This is the stamp that goes for a record sales – Estimated at 7.1 million euros

The stamps «Penny Black» have acquired such a status to the point that among the collectors there was a phrase – a cliché that highlights the rarity and value of a piece. Now, the auction house Sotheby’s offers the top «Penny Black» – the first ever produced and probably the oldest in the world. It is estimated that it will bring in more than seven million euros. This depicts the Queen Victoria.

If he really catches this price he will equal it world record selling a stamp. The «British Guiana 1c magenta» sold for 7.1 million euros last June. Undoubtedly, it will even exceed the expectations of its owner, Alan Hollowak, a British businessman and collector, who bought it for less than 60 thousand euros in 2013. He acquired it at auction in Geneva and even then its sellers referred to it as the oldest «Penny Black» whose existence is known.

The House Sotheby’s explained that the price multiplied 143 times thanks to his 3-year effort Hollyock to verify the authenticity of the stamp and how it really is the oldest «Penny Black». The search was completed with the stamp receiving certificates Royal Philatelic Community of London (2016) as well as British Philatelic Community (2015), while it was also presented in an exhibition at Smithsonian Museum. “It is the most valuable object in the world of philately,” he said Sotheby’s and added: “Its importance, well, goes beyond the limits of postage stamps.”

The stamp is stuck on a piece of paper also known as “Wallace document”. It was named after him Robert Wallace, a former MP who made bold reforms to the British postal service. The document dates from April 10, 1840. The «Penny Black» caused a revolution as after it was created as it was established that the sender was called to cover the cost of the shipment and not the recipient.