On the podium: Mauritius 1 and 2 (1847)

Mauritius 225-228

Up on the podium with two of the world's rarest and most valuable stamps: the famous "Mauritius Blue" and its companion, the orange one penny "Post Office". Here they are beautifully placed in the center of a classic stamp on stamp design from the days of the British Empire, issued in 1947, marking the centenary of the original issues.

The first one, the red violet and orange 5 cent stamp, always had a special place of honour in my stamp collection as a young boy. In whatever album I placed it, it seemed to shine like a diamond compared to the ones beside it. I'm still in awe at the beauty of it. It could be that my interest in stamps on stamps can be traced back to that particular stamp. The three others lack a little of that wonderful bright lustre, but seen together, this set is really nice eye candy for me.

Since I collect these stamps on stamps mainly because I like their designs, I usually prefer mint or uncancelled stamps, but in this case I feel otherwise - the cancellation marks somehow seem appropriate and enhances their visual presence. They make me think: Could anyone stick stamps like these on envelopes without noticing their beauty?

I'm not a billionaire, so I would never be able to put my paws on Mauritius 1 and 2. But on Ebay I found a rather honest forger who sells forgeries of them with these words: "Want to fill those empty spaces in your stamp album, but don't want to pay the high price for the originals? Then buy this set of forgeries... I Believe they are the best forgeries on E-Bay..."

I couldn't resist that forthrightness, so I ordered them forthwith, and here they are:

Mauritius 1 and 2 (copies)

The story behind Mauritius 1 and 2 are so interesting, intricate and intriguing that it has been the subject of a non-fiction book by Helen Morgan, published in 2008. It would not be easy to summarize it here, but I found the book fascinating and well worth reading for all the stamp history it contains.

Find out more at Helen Morgan's research site

Views on her book can be found here:
Blue Mauritius at Amazon