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DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. (1843) Peter Force Printing on Rice Paper

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Autographs Start Price:20,000.00 USD Estimated At:24,000.00 - 28,000.00 USD
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. (1843) Peter Force Printing on Rice Paper
Autographs
Beautiful Printing of Peter Force’s Historic Rice Paper “Declaration of Independence” From “American Archives”
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. (1843) Peter Force Printing, From the Original Plate with “W.J. Stone SC. WASHn.” Imprint. Crisp Rice Paper. Choice Extremely Fine.
This is a highly important opportunity to obtain one of the best, and earliest, original copies of one of America’s greatest documents. This original, very beautiful and impressive, crisp Rice Paper copy of The Declaration of Independence, which measures fully and properly to about 29.75” high x 25.75” wide size. It is one of the nicest we’ve seen or offered, having been carefully removed from its book for display with the standard trim at the right outer margin. There are the confirming light creases in the rice paper from its original folded position within the book which further attests to its full, absolute authenticity. Overall, it is bright and clean having bold black printed text and just the slightest faint tone at a couple of folds and marginal edges that does not show through to the front. It has the essential “W.J. Stone SC. WASHn.” plate imprint at the lower left and superior visual eye appeal.

The highest price we’ve achieved for a similar Peter Force W.J. Stone copy, not held within the book was $25,875 in our February 9, 2002 Sale, Lot 72. In our Early American History Auction Sale of August 26, 2006 we sold Lot 21 at $27,562. Their scarcity and collector demand, continues to appreciate.

In 1843, Peter Force used the original Stone copperplate to print additional copies of the Declaration of Independence on rice paper for inclusion in Volume I of his multi-volume book, “American Archives”. Congress authorized up to 1500 copies of that book to be printed, but subscriptions fell far short of that number. The actual number of copies printed is unknown, with estimates ranging from about 500 copies to upwards of 1,000 copies. All examples of the rice paper Declaration were folded for insertion in the inside front cover of Volume I of the Fifth Series, but today, most have been removed. It is not known how many of the rice paper copies could have survived. Speculation suggests estimates of far less than half of this printing have survived, and in varying states of preservation. This cataloger believes the number of surviving presentable copies to be in the 200 range.

The Stone and Force copies represent a double-edged sword. Certainly, they allowed additional people and institutions to obtain an identical facsimile of this most beloved of all historic American documents, but Stone’s Wet-Ink transfer process contributed to the deterioration of the original signed copy of the Declaration. Parchment does not respond well to water. The unfortunate result is that the Declaration of Independence, now on display in Washington, DC, is a rather sad-looking, faded document. Conversely, the Stone and Force printings that have survived are much nicer in appearance and they generally retain the fresh appearance with which the original was once endowed.

As you read this auction description, there is another noted major dealer offering a similar example with a price listed at $48,500. This lovely, high quality example is certainly ready for Archival Framing to display its impressive, beautiful overall quality.


1823 Broadside printing of Declaration of Independence brings $597,500! With a price worthy of its historic stature, a recently discovered 1823 printing of the Declaration of Independence, painstakingly engraved and printed by William Stone to celebrate the 45th anniversary of the founding of The United States, sold for $597,500 – more than doubling its presale estimate. It was purchased by an anonymous East Coast buyer and was considered the centerpiece of Heritage Auctions' historical manuscripts auction.

In 1820, English-born engraver William J. Stone of Washington, D.C. was commissioned to produce an exact copy of the original Declaration of Independence onto a copperplate, a process which took him three years to complete,” said Sandra Palomino, Director of Historic Manuscripts at Heritage. “It was almost 45 years after the Revolution, only six years after the War of 1812 and smack dab in the middle of President James Monroe’s ‘Era of Good Feelings,’ the most significant period of growth in the young nation’s history up to that point. Interest in the Declaration surged.”

In all, 200 official parchment copies were struck from the Stone plate in 1823, with one extra struck for Stone himself. Each copy is identified as “ENGRAVED by W. I. STONE for the Dept of State, by order” in the upper left corner, followed by “of J. Q. ADAMS, Sect. of State July 4th 1824” in the upper right.

“We know from a 1991 census of the manuscripts that there 31 total known to survive, with only 12 copies in private hands,” said Palomino. “This auction represented a singular chance for someone to acquire a prime piece of American history and collectors jumped at the chance.” Overall, choice pieces of Early American History were greatly in demand at the auction.

This beautiful printing of Peter Force’s Historic Rice Paper “Declaration of Independence” From “American Archives” has Superb Presentation.