America’s most valuable stamp sold at auction for nearly $4.4 million on Friday.
The 1868 one-cent “Z” grille was sold as part of the collection of “bond king” Bill Gross, co-founder of asset management firm Pacific Investment Management Co. (also known as PIMCO).
The winning bidder requested anonymity.
This is the first time the stamp has been offered for sale in 26 years and is considered one of the most coveted stamps among stamp enthusiasts.
The “Z” Grill stamp completes an entire collection that includes every postage stamp issued by the United States Postal Service since 1847.
The “Z” Grill stamp arrived in a custom “Z” Grill Louis Vuitton trunk that contained the stamp in an acrylic frame.
“We call it a blue chip stamp,” said Scott Trepel, president of Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries, the auction house that sold the stamp.
“It’s not hard to understand. It’s very rare. And it fulfills a very basic need for a stamp collector: ‘I have to have this stamp to complete my collection.'”
The “Z” Grill stamp features Benjamin Franklin and is one of only two in existence.
The other stamp is owned by the New York Public Library and is currently on loan to the Smithsonian National Postal Museum in Washington and will never be sold.
“This is the Holy Grail of American stamp collecting,” said Charles Shreve, director of Siegel Auction Galleries USA and a philatelic adviser to Mr. Gross.
A grill is a mark placed on a stamp to prevent it from being reused.
The branding creates a waffle-like embossing that releases ink and spreads into the fibers, making it impossible to wash off.
The “Z” grille, named for its zigzag pattern, is considered the rarest of the grille types and was only in use for a short period of time.
In addition to Gross, other notable people who owned the stamps included Jerry Buss, who was once the largest shareholder of the Los Angeles Lakers.
Stamp collecting has been a part of Gross’ life since his mother bought stamps to help pay for his college education in the 1930s and 1940s.
Gross’ interest in stamps served not only as an investment but also as a passion and an outlet for enjoyment and accomplishment.
“He likes to turn chaos into something structured, to create order out of disorder,” Shreve said.
“It gave him a sense of pride that he had accomplished something.”
That’s why the only two people on Gross’s calls during the day were “Warren Buffett and me,” Shreve told FOX Business.
“It’s a way to take a break from the real world.”
Gross and Shreve would look through auction catalogs while watching football games and shopping late into the night.
“Though stamps are used less these days, they are a part of American culture and people like to collect things from the past,” Shreve said.
“When mail was sent in the 1860s, ’70s and ’80s, the internet was the way to go.”
Shreve said Gross acquired the “Z” Grill stamp in 2005 as the final step in completing his collection.
Acting as an agent, Shreve made a deal with Mystic Stamp Co. to acquire the Inverted Jenny plate block for the value of nearly $3 million.
This is considered to be the “largest stamp exchange in history.”
Over the past few years, Gross has sold more than $50 million worth of stamps.
Collecting stamps is another investment.
“If you have a choice between putting money into the financial markets and getting an investment return or buying something tangible that you can sell and cash out your gains on, that’s a game,” Trepel told FOX Business.
“For some, it’s art, and they buy art from artists who they think will be worth more one day. With real estate, it’s location. With stamps and coins and collectibles, generally, it’s something that everyone wants or will want in the future.”
