What Is Your Most Prized Philatelic Possession?

Most of us started out as kids collecting stamps. What stamp do you currently have (or had) that you thought you'd never own?
I'm 66 years old and began collecting when I was about 7. Not only do I own stamps that I never thought I'd own, but I own stamps that I never even saw in color until the first time I got my hands on a Steve Ivy catalog (80's?).
For myself, I guess if I had to pick one it would be a mint (prev hinged) copy of the $5 Columbian. In all I probably have about 20 or so stamps I thought I'd never be able to afford. I'm not wealthy either. Just took a lot of patience and time. Ebay helped out a lot too I'd have to say.

Not a stamp................ My pointy nosed tweezers.
Invaluable.

For those who hate repetition on the board I apologize in advance for not spotting a similar topic with plenty of responses that's on page 3 now I believe. Something like "Post Your Greatest Treasure." Interesting postings. What I'm most interested is in what stamp do you own (or owned) that is something you never thought you'd have when you first started collecting. Doesn't necessarily have to be a high end stamp. I NEVER thought I'd own any dollar value Columbian. Hadn't even ever seen one outside of a black and white picture in a Brookman catalog growing up.

There are probably hundreds of stamps that I never thought I'd have when I started out collecting, mostly because I didn't realize at first how inflated catalog prices were vs. the real world. The pic below probably tops the list, Germany Scott# B58, Michel Block 2. This one was a bit of a stretch for me, but it completed my Germany Third Reich-era binder, and I got it for a decent price. The one in the pic is not mine, but it looks about the same from the front.

For me, my most prized possession comes from a more personal involvement with an item. I used to be a professional hot-air balloonist and upon landing on one of my flights in Lafayette, Ind, a guy came up to me a said he had something he thought I might appreciate. He went into his house and brought out a program of an event celebrating the 100th anniversary of the first airmail flight, which he gave to me. He gave me the program, which had the Jupiter balloon airmail stamp inside. What made it special for me was that the pilot that flew the balloon for that anniversary event is a friend of mine, and I subsequently had him sign the program.

To date it's U.S. R80a (SCV $12,500). I never thought I'd find one that was (1) actually genuine, (2) aesthetically pleasing, (3) with a clear handstamp cancel, and most importantly (4) at a price point I could afford. I've passed on several more expensive examples that weren't as nice.

The ownly downside is it being cut just into the frameline at top... but that top margin probably saved me about $3,000.

I'm perfectly happy with it.

That's a beauty, revenuecollector!