[press release]
The Philatelic Foundation Authenticates Another Long Lost Jenny Invert

A representative of an auction firm recently brought a Jenny Invert to the Philatelic Foundation’s New York offices for authentication on behalf of a consignor. The Philatelic Foundation is widely regarded in the hobby of stamp collecting for its expertise in authenticating this iconic United States air mail rarity. Over the last 70 years, the PF has issued Certificates of Authenticity for 85 of the 100 stamps from the original error sheet of the “upside down airplane stamp,” including all six of the existing blocks of four.

The stamp was hand-delivered to The Foundation by Leslie S. Hindman, the owner and principal of Chicago’s Leslie Hindman Auctioneers. Ms. Hindman recounted that the Jenny Invert had been stored for many years in a safe deposit box together with a number of other rare U.S. and foreign stamps and that the family of the original owner had decided to sell the stamps at auction.

The Foundation’s staff immediately began the expertization process led by Curator Lewis Kaufman and Executive Director Larry Lyons. Based on its extensive electronic and photographic records of this rarity, the PF was able to certify that the Jenny Invert was genuine and came from position 79 in the sheet of 100, one of only two positions which have not been seen in the market place since the stamp was issued almost 100 years ago.

In April 2016, The Philatelic Foundation authenticated another long lost Jenny Invert, which it determined to have once been part of the Ethel McCoy block of four that was stolen in 1955. That stamp was turned over to federal authorities and, following negotiations with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New York, the American Philatelic Society was recognized at its lawful owner and was given possession of the stamp at NY2016.