It's been awhile since I've been on the forum... So, paper money isn't really my thing. I'm generally more interested in coins, but I was given this item and I think it may be of some importance. I'll start off by telling you what I know and my theories on the piece. The first thing you'll notice is the age and condition of the piece. It's old, and it looks like it's been around the block a few times. It's also rather large compared to today's American bills, but fits with the era of paper currency from times past. The only date I can find on the document/bill is that of 1857, I pressume that this is of that era. This also doesn't appear to be a legal tender type note. There are several denominations on the bill (1,2,5, and 10). We see the large text boasting "Anti-photographic Ink", and a copyright date with the names of people I can only assume are the holders. Here's what I THINK. I think this is a sample bill a representative of these people would have brought to, say, the US mint to show this new special green ink. Regarding whether or not this is the PARTICULAR green ink that the US decided to go with, I can't say for certain. So I want to know A) if my theory is correct on the origin of this... thing B) How should I store it? It's pretty big. I know it should be flat but other than that... I could use some tips... , and, well of course C) ... If you could guess a value. I figure it's pretty difficult to put one on something like this, considering it's not even a bill. But US coin patterns have considerable value, so the same might hold true for paper. Now I'm going to post some pictures... been awhile since I've done this, so bear with me... Alright... Only five Pictures per post... Stay tuned, more pictures coming in a second.
They are great. As for storage. I would store in a firm holder, but verticle, not flat. And pressed within two other large books, to keep from bending. Unless you use weight on the flat item.
One sold in the Heritage sale at 2012 FUN for $402.50. These were salesman's samples to show off Rawdon, Wright, Hatch & Edson's printing capabilities to banks that issued notes during the obsolete era prior to the Civil War. RWHE was not in the ink business so it is doubtful that these were used to show anyone in the US government the green ink. They certainly did not show it to the US Mint which has never had anything to do with printing US paper money. The significance of the green tint background is that it made it harder to alter notes because doing so would disturb the green print. It is the background tinting that is patented by RWHE not the ink itself.
Hey guys, this is really great information! Looks like it's a pretty neat little historical stepping stone in US paper printing. I think I'll print out that patent information to keep with it. Do they make firm currency holders that big? I know I've seen them for smaller bills, but this thing is pretty darn big. Edit - Dimmensions are 9.5in horizontal 5 7/8in vertical.
Bit of a bump - I've done some looking and can't seem to find a holder for it's size. So, Do I just keep it in an old book then? That seems wrong to me...
Your best bet might be an acid free page holder used for photographs. I do not think you can find a currency holder that big. Nice sample! Thanks for sharing it with us!
Ah, Photo supplies - good thinking. Thanks for the tip. I'm always happy to share if I find something that might be interesting.
