CHAPTER V
STAMPS WORTH FORTUNES
What a curious thing it is that some stamps—mere scraps of paper—cost over a sovereign apiece to buy! It is still more wonderful, however, that quite a number sell for over £100 each, whilst a select few command prices running into four figures. Probably the reader will never possess any of the more costly rarities, and as likely as not he will never see copies of them, unless he has access to the Tapling or other public collections; but, none the less, it is interesting for him to know of them, of their prices, and their peculiarities.
Among the stamps of Great Britain there are a fair number which are worth between £30 and £100 each. In the previous chapter we spoke of the deep green shilling of 1862, which sells at £65 in an unused condition, and the ninepenny straw, catalogued at £30 when used. To these we may add the famous £5 orange of 1882, worth about £100 when unused, and the £1 brown-lilac, also of 1882, which varies between £90 and £100. Neither of these labels were in currency for more than two years. This fact, coupled with their high face value, readily explains why collectors are so eager to possess them.
There have been three different brown-lilac £1 stamps, all issued within a few years of each other, so the collector is advised to note their descriptions carefully. The valuable type referred to above measures 1-1/8 by 1-3/8 inches, and is watermarked with an anchor. Of the remaining two types, one has a watermark consisting of three crowns (worth £12 unused), and the other has the watermark known as the three orbs (worth £20 unused). Both these stamps have the top and bottom sides much longer than the vertical sides. Other £1 values, in various colours and designs, command good prices, and should be carefully preserved, if only for speculative purposes.
Were the question to be put, "Which is the rarest stamp in the world?" probably the answer would be, more often than not, "The twopenny 'Post Office' Mauritius." Though it is not the rarest, it is probably the best-known philatelic treasure, and the one which collectors covet beyond all others. Just how much it is worth would be difficult to say; we do know, however, that the copy which figures in King George's Collection was sold at auction in 1904 for £1,450. Were it placed on the market to-day, it is safe to say that it would change hands at a higher figure—probably a much higher figure.
The twopenny and the penny "Post Office" Mauritius have an interesting history. The officials of this little island in the Indian Ocean decided in the year 1847 to follow the lead of the Mother Country and issue stamps. Whilst waiting for supplies to come from England, they commissioned a local watchmaker to engrave two dies, one for a penny and one for a twopenny stamp. The watchmaker took a small piece of sheet copper and engraved upon it, side by side, the two dies, and a neighbouring printer took off 500 impressions—that is to say, 1,000 stamps in all. Instead of cutting into the copper the words "Post Paid," the engraver scratched the inscription "Post Office" by mistake, with the result that his dies were soon discarded. The stock of stamps was quickly used up, for just as the labels were issued, a ball was being arranged at the Government House, and numerous invitations were sent out by post. About twenty-two copies only are known to exist, and most of these have been discovered on the communications which, nearly seventy years ago, summoned the Governor's friends to the long-forgotten festivities.
The rarest stamp in the world is usually considered to be the one cent (1856) of British Guiana. A single specimen only of this variety is known, the owner being Monsieur de la Renotière, a celebrated collector of Paris. To say that this treasure is worth its weight in gold is to understate its value by a great deal, for specialists claim that £2,000 would not buy it.
One would suppose that so costly a square inch of paper would have a prepossessing appearance or claims to artistic merit, but the unique specimen is said to be ugly, of a dullish magenta colour, and not in the best of condition. The design is a ship, around which the motto "Damus petimusque vicissim"[3] is written, together with the words "British Guiana, Postage One Cent."
[3] We give and we ask in turn.