2016-10-24 Mon

Persian Rugs is the nickname given to the high-value stamps in a series of documentary revenue stamps (tax stamps) issued in 1871.

The revenue stamps in the United States were used briefly during colonial times in the midst of the American Civil War. After the war ended, revenue stamps and the taxes they represented still continued. Revenue stamps served to pay tax duties on items.

Their large size and intricate, colourful designs are more like the currency than stamps. The $500 large Persian Rug is truly a “large” stamp measuring 2 1/8 by 4 inches. It is considered the most beautiful of all US revenue stamps as well as the most striking issue in all of U.S. postal history.

The majority of the large Persian Rugs were used with railroad mortgages. In the 1870s a $500 revenue stamp would be needed to pay the tax on a $5,000,000 transaction, an enormous sum of money at that time. Hence, only 204 of the $500 variety were sold and a mere 67 surviving copies have been recorded.

One such stamp was sold for US$35,000 in recently held Siegel Auction.