For philatelists, there is much more than having a collection of stamps in an album. They study the stamps, learn about the countries they are from, and in the process, they learn interesting facts about philately. Some of the things that keep stamp collectors excited are basic facts about stamps such as:
The Most Expensive Stamps in the World
Penny black: An unused Penny black stamp can cost as high as €3000. The figure might be hard to believe, but there are many more expensive stamps all over the world, and almost all of them are rare. The black penny is the first (adhesive) stamp to be used in the world. Its history dates back to 1840 when the use of stamps and postage was just taking root. It has the image of Queen Victoria II, but it does not show the country of origin.- The Inverted Jenny: This can go as high as €75000. This stamp is unique because of an error that was made while printing. It has the Curtiss Jenny aeroplane that was used in World War I, but it is upside down. It is only 100 of these stamps that were printed, making them so unbelievable. To be able to appreciate the value of stamps, the collectors should know the history of people, places and events that defined the world.
- Treskilling Yellow: As the name suggests, this stamp is yellow in colour, but that is from a mistake that was made during printing in the 1850s. It was supposed to blue, and it is believed that there is only one existing stamp from that era, making the price soar with each century, and it is now thought to be worth millions. It is considered the rarest stamp in the whole world.
- Baden Kreuzer stamp: Historians estimate that there are less than five of these stamps. What makes them rare is because of the mistakes that were made during printing. It was meant to be pink, but due to an error in the printing paper, it was green. The number six that solidly sits in the middle of the stamp was supposed to be a nine.
- Audrey Hepburn: This is a relatively modern stamp with an interesting back story. Even though millions of these stamps were printed and ready for the market, they were destroyed when Audry’s son claimed ownership of the printing rights. It was later revealed that he was uncomfortable with the image of his mother appearing on the photo of the stamp with a stick of cigarette sticking on her lips and depicting her as a smoker. The stamps are believed to be costing more than half a million US dollars.
- Tiflis stamp of Russia This is considered to be the first adhesive postage stamp to ever reach Russia in 1857. the Russian National Academy of Philately estimates that there are less than six of these precious stamps, and the value is almost at 1 million US dollars with the figures rising every year.
