Stamp Investment Tip: Mauritius - Something Old and Something New

Mauritius is famous in the philatelic world for its 1847 "Post Office Mauritius" stamps (Scott #1 and 2), world-class rarities worth more than a million dollars each. The market for these stamps is obviously rather thin, constituting a parlor game played by ultra-rich collectors, and probably not of interest to 99.9% of the readers of this blog.

From a philatelic investment perspective, Mauritius has issued many stamps during its colonial period and as a republic, which should do well in the years to come. The issues of the colonial period are pricier, and mainly sought by British Commonwealth collectors, while some of the relatively inexpensive recent issues have topical appeal.


Among the stamps of the colonial period are the issues of 1859-62 picturing an allegorical figure of "Britannia" (Scott #18-23). I've listed the quantities issued and Scott '11 Catalogue Values for these below:

- 1859 6p Blue (Scott #18; 100,000; ;$750.- unused, $55.- used)

- 1859 1sh Vermilion (Scott #19; 50,000; $3,000.- unused, $57.50 used)

- 1861 6p Gray Violet (Scott #20; Unknown; $32.50 unused, $60.- used)

- 1861 1sh Green (Scott #21; 10,000; $ ;$675.- unused, $150.- used)

- 1862 6p Slate (Scott #22 ; Unknown; $30.- unused, $90.- used)

- 1862 1sh Deep Green (Scott #23; 7,500; $2,750.- unused, $400.- used)

When attempting an educated guess of quantities remaining, it should be kept in mind that there weren't very many people collecting Mauritius 150 years ago, and the vast majority of these stamps were probably used and discarded.


For those interested in a more affordable speculation, I recommend the 1969 Gandhi Issue, produced in set and souvenir sheet format (Scott #359-62, 362a). This is the most "biographical" Gandhi set that I've ever seen, in that it portrays the Mahatma at different points in his life. 49,680 sets and 25,864 souvenir sheets were issued, and Scott '10 prices them at $3.95 and $7.50 , respectively. Demand for Gandhi topicals has been heating up for a while now, and should continue to do so as the stamp market in India grows.


While it is possible that demand for stamps of Mauritius will be given an additional boost due to increased interest within the country itself, it may be that its population is too small to form a significant base of stamp collectors. A nation of about 1.3 million, Mauritius has developed from a low-income, agriculturally based economy to a middle income diversified economy with growing industrial, financial, and tourist sectors. This has been reflected in increased life expectancy, lowered infant mortality and improved infrastructure. Sugar cane is grown on about 90% of the cultivated land and accounts for 25% of export earnings. The government's development strategy centers on foreign investment, especially offshore banking, mainly aimed at commerce with India and South Africa. Annual GDP growth has averaged about 5% over the last five years.

Stamp Investment Tip: Mahatma Gandhi Topicals

The stamp market is heating up in India, and as vast numbers of upwardly mobile Indian converts to the insidious cult of Philately enter the fold, their focus has been on topicals. It should come as no surprise that among the most popular topicals in India are stamps featuring Gandhi.

As all of the Gandhi stamps issued throughout the world are modern, the vast majority of them are still extremely inexpensive - two major exceptions to this being India's 1948 Mourning set (Scott #203-06) and the accompanying set of overprinted officials (Scott #O112A-12D) , both of which I tipped on September 16th of last year.

However, Gandhi topicals have been so hyped recently that minor, unlisted errors (commonly known as "freaks"), which only a few years ago might have brought only slight premiums over the prices of the normal stamps, have sold for absurdly high prices. Normally, I'd consider such sensational "lemmings-to-the-sea" type of behavior to be a sign of a stamp market bubble for the issues affected, similar to the short-lived mania for Lady Diana issues following her tragic death.

In my opinion, this situation is somewhat different, because the future of philately in India is very bright indeed, and because the topic is Gandhi, who many Indians view as being like Washington, Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Jesus rolled into one.

However, it often pays to hedge one's bets, and in this kind of situation, a good stampselector
will survey the relevant issues in order to determine which seem the most undervalued. Such stamps will soar if the speculation pays off, and will hold up better than the frothier items if the bottom falls out of the market.

As yet, I've found two issues that I particularly like. Both commemorate the Centenary of Gandhi's Birth.

In 1969, Hungary issued a normal, perforated stamp picturing the Mahatma (Scott #2005 ; 582,000 issued; Scott '10 Cv= $ 1.25 for unused) which I am not recommending, along with an imperforate version of the same design (Scott #2005Note; 6,500 issued; $ 8.00 for unused or used), which I am. Hungary has issued relatively low quantities of imperforate versions of many of its stamps. As the imperforates were produced solely to generate foreign exchange by milking collectors, they were held in contempt until the fall of the Iron Curtain and the resurrection of capitalism in Hungary. The normal, perforated stamp might do well, but the imperf represents a far better value. When purchasing the Gandhi imperf, the buyer should be somewhat careful, because since the common, perforated stamp has wide margins, its perfs could be trimmed off by an unscrupulous seller in order to make it appear imperforate. Probably the safest way to buy the imperf is to buy it in pairs or blocks, or tied to a First Day Cover. As many dealers are still unaware of the Gandhi craze, you may stumble upon such a cover in a dealer's dollar box.

In 1970, Cyprus issued about 188,000 sets of two stamps (Scott #338-39) which Scott '10 values at $ 1.00 for unused. It's certainly inexpensive enough to accumulate in large quantities, and enough sets are available to make it susceptible to market manipulation.

Attractively cacheted First Day Covers of Gandhi topicals are popular, so if you can locate FDCs for these issues at a slight premium, they're worth purchasing. Resist any temptation to pay astronomical prices for minor errors or "flyspeck" varieties.

(Note: the Hungarian Gandhi stamp pictured is the normal, perforated stamp; I could not locate an image of the imperforate version.)

Stamp Investment Tip: India 1948 Mahatma Gandhi Issue (Scott #203-06)

On January 30, 1948, Mohandas K. Gandhi, one of the greatest men who ever lived, was assassinated. On August 15, the first anniversary of India's independence, India issued a set of stamps depicting the Mahatma (Scott #203-06). About 230,000 sets were issued, and the set has a Scott '09 Catalog Value of $ 126.00.

In my opinion, this set is certain to rise in value. It has appeared on many buy lists lately, and may not be available for less than full Scott value. Several decades ago, before India's economic growth accelerated, an NH set could be purchased for as little as 25% of Scott.

A small number of Gandhi sets were overprinted "SERVICE" for Offical use (Scott #O112A-112D) in the following quantities, with Scott Catalog Values also given: O112A - 15,950

($ 45.00), O112B - 1,350 ($ 800.00), O112C - 250 ($ 2,100.00), O112D - 20 ($ 12,000.00). The catalog values given are italicized in Scott, indicating that reliable market information is unavailable, making it difficult to assign accurate values. A set of the Gandhi Officials sold for 38,000 Euros (about triple Scott) at a David Feldman Auction in 2007. Buying the less expensive lower values individually makes sense, but since forged overprints exist, require expertization as a condition for purchase.