FLOAT

US 1869 30c 'Shield, Eagle & Flags' Invert

Maker
United States (USPOD), National Bank Note Co.
Year
1869
Rank
28 of 100

US 1869 30c 'Shield, Eagle & Flags' Invert

US 1869 30c 'Shield, Eagle & Flags' Invert by United States (USPOD), National Bank Note Co. (1869) is ranked 28 in the FLOAT 100 for Stamps. It sold for $600,000 on 1 January 2013. The scarcest unused 1869 invert by gum status — the unique original-gum example is a landmark of US philately.

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

The scarcest unused 1869 invert by gum status — the unique original-gum example is a landmark of US philately.

Scott 121b, 30c ultramarine & carmine, flags inverted; only 7 unused known, just one with original gum

What is the best-sourced number for it?

Figure
$600,000
Kind
Realized at auction
Date
1 January 2013

Robert A. Siegel, 'Beverly Hills' collection of US inverts, 2013: $600,000 hammer for the unique original-gum example (census 121b-UNC-01).

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.
Archive
2026-08-08