Census of 1c Blue, Type I (Scott 5)

Notes:

Red ink smeared over red cancel to change appearance after theft from New York Public Library’s Miller stamp collection.

Provenance:

Benjamin K. Miller Collection, bequest to New York Public Library.
Offered in Lambert W. Gerber’s Philatelic Gems catalogue, Vol. 10, for $21,500. Gerber is reported to have died in August 1981.
The stamp is currently at The New York Public Library, off exhibit indefinitely.
10/29/1984, According to a report in Linn’s, this stamp was among 153 items stolen on May 7, from the B. K. Miller collection then on exhibit at The New York Public Library on Fifth Avenue in New York City. The FBI announced recovery of 81 items, including this stamp, and stated that all of the recovered items could be traced to Lambert W. Gerber, a dealer in Tamaqua PA. A search of Gerber’s business records after his death failed to reveal how he came into possession of the stolen stamps.

Certificates: