FLOAT
The 1845 New York postmaster's provisional 5c black Washington - an example of the most-used postmaster provisional; the 'ACM' initials of the priced variety are not verified on this copy.
The 1845 New York postmaster's provisional 5c black Washington - an example of the most-used postmaster provisional; the 'ACM' initials of the priced variety are not verified on this copy.

US 1845 New York Postmaster's Provisional 5c

Maker
United States — New York, N.Y. postmaster (Robert H. Morris)
Year
1845
Rank
92 of 100
Identifier
Scott 9X1, 5c black on bluish, signed 'ACM' (Marcellus); the most-used postmaster provisional

US 1845 New York Postmaster's Provisional 5c

Realized at auction: $750, dated 2015-07-01. This is a realized sale. Somebody paid it.

What is it, and why is it in the FLOAT 100?

The earliest and most-used US postmaster provisional — the gateway rarity of pre-1847 US philately.

Scott 9X1, 5c black on bluish, signed 'ACM' (Marcellus); the most-used postmaster provisional

What is the best-sourced number for it?

Figure
$750
Kind
Realized at auction
Date
2015-07-01

A realized auction price is what a buyer actually paid on the date shown, including the buyer's premium where the sale reported it. It is the strongest kind of reference price, and it is a record of one sale of one object on one day, not a promise of what the next example will bring.

By reference price, US 1845 New York Postmaster's Provisional 5c is number 87 of 99 in the stamps entries of the FLOAT 100. 75 of those 99 rest on a realized sale; the rest carry an asking price or a guide value, and each page says which. Rank within the FLOAT 100 itself (92 here) is editorial: how much an object defines its field, not price alone.

How this is made

The figure
One reference price, shown with its own kind. FLOAT does not average it with anything or adjust it for time.
Realized or not
A realized price is a completed sale. A market asking price and a price-guide value are not sales, and are labeled as such wherever they appear.
Why no grade ladder
Most FLOAT 100 entries are individual objects. There is one of this, so there is no population and no spread across grades to show.
Archive
2026-08-08

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