Strictly forbidden - and 33% below market value

I want you to imagine a door.

You walk past it every day.

But it's marked “Strictly Forbidden”. And it's always locked.

Until one day it isn't.

Somebody forgot to close it. This is your chance.

And you just have to find out what's behind it...

That's human nature.

And it definitely applies when it comes to stamp collecting.

You want the stamps you're not supposed to have.

The thrill of owning something forbidden.

Well the item I'm offering you today is all that and more.

But before we get started...

Here's a warning

Because this is an extremely dangerous item.

A stamp so controversial, so blasphemous, that authorities banned them immediately. By rights, you should never be allowed to own it.

But here's the exciting thing: you can today.

And what's more, there's 25 of them. An entire explosive sheet.

I seriously doubt you'll find another one of these anywhere.

So what is it?

It's an extreme rarity of modern postal history
A stamp that was never meant to exist
It has an incredible back story
It's in absolutely perfect mint condition
And it's available at far below its market value

I present to you...

South Africa's most infamous stamp

This is the 1987 40c 'Word of God' stamp.

The Republic of South Africa's most valuable and collectible stamp.

And also the most infamous.

It was part of set issued on November 19, 1987 to commemorate the Bible Society of South Africa, established in 1820.

The stamp depicts the name of God in Hebrew and in Greek on a blue background. But the simple design caused instant outrage.

Because under Judaic law, the name of God should never appear written in any form outside of prayer books and the Torah.

The South African Postal Authority quickly realised their mistake, and withdrew the stamps to prevent any further offence to the Jewish community.

The existing stock was destroyed, and the crisis was averted.

Or so they thought.

But across the country, a number of smaller Post Offices had jumped the gun.

In desperate need of 40c stamps, they'd already unpackaged the new supply and started selling them across the counter.

Human error had triumphed once again.

These blasphemous stamps had somehow found their way into the world.

And a classic South African rarity was born.

So how rare are they?

It's believed that only 51 Word of God sheets escaped their fate.

They were broken up and mistakenly sold across the counter.

That makes just 1,275 examples available to collectors.

It's unknown exactly how many were used for postage.

Or how many exist in mint condition, tucked away in private collections around the world.

Occasionally an unused pair will appear at auction.

And very occasionally a block of four.

But I can tell you one thing for certain.

In my entire career I've only ever seen one complete sheet.

And it's sitting in our vault right now.

This is as good as it gets

This is truly a philatelic trophy piece.

A complete sheet of 25 (5x5) Word of God stamps.

Unused and fully intact, with control numbers in the upper right corner.

In perfect mint condition, unmounted with original gum.

In collecting terms, it literally doesn't get any better than this.

Discovering an unused, mint-condition stamp that was never meant to be issued is exciting. But an entire sheet of them? That's surely the holy grail for any collector.

It's like finding a vintage Ferrari with zero miles on the clock.

Or a copy of the first Superman comic whose pages have never been turned.

Now we all know how valuable those items are. Unless you're a billionaire, you're outside the store with your nose pressed against the window.

But the beauty of stamp collecting is that it's open to everyone.

In such a diverse market, a supreme rarity like this can still be yours.

An item of such quality that it takes your collection to the next level.

And for considerably less than you'd imagine.

33% below market value

Now consider the price of this item.

Because the numbers alone make this an incredibly attractive proposition.

The current SACC catalogue price for a single unmounted mint Word of God stamp is R14,000. That's approximately £600 ($750).

So the 25 mint stamps on this sheet have a combined value of R35,000.

That's £15,000 ($18,750).

But today you can purchase the entire sheet for just £9,950 ($12,575).

That's 33% below the current market value.

So if you're a collector with an eye on future profit, it's an instant win.

And that's before you consider the premium of an entire intact sheet.

Because as you know, unused blocks are inherently more valuable than individual stamps. They're always worth more than the sum of their parts.

So the actual value of this full sheet could be considerably higher.

My colleague Mike Hall has extensive knowledge of this item. After all, he was the one who originally acquired it for our collection. This is what he has to say:“In my view this is the best value rarity from Africa we have on offer right now. The story and the controversial subject matter make it highly collectible. And the current price offers you a real chance to profit in the future. It's a gem.”

Add this trophy to your collection today

The 1987 40c 'Word of God' stamp is an icon of South African philately.

It's one of the most famous 'banned' stamps ever produced.

And in collecting terms, it ticks every single box.

Rarity: Just 1,275 of these stamps exist. And this is the only complete sheet I've seen in my entire career.
History: The controversial nature of this stamp gives it a fantastic back story.
Scarcity: These stamps are highly sought-after by S.A collectors - and this sheet is the ultimate trophy.
Condition: It's a full unused sheet in mint-condition with original gum. That's as good as it gets.
Price: It's available for £9,950 - 33% below current market value.
Investment potential: The combined SACC catalogue value of the 25 stamps on this sheet is £15,000.