1900 4d Lake Taupo Invert.

        This stamp, issued August 1899 is the 4d Lake Taupo / Mt Ruapehu. The lake is New Zealand's largest lake situated in the centre of the North Island, the stamp design incorporates, Mount Ruapehu (2,797 metres) in the distance. The tree depicted is a cabbage palm, common throughout much of New Zealand.  This stamp was a reproduction, at a slightly smaller size, of the 1898 1d stamp designed by J Gaut.

See our post on the 1898 Pictorial Issue.

4d - Lake Taupo / Mt Ruapehu.

A normal mint example.

   

Four used copies showing the heavy cancels used on stamps. While making it very clear that these stamps had been used, the cancel ruined the stamp from a collector's point of view. When we get to the famous invert further down this page you will notice that once again the heavy cancel makes the inverted center hard to notice unless you are really looking for it. 

Colour Shift in the Blue. 

 

 In the pair, on the left, the blue centre has shifted to the left when compared with the normal ones above. The single stamp on the right also shows a shift of the blue centre, in this case 2.3mm lower. There seems to have been a fair amount of movement on this stamps because I have seen a number of stamps with the blue centre out of place. I even have one in my personal collection.

The Taupo Invert.

1904 4d - Lake Taupo / Mt Raupehu (Invert).

            This stamp is New Zealand's 1904 4-penny bicoloured Lake Taupo / Mt Raupehu stamp with an inverted blue center. It is the only known example of this error. Since this stamp was the first New Zealand bicoloured stamp it is the first stamp where this type of error was possible.

            This stamp is canceled with a fairly heavy "Picton 21 MR : 04" which largely covers the central vignette, making the invert barely noticeable unless you are looking for it. It is best seen with the mountains and the cabbage tree. The stamp is in good condition except for a tear on the left-hand side.

            The story goes that in 1930, during the Great Depression when times were hard, the stamp was discovered by Jack Dennett, a farmer in England, who looking through his childhood album, searching for stamps he could sell for cash.

           Dennett was surprised to discover one stamp had an inverted center, and he sent the stamp to a leading dealer for an opinion. The dealer wrote back inquiring what Dennett was asking for this error. It was then sent for expertization. Dennett later received a Royal Philatelic Society of London certificate signed by notables such as John Wilson and Edward Bacon.

          Dennett consigned the error to Plumridge & Co. for auction in London March 27, 1931, and the legendary French dealer Theodore Champion purchased it via Tom Allen for £161, a large sum in the Depression era.

          The Lake Taupo invert was then sold to the Marquis De Rosny, and the stamp disappeared for nearly half a century. An article in The New Zealand Stamp Collector in 1971 was headed "Has anyone seen our stamp?" This complete absence off the world market for 50 years may explain why this unique error did not attract the international reputation other famous stamps have. 

           The Lake Taupo invert's next sale recorded was in October 21, 1980. It was offered in a private treaty sale by the French dealers J. Robinson et Cie and sold for 110,500 francs, then worth about A$18,000. The buyer was Robert W. Lyman of Irvington-on-Hudson, N.Y., who is understood to have purchased the stamp on behalf of a syndicate of investors. In 1980, the stamp also obtained a Friedl committee expert certificate.

          The ownership history of the error after this 1980 sale is murky. In 1990, another expert certificate was obtained, this time from the British Philatelic Association. It was then advertised and offered for sale by various dealers around the world over a number of years but was unable to attract a buyer.

         Finally in 1998 New Zealand Post and Wellington stamp dealer J R. Mowbray became involved in negotiations over this stamp Later that year it was announced that NZ Post had in fact purchased the stamp for its archival collection for NZ$125,000.. So now the stamp has been permanently removed from the stamp market. 

         J R. Mowbray said, "This sale is a positive sign for philately in New Zealand, with the purchaser New Zealand Post wanting to show the stamp publicly for promotional purposes, so its impact on attracting collectors into the hobby will be huge."

         It is believed to be the most expensive New Zealand stamp. Today Campbell Patterson values this stamp at $200,000.

         The interesting thing is that no other copy of this variety has ever come to light. As many readers of this blog will know, it is impossible for one stamp to be printed centred inverted and the rest of the sheet to be normal which means that at least another 79 once existed. So while it does seem most probable that somewhere among odd lots or schoolboy collections there might be several more copies, none have ever been found.

Much of this history above comes from https://www.glenstephens.com

Upside-down pair on cover.

Made me look twice when I saw this cover. I first noticed that the centre mountain/lake scene was upside-down. It was only when I looked again that I realised that in fact both stamps were upside-down. That is a shame as a pair like the invert above still on a cover would have been a major discovery.

Partly Imperf Block of Four.

1900 Lake Taupo - 4d (Partly Imperf block of 4)

I am not sure about the colour of this block. Somehow it does not look real. My guess is that the image colour is wrong rather than the stamps themselves. But since it is an excellent example of a partly block we are keeping it on this page. It should be noted that Campbell Patterson does list a number of colour variations with this stamp. It appears to have been printed on at least four different occasions.