Falling stock prices and rising prices of rare stamps.

The 50/50 DOPLATIT stamp was for a long time the rarest Czechoslovak stamp and it is known as the most famous Czechoslovak misprint. The original 50 h Liberated Republic stamp should never have been overprinted in this way. It is known that only one sheet of 100 was overprinted and the stamps were then used at the Prague post office. The error was later discovered, and the remaining stamps were withdrawn from sale. This stamp is known only with the cancellation "Praha 14/4a", occasionally with the date "6.I. 1928" and none is known in mint, or unused quality.

Until 2016, 17 pieces were registered. However, this number increased by 1 in 2016, as a new, coincidentally found example was discovered.

How did this happen? You can read this great story in my book "Postage Stamps - a hobby or an investment?" (in Czech, the English version will be published in 2023), which you can order here: radek@postovni-znamky.eu

The value of this rarity continues to grow. Its price has been around 1.5 million CZK (approx. $65,000) for a long time. In February 2020, a single copy was sold in the USA for a then-record $100,300 (around 2,307,000 CZK) including auction fees. I wrote about it here: www.postovni-znamky.eu/?view=page&id=139

In mid-2022, a new price record was set when another example was auctioned for 2,900,000 CZK (around $120,000). The auction was held at the Office for State Representation in Property Affairs (Úřad pro zastupování státu ve věcech majetkových), the starting price was CZK 1,300,000 and the final amount was reached after 75 bids. www.nabidkamajetku.cz/Home/AuctionDetail/23860  The same stamp was offered in a foreign auction in 2010 at a starting price around 10,000 EUR but was not sold at the official auction’s part at that time. The reason for this could be the fact that it is a repaired specimen. However, this important fact was not mentioned at the ÚZSVM auction.

The reader may be interested to know that this stamp is forfeited criminal property. On the basis of a final judgment of the Municipal Court in Prague under §66 of the Criminal Code - the penalty of forfeiture of property, this stamp fell to the Czech State, which has hereby auctioned it.

At a time when stock prices and all traditional investment products are falling worldwide, this event is further proof (not an exception) that the price of collectibles is completely independent of macroeconomic influences and their value usually increases significantly in times of financial crises.

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