‘Inverted Jenny’ Earns Stamp of Approval, Selling for Record $2 Million
The historical error stamp commemorating the beginning of U.S. Postal airmail delivery was first issued in 1918. Collectors have been chasing the rare upside down flying airplane stamp ever since.
When it comes to philately, there’s one stamp that flies above all others: the “Inverted Jenny.” The world’s most sought-after stamp, the upside down 24-cent stamp from 1918 soared to new heights when it sold for $2 million, a new record for a U.S. stamp, at New York’s Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries, Nov. 8.
“This is not only a record-breaking price for a single Inverted Jenny, but the first time a single United States stamp has ever brought more than $2 million at auction. It is a historic moment for the entire hobby, as well as our auction house,” Scott Trepel, Siegel’s president, said.
The stamp was produced in 1918 to commemorate the introduction of the U.S. postal service’s first airmail delivery between New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. It featured a Curtiss JN-4 airplane, known as a "Jenny", the same plane set to deliver the mail the following day. The stamp was printed in carmine rose and deep blue. It became an instant collector’s item when a single sheet of 100 stamps was sold with the Jenny printed flying upside down. The stamp’s value skyrocketed almost instantly after the error stamp was discovered. Copies of the stamp have sold for hundreds of thousands of dollars at auctions in recent decades. In 2018, an Inverted Jenny sold for $1,593,000 (including buyer's premium).
The record-setting stamp was purchased by collector Charles Hack, 76. He told The Washington Post that he has been eyeing the coveted stamp since he was a child, calling it the “holy grail of postage.”
In 2013, the U.S. Postal Service reissued the famous stamp, selling them for a modest $2 each.
