Canada has issued over 3000 postage stamps. Most sell for pennies and only a few sell for more than $500 each. There is only one great rarity and that stamp-the 12 Penny 1851 (Scott #3) – is one of the rarest stamps in the world.
The Canada 12 Penny of 1851 was part of the first issue of Canada. Stamps were government documents representing prepayment of a government service. As such they were subject to the same anti counterfeiting precautions as currency. The 12 Penny was engraved – a method of printing that is hard to counterfeit. But the stamp was also printed on what is called laid paper-a type of paper that shows characteristic lines from the paper mat on which the paper was made (laid paper is very difficult to make and so counterfeiters usually avoid trying to counterfeit stamps that have been printed on that paper).
The 12 Penny was unpopular with users at the time for three reasons. This paper mat made the stamps poorly printed which combined with the black color made the stamps unattractive. Further, the laid paper made the gum ineffective at sticking the stamp to the envelope on which it was placed. And lastly, the stamp’s high value of 12 pence (four times the normal Canadian first class postage rate of the time) was a denomination for which there was little use and few of the stamps were sold or saved.
It is estimated that only about a hundred of this stamp still exist in collector’s hands, making it not only Canada’s rarest stamp but one of the rarest and most desirable stamp in philately.