This is your chance to be one of the lucky few who can own a famous CIA Invert today.  This particular stamp was owned by Stephen Lambert, the CIA employee who originally discovered the error on March 27, 1986. 

 

After discovering the error sheet when buying stamps for his employer, Lambert decided to keep the stamps for himself and replace his employer’s stamps with regular examples.  Lambert later shared the sheet with eight of his co-workers, who each saved one stamp for themselves and sold the rest.

 

Later in 1986, Mystic Stamp Company president Don Sundman filed a Freedom of Information request to find out the full story behind the candlestick invert (revealed to the public in 1987).  That was when the actions of Lambert and his colleagues were discovered and the CIA ordered them to turn over the error stamps they still owned.  Some complied, others claimed to have lost them, and Lambert refused to give his up, resulting in his firing from the CIA.

 

On March 12, 2006, just two weeks shy of the 20^th anniversary of his original purchase, Lambert decided to sell his error stamp to Mystic.  That very stamp – hidden away by Lambert for nearly two decades – is available to you today.  Imagine the fun you’ll having showing this legendary stamp to friends and family and telling its fascinating story.  It will be the centerpiece of your collection! 

 

 

 

The candlestick stamp was printed on two separate printing presses in different buildings.  Sheets came off the first press with the image of the printed flame face down, gum side up.  The mill that manufactured the paper normally delivered it in rectangular sheets with a triangle cut off the bottom left corner.  This allowed an inverted sheet to stick out and easily be caught by quality control… But after six years of printing the candlestick design, one batch of paper was delivered to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing without the bottom corner cut off.  This was the very batch from which the error was printed and distributed to the public.