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Sale 30 25,28 Aug 2022
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ABNC Ca. 1870 Presentation Book with 74 Vignettes
Amazing and Rare Offering of Ephemera from the ABNC Dating back to the early 1870s, this lot is for a complete specimen or presentation book produced by the American Banknote Company. Books such as this were typically presented to salesmen of the American Banknote Company to show prospective customers what the company could produce. Others were possibly produced as presentation pieces. Regardless of the reason they were produced, these historical books often contain vignettes that also appear on banknotes and most books like this have been destroyed in order to sell the vignettes individually. To find an intact book is extremely rare and an opportunity that presents itself extremely infrequently. We know of only a few sales of intact presentation books at public auction over the past two decades, indicating how rare this volume is.
This book was presented to a Joseph Lesley, whose name appears in gilt on the front cover. The volume contains a total of 74 plates. Most are of individual vignettes on single pages but one individual print is worth mentioning: a full-size (intaglio) print with the portrait of Czar Alexander II of Russia flanked by U.S. Presidents Lincoln and Grant. This print is very rare by itself as it appears to have been produced in very limited numbers and helps date the volume. The other vignettes are a mix of scenes, many of whom can also be found on banknotes printed by the American Banknote Company. Strong emphasis is placed on vignettes for South American banknotes, but others can be found on Canadian and U.S. obsolete notes.
To view all pages of this important volume, including a non-inclusive list of notes that some of these vignettes appear on, please click below:
American Banknote Company Presentation Book
Condition Report: The book is entirely original and all plates are present. The cover is worn but intact. The volume is gilt-edged and the contents are clean. Moderate foxing is noted on some pages. The binding is intact and strong and overall quality of this volume is good to above average.
Amazing and Rare Offering of Ephemera from the ABNC Dating back to the early 1870s, this lot is for a complete specimen or presentation book produced by the American Banknote Company. Books such as this were typically presented to salesmen of the American Banknote Company to show prospective customers what the company could produce. Others were possibly produced as presentation pieces. Regardless of the reason they were produced, these historical books often contain vignettes that also appear on banknotes and most books like this have been destroyed in order to sell the vignettes individually. To find an intact book is extremely rare and an opportunity that presents itself extremely infrequently. We know of only a few sales of intact presentation books at public auction over the past two decades, indicating how rare this volume is.
This book was presented to a Joseph Lesley, whose name appears in gilt on the front cover. The volume contains a total of 74 plates. Most are of individual vignettes on single pages but one individual print is worth mentioning: a full-size (intaglio) print with the portrait of Czar Alexander II of Russia flanked by U.S. Presidents Lincoln and Grant. This print is very rare by itself as it appears to have been produced in very limited numbers and helps date the volume. The other vignettes are a mix of scenes, many of whom can also be found on banknotes printed by the American Banknote Company. Strong emphasis is placed on vignettes for South American banknotes, but others can be found on Canadian and U.S. obsolete notes.
To view all pages of this important volume, including a non-inclusive list of notes that some of these vignettes appear on, please click below:
American Banknote Company Presentation Book
Condition Report: The book is entirely original and all plates are present. The cover is worn but intact. The volume is gilt-edged and the contents are clean. Moderate foxing is noted on some pages. The binding is intact and strong and overall quality of this volume is good to above average.