Rare British Guiana stamp sells for record $9.5M at NYC auction

Rare British Guiana stamp set for New York auction

The British Guiana stamp was owned by du Pont chemical empire heir John du Pont

June 17, 2014. –  BBC News/Demerara Waves

An exceedingly rare 19th Century postage stamp from a British colony in South America has sold for a record $9.5m (£5.6m) at auction in New York.

It took only two minutes for the British Guiana one-cent magenta stamp to be sold to an anonymous bidder, The stamp had been sold three times before, each time setting the auction record for a single stamp.