Canada's Diamond Jubilee Stamps
The British Empire celebrated the 60th year of Queen Victoria's reign - her Diamond Jubilee - in 1897. Her incredibly long reign lasted 64 years, from 1837 until her death in 1901. When you see the terms "Victoria Era," "victorian Period" or the like, those terms are referring to Queen Victoria, the influences her rule had over much of the world, and the industrial, political, social, economic and military changes that occurred during her reign.
The Diamond Jubilee celebration was a major event, with holidays declared in Great Britain and its colonies, including Canada. Empire countries, including Canada, issued a series of stamps in connection with the Jubilee celebrations.
There are 16 stamps in the Canadian Diamond Jubilee set, and they are some of the most beautiful and collectible stamps that Canada has ever issued. They are Scott # 50-65, Unitrade # 50-65. The first Canada commemorative stamps, each of the 16 stamps is a different denomination, all the way up to $5. Each features two portraits of Queen Victoria, one as a young woman and the other in her maturity.
A complete set of Canada Diamond Jubilee stamps in mint never hinged condition has a catalog value of more than $34,000.
Showing posts with label expensive stamps. Show all posts
Showing posts with label expensive stamps. Show all posts
Monday, April 27, 2009
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Stamp Superstars: Some of the Rarest and Most Costly Stamps in the World
Like professional athletes or movie stars, the stamp world has several superstars: the most famous of the famous classic stamps. Except for the Penny Black these stamps are super rare and except for it you're not likely to ever see any of them, but they're all interesting to read about. Some have interesting stories behind them, and many of these classic stamps are likely to fetch extremely high prices when they go up for sale - if they ever do.
Great Britain's 1840 One Penny Black, the first adhesive stamp ever issued. Although they're not considered rare, they're not a dime a dozen either, and they hold an important place in philatelic history. Used examples usually command prices in the hundred-dollar range, while fifteen years ago an unused example sold for $2.4 million dollars.
The 1847 Mauritius Post Office stamp, the legendary rare stamp (only a few hundred were printed and far fewer still exist) from the British Colony of Mauritius. In addition to being very old, it is actually a stamp with a printing error: instead of being imprinted with the words "post paid," the words "post office" are incorrectly on the stamp. A cover mailed with two of the stamps on it sold for about $4 million around 15 years ago.
The 1851 Hawaiian Missionaries stamps, used by missionaries on Hawaii to send their mail. The two cent stamps (only 16 known to exist) are the most valuable, ranging in cost from around $200,000 to $800,000. The five cent and 13 cent stamps are also quite pricey.
The Swedish 1855 Treskilling Banco Yellow stamp is perhaps the most famous of all stamps. It's an error of color that was supposed to be printed in blue-green, but somehow ended up being yellow. Only one is known to exist, and it's the rarest stamp in the world. It has fetched world-record prices whenever it has been sold, and without doubt it will continue to do so.
The 1856 British Guiana One Cent Black on Magenta stamp, also extremely rare. It's a rectangular stamp with black ink printed on magenta paper, but the corners are snipped off, making it an octagonal shape. Originally discovered by a young boy, it sold for almost $1 million about 30 years ago.
The 1868 US 1 cent Z Grill, the rarest and most valuable United States stamp. The front features a portrait of Benjamin Franklin and the back has a Z variety grill, intended to stop people from re-using the stamps by causing the postmark ink to settle more deeply into the stamp. Only two of these stamps are known; one is owned by the New York Public Library while the other is in a private collection. That stamp was "sold" a few years ago in exchange for a block of four Inverted Jenny stamps (themselves worthy of stamp superstar status) worth almost $3 million.
Like professional athletes or movie stars, the stamp world has several superstars: the most famous of the famous classic stamps. Except for the Penny Black these stamps are super rare and except for it you're not likely to ever see any of them, but they're all interesting to read about. Some have interesting stories behind them, and many of these classic stamps are likely to fetch extremely high prices when they go up for sale - if they ever do.
Great Britain's 1840 One Penny Black, the first adhesive stamp ever issued. Although they're not considered rare, they're not a dime a dozen either, and they hold an important place in philatelic history. Used examples usually command prices in the hundred-dollar range, while fifteen years ago an unused example sold for $2.4 million dollars.
The 1847 Mauritius Post Office stamp, the legendary rare stamp (only a few hundred were printed and far fewer still exist) from the British Colony of Mauritius. In addition to being very old, it is actually a stamp with a printing error: instead of being imprinted with the words "post paid," the words "post office" are incorrectly on the stamp. A cover mailed with two of the stamps on it sold for about $4 million around 15 years ago.
The 1851 Hawaiian Missionaries stamps, used by missionaries on Hawaii to send their mail. The two cent stamps (only 16 known to exist) are the most valuable, ranging in cost from around $200,000 to $800,000. The five cent and 13 cent stamps are also quite pricey.
The Swedish 1855 Treskilling Banco Yellow stamp is perhaps the most famous of all stamps. It's an error of color that was supposed to be printed in blue-green, but somehow ended up being yellow. Only one is known to exist, and it's the rarest stamp in the world. It has fetched world-record prices whenever it has been sold, and without doubt it will continue to do so.
The 1856 British Guiana One Cent Black on Magenta stamp, also extremely rare. It's a rectangular stamp with black ink printed on magenta paper, but the corners are snipped off, making it an octagonal shape. Originally discovered by a young boy, it sold for almost $1 million about 30 years ago.
The 1868 US 1 cent Z Grill, the rarest and most valuable United States stamp. The front features a portrait of Benjamin Franklin and the back has a Z variety grill, intended to stop people from re-using the stamps by causing the postmark ink to settle more deeply into the stamp. Only two of these stamps are known; one is owned by the New York Public Library while the other is in a private collection. That stamp was "sold" a few years ago in exchange for a block of four Inverted Jenny stamps (themselves worthy of stamp superstar status) worth almost $3 million.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Desirable US Stamp Sets
Two of the most desired commemorative sets in all of United States philatelics are the Columbian Exposition stamps of 1893 and the 1898 Trans-Mississippi Exposition set (the stamp set that includes the famous cattle in the storm stamp). I've read that when the Columbians came out, they were greatly disliked, and that the same was true for the Trans-Mississippi set - because it was supposed to be bi-colored, and when it wasn't, collectors were disappointed. Perhaps part of the reason for the high value of both sets today is that they were not as widely collected as they might have been when issued. Another reason is that even one of the high value stamps of those sets probably represented about what a person in those times made in a day.
The Graf Zeppelin set of airmail stamps is no doubt the most desired - and by far the most expensive - of all the U.S. air post stamps. They are Scott # C13, C14, and C15. Issued in 1930, each features a depiction of the Graf Zeppelin dirigible or airship. If you don't want to spend the bucks for these (a complete set will cost well over a thousand dollars), you can get the "Baby Zep" - Scott # C18 - for far less money.
Two of the most desired commemorative sets in all of United States philatelics are the Columbian Exposition stamps of 1893 and the 1898 Trans-Mississippi Exposition set (the stamp set that includes the famous cattle in the storm stamp). I've read that when the Columbians came out, they were greatly disliked, and that the same was true for the Trans-Mississippi set - because it was supposed to be bi-colored, and when it wasn't, collectors were disappointed. Perhaps part of the reason for the high value of both sets today is that they were not as widely collected as they might have been when issued. Another reason is that even one of the high value stamps of those sets probably represented about what a person in those times made in a day.
The Graf Zeppelin set of airmail stamps is no doubt the most desired - and by far the most expensive - of all the U.S. air post stamps. They are Scott # C13, C14, and C15. Issued in 1930, each features a depiction of the Graf Zeppelin dirigible or airship. If you don't want to spend the bucks for these (a complete set will cost well over a thousand dollars), you can get the "Baby Zep" - Scott # C18 - for far less money.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)