Is this a case of the Emperor’s New Clothes or just an apt demonstration that the value of money only has a value that we humans collectively give it? Folks, may I present to you the sole remaining copy of a stamp (that we know of), and the most expensive piece of paper in existence — the Treskilling Yellow.
Issued in 1855 in Sweden, the usual “three-skilling” stamp was green, but somehow, one day, the three-skilling stamp was printed in this yellow-orange shade (probably because employees forgot to put out the correct shade of paint). Presumably, a whole sheet of these Treskilling stamps in yellow were made, but only this one ever surfaced.
And the story of its value is one of pure escalation. In 1886, a philatelist (one who collects stamps) discovered the Treskilling Yellow amidst one of his relative’s materials and sold it. Eight years later, a European prince named Philipp von Ferrary purchased it for much more. By 1928, the stamp’s price had risen to $15,000 when sold at an auction. A king — King Carol II of Romania — got it for double that in 1937. Fast forward, and just keep adding zeroes to the pricetag, and by 2010 an “international consortium” (later revealed as Armand Rousso) purchased the Treskilling Yellow for $2.3 million US dollars. As of 2023, the stamp is in the possession of the Swedish nobleman and politician Count Gustaf Douglas, who bought it in 2013 for an undisclosed — but thought to be extremely high — price.
Philately has never held a particular allure for me, so the value of the Treskilling Yellow is difficult to understand. It kind of reminds me of when my kids were little and expected to make a large profit off of selling their kindergarten paintings — many of which were more attractive than this most expensive piece of paper, IMHO.
