129

U.S. Treasury Department, Specimens.

Washington: Bureau of Engraving and Printing, circa 1874-1876
139 engravings including frontispiece and title page. 4to, contemporary gilt morocco, worn, front board detached, rear board rejointed, backstrip chipped; minor foxing, minimal wear to contents; no presentation inscriptions. 

  • Notes: This book showcased the craft of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, possibly in connection with the nation's centennial celebrations. Small steel engravings on thin paper are laid down on album leaves. Subjects include portraits of the early presidents and many recent cabinet officials, as well as patriotic and allegorical figures, Washington buildings, and military scenes. Many of them were produced for use on United States currency. These presentation albums were issued in small numbers from the 1860s through 1910s; the engraving count varies substantially from copy to copy. 

    Though undated, the title page names George B. McCartee as chief of the bureau and George W. Casilear as Superintendent of Engraving, placing the date between 1869-1876. This fits with the position of Ulysses S. Grant as the first named portrait subject in the volume. A few of the vignettes are dated, the latest being "Marshall Jewell, Postmaster General, 1874." 
  • Condition:
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    Condition reports and additional images are provided as a courtesy and should be used by you to aid in the formation of your own opinion regarding condition. All material is sold subject to Swann's standard Terms and Conditions of Sale as published in our catalogues and posted on our website, and include the following terms: (1) all property is sold "as-is"; and (2) works cannot be returned on the basis of condition.

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