Super Size Taxpaid Revenues

I am very careful when handling the cotton tag! Much more so (and much differently) than with any other stamp.

The lb-value 1872 snuff stamps are my favorite. Unfortunately, the last two in this series are quite pricey. Besides, I don't ever remember seeing a TE 40 even offered for sale. Then again, I've only been collecting for a few years. If one did come up for sale/auction, I may look in to selling my body to science for a few weeks.

Cotton tags show up occasionally at auction. This one I got from one of Eric Jackson's. I think not long ago, there was a large lot of them, including several of the brass tags, at auction, but I can't remember which one. If memory serves, RWN, you may want to check the current auction for the American Revenue Association.

No question, snuff stamps are often less common then other types of tobacco taxpaids. That was one of the first things I was taught when I first started learning about revenues 45 years ago.

I love the beautiful engravings and possible litho's on the tax paids. Not well versed on all the printing types. Yet another area to get started in. I have but a few of these, and like you said, pricey. I have thought a time or two about how I could get by with just one kidney, lol.
Revenues have consumed my collecting interests permanently. With the help of this forum, and a lot of reading, I have learned a lifetime of information. Thanks to all who share their expertise, knowledge, advice and material. I am just amazed at all the different revenue material and the whole tax structure in general. My only regret is not getting an earlier start.

DenimDan, those taxpaids are all beautiful! Thanks for posting. All of these examples except the cotton tag were engraved, not litho. I agree, the snuff stamps are particularly nice. I also collect proof vignettes and portraits from banknote companies and the Bureau of Engraving & Printing. I happen to have the "standing Washington" portrait used on the 3 pound snuff taxpaid. FYI, Washington's head from this vignette was used on a 3-cent fractional currency note.

I found the cotton tag on the ARA auction. Was hoping for a sharp barb to go with it. Thanks for the heads up. Looking into another source as well. Looks like I will spend some time going thru the auction material tomorrow.

Here are a couple more that I have from two different series that I collect sporadically. I'm never one to place too much emphasis on condition, and these two evince that point quite well.

This first one is TC 70, a cigar stamp from 1872. I have a couple others from this same series, but scanning them is an issue, since the strips are quite long and my copies are already delicate. Given their length, it's a wonder that any used examples of these strips survived.



This next one is TF 46, a tobacco taxpaid stamp from, the 1870 series. I think Greg may have posted one of his earlier in this thread from the same series. My wife (who does not collect, nor does she fully understand my obsession with taxpaids) even likes this one; she says it reminds her of old money.

Greg,

I never noticed the Washington portrait on the 3-cent fractional currency. I had always assumed that the vignette on the 3-lb. snuff stamp was its first iteration, but it looks like that series of fractional currency was actually released before the 1872 first series snuff stamps.

Do you know whether your BEP proof vignette of Washington is 19th century or one of their later releases? It certainly looks different from those re-releases of the 20th century from the BEP.

That's a great tobacco stamp, Dan! And your wife has a good eye -- there is a strong resemblance to paper money. In fact, the little eagle shows up on the $10 " notes" (U.S. Notes) first issued in 1869. Here's an early souvenir card that explains how the currency got it's name.

As to the standing Washington vignette, I suspect it was printed by the BEP in the 19th century but there's no way to know the date for sure. The Bureau sold prints of portraits and vignettes as far back as the 1870s. Proofs that were pulled for review purposes were all stamped with a serial number on the back and logged in books that the BEP still has in their archives. My print has no number, so I believe it was printed for public consumption.



Edit - I can't believe the nickname of the note was auto-censored, but you can read it on the text of the card.

I'm also fan of the early cigar stamps and would love to see more posted here. I don't have many, mostly because they are hard to find and partly because their extreme length makes them hard to fit in an album. But the lathework and engraving on these is incredible.



I will also include a pic of TC120B, the highest "denomination" cigar stamp, although this is not part of my collection. Since these were wrapped and sealed around cigar boxes, the bigger the box, the bigger the stamp. This is the longest single U.S. revenue ever produced, measuring out at more than 18 inches!

excellent pictures-wow a nice area of collecting

New to this all. Don't know what I have here. Was hoping to learn more and even a value. It's a little bit on the rougher side has a tear in the top of it. Can't find anything about on the internet.

You'll find this same stamp in a post on page five of this thread. I believe the catalog number is TE38. I'm not confident about placing a value on it, maybe Denim Dan will chime in.

That is indeed TE 38. I think I bought mine retail from either Eric Jackson or Richard Friedberg. That would have been a few years ago. I think I paid ~$30-40 then. Mine isn't perfect either. I used to track auction sales of these stamps. My guess would be it could go at auction for ~$20.

Thanks for posting! I can never see enough of these.

I think this meets the subject of the thread?

This is the only one of these I have.

The special tax stamp for Dealer in Manufactured Tobacco is especially wonderful because if is an example of actual use, not one of the Deats & Sterling remainders. Up to and including fiscal year 1885 the Deats & Sterling remainders are the bulk of what we see of these receipts for the payment of these special occupational taxes. Intaglio printed from recess engraved plates by the BEP beginning with 1872. In 1914 they switched to offset lithography and the size of these was greatly reduced and simplified in 1920. After 1953 they switched to generic forms that could be filled out and printed on tractor feed printers in the regional Internal Revenue offices.