One of the rarest and most sought after stamps ever produced is up for sale and expected to fetch over half a million pounds. The plate 77 Penny Red has been dubbed the ‘Holy Grail of philately’ and is one of just nine examples of the stamp ever recorded. Although millions of Penny Reds were printed between 1841 and 1879, a number of plates were never used due to technical faults. Flaws in plate number 77 meant the stamp’s perforations were lined up incorrectly, so all of the test sheets were destroyed. But at least one sheet was released into circulation by mistake - making the 77 every stamp collector’s dream. Dealer Stanley Gibbons heralds it as the 'most valuable single stamp' the company has ever had for sale in their 156 year history, with a value of around £550,000. Collectors worldwide religiously check every Penny Red they come across to see if it is a real example of the 'philatelic Holy Grail'. Spokesman Vince Cordell said: 'This example has graced some of the finest stamp collections ever formed and is not only a magnificent exhibition piece but one of the great rarities of Great Britain and world philately. 'To date, four mint and five used examples have been reported, although some have not been seen for so long their authenticity is unconfirmed and often doubted.' Of the mint examples, there is one in the Royal Philatelic collection, one in the Tapling collection in the British Library, one in the Raphael collection that was stolen in 1965 and has not been seen since, and the fourth was in the Ferrary collection sold in the 1920s. The used examples include two found in the early 20th Century that were damaged and have not been seen for more than 50 years, one that was lost in the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, and one in the Adams collection - now in the British Library.
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