Any mistake made in the (36) of a stamp raises its value to stamp (37) . A mistake on a (38) stamp has made it worth a million and a half times its face value. Do you think it (39) Well, it is true. And this is how it (40) .
The mistake was made more than a hundred years ago in the former British (41) of Mauritius, a small island in the Indian Ocean. In 1847, an order for stamps was sent to London. Mauritius was about to become the (42) country in the world to put out stamps.
Before the order was filled and the (43) arrived from England, a big dance was planned by the Commander-in-chief of all the armed forces on the island. (44) . Stamps were badly needed to post the letters.
Therefore, an islander, who was a good printer, was told to copy the pattern of the stamps. (45) .
Today, there are only twenty-six of these misprinted stamps left -- fourteen One-penny Reds and twelve Two-penny Blues. Because there are so few Two-penny Blues and because of their age, (46) .
【参考答案】
collectors have paid as much as $16，800 for one of them．