Believe These Are US Revenue Essays - Please Help To Identify

Need help in identifying these what I believe are revenue essays. 2 items look the same. Appear to be Henry Lowenbegr patent decalcomanias printed by National Bank Note Company 1864 as I have about 20 3c reg issue of these identified but could not find anything on revenues.



Unbelievable knowledge in this forum.

yes, Henry Lowenberg decalcomania essays, patent #45057 issued Nov. 15, 1864, listed in George Turner, Essays and Proofs of United States Internal Revenue Stamps. Catalog #42b.

Thanks I checked West's book- Revenue Stamps Of The US but could not find anything. I see another volume I will have to add to my library. Thanks again.

Essays and Proofs of United States Internal Revenue Stamps is a great book, but ignore all the prices. They were out of date even when the book was published, they were all far too low.

that is not unusual in ref books - main thing I use them for is identifying items and relative scarcity and go from there. Need to identify them to know how to write them up in my various collections. I have many older foreign specialty catalogues for locals, cinderellas, etc - have foreign language dictionaries so I can understand them. Prices are terribly out of date. Also have springer's thru 8th ed, sanabria, etc all out of date now but good ref material. Once you can identify the item the internet is the tool to get current pricing.

Agreed, but most of those other reference works were accurate when they came out, and time made them inaccurate. The essay proof book was wildly inaccurate the day it came out.

That is sad but at least there was the effort, appears that I should add a copy to my ref collection. So many new ref books in last 30+ years and important books to add will make me wiser but in the short term a poorer person.

There is a really thin market for essay and proof material in general and the market for revenue essay and proofs is even thinner. The Turner book came out back when Morton Dean Joyce owned almost everything, so there wasn't really a "market" for the material to obtain pricing. Even today, the dispersal of Bill Langs' inventory is changing our perception of what is available and pricing levels. Bill was supporting pricing levels by buying at auction, now that he is gone, some prices are dropping.

I have always had a fondness for proofs and essays and have a large collection including revenue proofs. It is one area I want to add additional material to what I have. Falling prices might help me acquire additional items. Thanks for the info although I not familiar with the people you referenced but I am going to research them. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

Joyce owned a lot, but hardly "almost everything" when it came to proofs. BTW, George Turner was the man who was very involved with helping to build Joyce's collection.

Prices were high while the Essay-Proof Society existed; members fought each other at auction all the time. But few new collectors came along, so as they passed on the market became thinner.