cardboard”. It became the most valuable exhibit for domestic philately when one of the name sheets was sold at a New York auction for $766 thousand.
Unlucky pilot
Another famous brand is “Levanevsky with overprint”. There was no time to prepare a special stamp for the famous Soviet pilot’s flight across the ocean. Therefore, a stamp with his image, dedicated to the rescue of the Chelyuskinites, was overprinted with the Moscow-San Francisco flight. 
The number of errors was catastrophic: the overprint was upside down, in the word Francisco the letter “f” was lowercase - such a stamp could not help but become a rarity. Interestingly, the error with the small “f” has been corrected, but the overprint is not upside down. 
The legendary “Consular fifty dollars” was created when postage stamps were used for the Soviet consulate in Germany Russian Empire 50 kopecks were printed with a denomination in German marks and the inscription: “RSFSR”. The seditious stamp was quickly withdrawn from circulation, and the surviving copies became a collector's dream, and now they are the most expensive stamps of the USSR, along with dozens of other rarities.
A successful investment
They say that people are divided into normal people and collectors, but doesn’t a person who has such a fascinating reason for a slight insanity command respect? In addition, the cost of the most expensive stamps does not become lower over time, which means that purchasing philatelic rarities is a very profitable investment.
As you know, philatelists are passionate people. Their purchase of expensive brands can be compared in terms of expenses to the purchase of an apartment, country house or a sports car. Introducing the rarest artifacts from the world of postage stamps.
"Tiflis Unique"
Or "Tiflis stamp". The first state Russian stamp, issued in 1857 for the city post office of Tiflis (Tbilisi) and Kojori. Although some researchers classify it as a zemstvo post stamp. Its denomination is six kopecks: five of them were postage within the city, and one kopeck was added for the cost of production. Before the First World War, only three surviving copies were known. According to the information from the portal of the National Academy of Philately of Russia, there is currently information about five surviving copies of the “Tiflis Stamp”. On October 5, 2008, at the David Feldman philatelic auction in Geneva, one of the copies of the “Tiflis Unique”, which previously belonged to philatelist and connoisseur of Russian stamps Zbigniew Mikulski, was sold for more than $700,000.
"Cardboard"
It is a souvenir sheet with four stamps, published for the First All-Union Philatelic Exhibition, held in Moscow in 1932. The stamp block got its name because it was printed on very thick paper. The “cardboard” was sent to all those invited to the opening of the philatelic exhibition along with invitation cards.
25 of the 525 copies were used to reward collectors who made a special contribution to the organization of the exhibition. It was these 25 copies of the block that were equipped with an additional personal overprint: “To the best drummer of the All-Union Society of Philatelists.” Currently, the only surviving block with an overprint is known, which was presented to the chairman of the presidium of the Moscow Philatelic Society E. M. Nurkas. After Nurkas was repressed, his “Cardboard”, by the will of fate, ended up in the United States, where in 2008 it was sold at the Cherrystone philatelic auction for $776,250.
Copies without overprint are valued at $35,000. But the surviving “Cartons” are mostly in private collections, and their owners are in no hurry to sell this rarity.
"Black Penny"
The first postage stamp in history. It has a denomination of one penny and is dated May 6, 1840. The invention of the "Black Penny" is attributed to Rowland Hill, who later became the English Postmaster General. Quite a few have survived to this day. a large number of this black stamp has the profile of Queen Victoria, but is still considered rare due to its historical value. A canceled and even worn copy of “Penny Black” can be purchased for even $200; the price for a clean stamp reaches up to $30,000.
"Mauritius"
The stamp was published on the island of Mauritius in 1847 and became rare due to a printing error. Instead of the inscription Post Paid (postage paid), Post Office (post office) was printed on it. The stamps depict the profile of Queen Victoria because Mauritius was a British colony at the time. "Mauritius" was the first UK stamp issued outside the metropolis.
There are now six blue two-pence stamps and 14 pink (actually orange-tinged) one-pence stamps extant. In 1993, Blue Mauritius was purchased by a consortium of Mauritian banks and businesses for $1.15 million. Since then, none of these stamps have been officially sold. Philatelic market experts believe that if one of the collectors puts “Mauritius” up for auction, the price of the stamp will be several times higher than the cost of 1993.
"Swedish unique"
Or "Yellow Three-Skilling Man." Sweden's first postage stamp, issued in 1855. Considered rare due to a color error, the cause of which is still in question. Presumably, after the circulation of the yellow stamp of eight skilling banco (currency unit) was ready, a stamp cliche of three skilling banco was put into the printing press without changing the ink. With the exception of the erroneous sheet, the rest of the edition was issued in a blue-green version.
To date, only one canceled copy of the rarity is known. Since its discovery in 1885, the “Swedish Unique” has repeatedly passed from the collection of one collector to another owner. On May 22, 2010, an auction was held in Switzerland, at which the “Yellow Treskilling” was bought by a group of people who asked for confidentiality. The cost of the lot exceeded $2.3 million.
"Farooq and Farida"
A 1938 Egyptian imperforate stamp commemorating the marriage of King Farouk to his first wife Farida (Safinaz Zulfiqar). The one pound stamp has survived in almost 50 copies. The peculiarity of “Farooq and Farida” is that Islamic laws prohibit the depiction of people, so the stamp has an unfinished appearance with a space in the middle. The value of the brand is currently estimated at $2.8 million.
It is noteworthy that Farouk I himself owned a huge collection of stamps, which was sold after the coup d'etat in Egypt in 1952 and the expulsion of the king. The money went to the treasury of the young Egyptian republic.
"Holy Grail"
Originally "Z-Grill". A one-cent United States postage stamp issued in 1868. It depicts one of the Founding Fathers and the first US Postmaster, Benjamin Franklin. The stamp is considered rare due to wafering, a method of pressing stamps using a special device with tiny protrusions. Grill just means “waffle”, and Z is a type of 11x14mm grill that was used in the USA for a short period in the 1860s.
Two surviving specimens are known. One belongs to the New York Public Library, the second is in the private collection of an American philatelist. In catalogues, its price is indicated at $3 million.