Lot 820
Gilt Electrotype Copy of Confederate States Of America Seal. Seal measures 3 1/2" in diameter, gilt finish, featuring George Washington in the center (modeled after an equestrian statue in Richmond), surrounded by a wreath of Confederate products (wheat, cotton, tobacco, corn, sugar and rice) and the text "THE CONFEDERATE STATES OF AMERICA : 22 FEBRUARY 1862" and "DEO VINDICE"(God Will Vindicate) flanked by two 5-point stars, around the exterior. Original glass topped hinged case not present. Minor scratches and spotting. The seal was ordered by the Confederacy to serve as both a means to emboss documents and to lend themselves credibility as a government, the original Great Seal of the Confederacy was engraved in England, and smuggled in-country via Bermuda circa 1864. As the embossing machine never left Bermuda, the Seal saw little use, and was eventually smuggled out of Richmond by one William Bromwell, disbursing clerk with the Confederate State Department, along with the contents of the State Department Archives. In 1872, Bromwell, by way of John T. Pickett, former Confederate Commissioner to Mexico, arranged for the sale of the Confederate Archive to the U.S. Government. Pickett gave the Seal as a gift to Lieutenant (later Admiral) Thomas O. Selfridge, USN, the Government representative for the deal, but borrowed the seal a year later and took it to one Samuel H. Black of New York, who, operating under a Masonic Oath not reveal his involvement, produced a series of electrotype copies in gold, silver and bronze directly from the original seal. Pickett returned the original to Selfridge, and made a brisk business of selling the copies as original. Fine condition.
Estimated Value $800 - 1,000.
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| Realized $552 |
