Explore something extraordinary
Follow the research! The Anastatic Declaration: Solving a 180-Year-Old Mystery
On July 7, 1846, Philadelphia’s Public Ledger reported that U.S. senators Sam Houston and Thomas J. Rusk had viewed an “anastatic copy of the Declaration of Independence” at Independence Hall, displayed in the same room as the Liberty Bell. They described it as a “perfect facsimile of the original.” Yet remarkably little has been written about this extraordinary document since. Was it merely reproduced from William J. Stone’s engraved facsimile, as some have maintained? Was it created directly from the original engrossed Declaration now displayed in the Rotunda of the National Archives—or is there another intriguing possibility? After 180 years, new research has finally resolved the mystery. Watch this website for Part One of The Anastatic Declaration: Solving a 180-Year-Old Mystery—“A Trail of Letters.”
Links will become live...
Part One: A Trail of Letters.
Part Two: Was It's Source The Stone?
Part Three: Was It's Source The Engrossed Declaration?
Part Four: The Evidence Hidden In The Handwriting.
Part Five: Solving the Declaration Mystery!
Chickamauga Civil War Battle Map
Official United States War Department map of the Battle of Chickamauga, extensively corrected, annotated and signed by Major General William Starke Rosecrans, commander of the Union Army of the Cumberland during the battle. The large-format map depicts the fighting of September 20, 1863, between Rosecrans’s Union army and General Braxton Bragg’s Confederate Army of Tennessee.
New Jersey’s transition from colony to state.
An extraordinary archive of eight original working manuscripts from New Jersey’s Revolutionary legislature, documenting the creation and preservation of civil government during the state’s most dangerous and formative years.
Written principally between 1776 and 1778, these manuscripts address the establishment of New Jersey’s courts following independence, organization of the state militia, creation of an Admiralty Court, administration of public oaths and the problem of Loyalist influence within the new government.
Orville Wright’s Hawthorn Hill Memorandum Book 1928–1935
Used from October 1928 through December 1935, the pocket-size volume records the recurring expenses and activities of Wright’s household at Hawthorn Hill, his celebrated home in Oakwood, Ohio.
Explore artifacts acquired from the Wright Brothers Estate.
History is one click away!
John Trumbull’s Autobiography with Autograph Notes.
1776 John Nixon—First Public Reader of the Declaration
1790 New York Land Patent with Original Great Seal – Governor George Clinton
Watergate
Founding of Harvard Alumni Association
1867 Civil War Deed
Unique Treasures
Colonial North Carolina land survey -Carteret County
1772 Colonial North Carolina Coastal Survey
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A Monumental American Icon: Audubon’s White Pelican
The world's only direct camera facsimile of an actual original John James Audubon American White Pelican. Produced circa 1985. Described as the finest Audubon edition ever accomplished.
Featured Collections
Original Broadsides - Declaration of Independence
1802 Aaron Burr Signed Princeton Document
1802 PRINCETON COLLEGE PLEDGE LIST Aaron Burr | Princeton | 1802 RARITY: Exceptional SIGNATURE: Aaron Burr DATE: 1802 CATEGORY: Early American Education PRICE: $4,250 This document directly relates to one of the most important early crises in Princeton’s history—the destruction of Nassau Hall by fire in 1802. The rebuilding effort relied heavily on public subscription, making documents like this a rare and tangible link to early American education and philanthropy.The inclusion of Aaron Burr, a Princeton alumnus and one of the most controversial and fascinating figures of the early republic, significantly elevates the importance and desirability of this piece.
HISTORY YOU CAN HOLD
These aren't reproductions of history.
They are the originals.
A signature written by a President. A letter carried during a revolution. A land grant issued centuries ago. A document signed by Napoleon. A document handled by an inventor, explorer, soldier or statesman.
Every piece has a story.
Our purpose is to uncover those stories and place extraordinary pieces of the past into the hands of collectors, historians and people who simply appreciate history.
WHY COLLECT ORIGINAL HISTORY?
BECAUSE THERE IS NOTHING LIKE THE ORIGINAL.
A reproduction can show you what history looked like.
An original lets you hold something that was actually there.
Prefer to purchase through eBay?
Many of our current offerings are also available through our eBay store.
Rarest Declaration Signer.
$425,000
Thomas Lynch Jr.’s autograph is widely regarded as the rarest of all the Declaration signers when surviving substantive manuscripts are considered. Button Gwinnett has traditionally held that distinction among collectors, but most surviving Lynch autographs are ownership signatures clipped from books formerly in his library.
A scholarly census cited by Sotheby’s recorded only two autograph letters signed by Lynch, compared with numerous clipped book signatures. Nearly all surviving signed documents are held by institutions.
Forensics by Federal Forensic Associates.
We don't just sell history. We investigate it.
AUTHENTICITY & PROVENANCE
EVERY DOCUMENT HAS A STORY. EVERY STORY DESERVES RESEARCH.
We believe collectors deserve to know as much as possible about the material they acquire.
Where appropriate, our research considers:
SIGNATURES
Comparison with known examples and established characteristics.
HANDWRITING
Analysis of handwriting, formation and consistency.
PAPER & WATERMARKS
Dating and identifying the material on which a document was created.
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
Verifying people, dates, places and events.
PROVENANCE
Tracing previous ownership and documented history whenever available.
COMPARABLE EXAMPLES
Researching related documents, auction records and institutional examples.
We clearly distinguish documented facts from attribution, interpretation and ongoing research.
Authentic historical documents, carefully researched and professionally presented. Every item is accompanied by historical context to help collectors understand not only what they are buying, but why it matters.
Antique Declaration of Independence
John Hancock ALS
Benjamin Franklin Printer
1775 British Troop Movements
1777 Pennsylvania Colonial Currency Printed By Dunlap
Don Juan!
A founder's sketch
Drawn by George Washington Himself—A Rare and Fascinating Glimpse into the Mind of of a Future President.
Paper and ink has been forensically tested and dates to 1742 plus or minus 12 years.
We welcome your comments.
Sold at Sotheby's
The rarest of the Constitutional documents, a unique resolution that prepared the way for the ultimate ratification of America’s democratic form of government, has been discovered. Only five others are known to exist.
Sent to the state legislatures along with a copy of the Constitution and a letter from George Washington, this resolution launched a political struggle that would not be officially ended until July 26, 1788, when New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify. The ‘Resolve of Congress’ made possible the ratification of the U.S. Constitution. In the chronology of the Constitution, this ‘Resolve’ of September 28, 1787 serves as the birth of the Constitution; the subsequent ratification process became the infant’s challenge for survival.
Someone held these. Now you can.
A famous signature is only the beginning.
Who was the person?
Why did they sign?
What was happening when the document was created?
Who owned it?
What does the document tell us that a signature alone cannot?
We research the people, places and circumstances behind the documents we offer.
Thomas A Edison Phonograph And Record Sales Promotion
1791 Thomas Paine Rights Of Man George Washington Dedication
1862 Anti-slavery Pamphlet, The American Crisis
1910 Wright Brothers Check To American Express
1759 Colonial Delaware Twenty Shillings banknote Ben Franklin printer
1777 Pennsylvania Colonial Currency Printed By Dunlap
If these documents could talk!
World's oldest magazine still in publication.
Hancock's Seal
King George III
Revolutionary War Horse Certificate
Thomas Edison
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FDR Day of Infamy
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Massachusetts Bay
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