FLOAT
The 1854 India 4-annas with the Queen's head inverted, cut octagonal - an example of the lithographed Inverted Head error.

India 1854 'Inverted Head 4 Annas'

Maker
East India Company / British India
Year
1854
Rank
44 of 100

India 1854 'Inverted Head 4 Annas'

India 1854 'Inverted Head 4 Annas' by East India Company / British India (1854) is ranked 44 in the FLOAT 100 for Stamps. It sold for $91,805 on 23 January 2013. The world's first invert error and the crown jewel of India philately — the British Empire's answer to the Inverted Jenny.

What is it, and why is it in the FLOAT 100?

The world's first invert error and the crown jewel of India philately — the British Empire's answer to the Inverted Jenny.

SG 18-22, 4a red & blue lithograph with the head inverted; cut-to-shape single, fault-free

What is the best-sourced number for it?

Figure
$91,805
Kind
Realized at auction
Date
23 January 2013

Spink, Medina Collection of India, 23 Jan 2013: GBP 58,000 (~$91,805). A Spink 2010 example made $170,500; wide spread by condition.

This is a realized sale. Somebody paid it. Source.

How this is made

The figure
One reference price, taken from a named public source and shown with its own kind. FLOAT does not average it with anything or adjust it for time.
Realized or not
A realized price is a completed sale. A market asking price and a price-guide value are not sales, and are labeled as such wherever they appear.
Why no grade ladder
Most FLOAT 100 entries are individual objects. There is one of this, so there is no population and no spread across grades to show.
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2026-08-08