1856 British Guiana One-Cent Magenta (reverse)
Multiple markings on the reverse of the stamp testify to its provenance, or ownership history. They are listed here in the order they were applied:
- Circled trefoil (two strikes, one of them incomplete): Count Philipp von Ferrary
- Four-leaf clover and AH: Arthur Hind
- Seventeen-point star: Applied by Ann Hind to obscure her husband’s mark.
- Comet: Frederick T. Small
- Pencil initials FK: Finbar Kenny, manager of Macy’s stamp department, brokered the stamp’s sale to Frederick T. Small.
- Pencil initials IW: Irwin Weinberg and Associates
- Handwritten J.E.d.P.: John Eleuthère du Pont
Photo Credit: Smithsonian's National Postal Museum