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 “In Congress, July 4, 1776. The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America.”
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. Copperplate engraving printed on heavy woven paper. First edition imprint at top, “ENGRAVED by W.J. STONE for the Dept. of State by order of J. Q. Adams, Sec of State July 4, 1823.” 1 p.
Inventory # 20716 Price on Request
This is one of some five known copies of the Declaration on heavy woven paper, with the first edition imprint at top, “ENGRAVED by W.J. STONE for the Dept. of State by order of J. Q. Adams, Sec of State July 4, 1823.” That imprint was removed from the plate at some point after the official copies had been printed on vellum, and before the second edition was produced for Peter Force’s American Archives series, in 1833 (with the second edition imprint at bottom left, “WJ Stone SC Washn”.) This copy is therefore most likely a proof, produced before printing on the more expensive vellum.
Copies of the first true facsimile (exact replica) of the Declaration were printed and distributed under the direction of Secretary of State John Quincy Adams, in 1823. Some claim that William J. Stone used a “wet transfer” method to make his copper plate, and thus contributed to the damage of the original Declaration. In any case, the manuscript, now in the National Archives, is extremely faded. The rare Stone reproduction provides the best record of how the original looked at the time of its creation in 1776. This is one of only five known examples of the first edition on paper rather than on parchment – making it likely to be a printer’s proof.
Historical Background:
In 1820 William J. Stone was commissioned to make the first full-scale exact replica of the Declaration of Independence. It took Stone three years to produce the copper plate. When he finished in 1823, Congress ordered 200 copies to be printed on vellum and distributed to notables such as President Monroe, the three surviving signers (Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Charles Carroll), and Lafayette.
Although relatively short, the Declaration of Independence succinctly legitimizes the colonies’ break with Britain and expresses American ideals of unity and freedom: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.” With these words, drafter Thomas Jefferson boldly enshrined the American Dream with the belief that people from all classes and religious backgrounds could live freely and strive to improve their lives.
The future president also outlined the king’s “long train of abuses and usurpations” in order to justify Congress’s decision to declare independence. He accuses King George III of illegally disbanding colonial legislatures, arbitrarily assuming judicial powers, conspiring with Native Americans against the colonies, impressing Americans on British warships, and imposing unfair taxes. Jefferson drew inspiration from social contract philosophers John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau who argued that monarchs were obliged to rule in the best interests of the people.
Interestingly, Jefferson’s original draft of the Declaration included passages against slavery, too. The drafting committee removed these references from the final document, however, after delegates from the major slave states protested. This minor disagreement was one of the earliest political slavery debates and foreshadowed greater disputes to come.
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