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A new world record has been [settled / set] for the sale of a postage stamp. Not just any old stamp, but a [once-of-a-kind / one-of-a-kind] . The 1856 British Guiana One-Cent Magenta was sold at [the / an] auction in New York for $9.48 million. The auction [house / home] , Sotheby's, said it was the fourth time the stamp has broken the record. Sotheby's [nice / vice] chairman David Redden said the record would never be broken again, unless the same stamp came [down / up] for auction again. He told reporters: "That price will be hard to [beat / win] , and likely won't be exceeded [regardless / unless] the British Guiana itself comes up for sale again [at / in] the future." David Beech, a former [curator / creator] of stamps at the British Library, compared the sale to buying the artwork the 'Mona Lisa'.

The stamp was bought by an [anon / anonymous] buyer. It was [previously / previous] owned by John E. du Pont, an [heir / hare] to the du Pont chemical fortune. He is currently in prison for [fatally / fatality] shooting an Olympic champion wrestler. It was first discovered in 1873 by a 12-year-old stamp collector. He sold it a few years [back / later] for six shillings - about $50 in today's money and a tidy sum back then. It has [since / then] had a dozen owners, [including / inclusive] the French government. Mr Redden marvelled at how [sought / seeking] after the stamp has become. He said: "This is the most valuable item in the world by weight. It's just a [tiny / tinny] piece of paper." He added he was happy that the stamp had been bought by a collector who would [churlish / cherish] it, and not by an investor.