Lot 100
Prototype of American Ship's Paper. British ship's paper signed by four ministers, vellum, 11 x 18½, with a large engraving at the top. This paper had to be carried by the British ship named to show on demand to Barbary Coast pirates who would otherwise seize the ship and take its passengers captive. The United States would use the British ship's paper as a prototype when the need arose to issue its own. Matted and framed to an overall size of 16 x 24½ in.
Operating from ports in North Africa, the Barbary pirates are thought to have captured as many as 1.5 million people as slaves from the 16th to 19th century, They primarily raided coastal towns in Italy, France, Spain, and Portugal, but also in the British Isles, the Netherlands and as far away as Iceland. They took their captives to markets in North Africa and sold them, giving a percentage of the profits to the rulers of the Barbary Coast.
Captives from wealthy families had the opportunity of being ransomed but most captives never saw home again (Cervantes, author of Don Quijote, was captured but eventually ransomed).
By paying tribute (blackmail), European powers insured that their merchant ships could pass through the Mediterranean without being seized. Until the American Revolution, American ships were protected by the British fleet; in 1778, a Treaty of Amity and Commerce with the French specifically mentioned protection from the Barbary States, but after 1783, America had to deal with the problem on its own. Against the advice of Thomas Jefferson, the United States decided to pay tribute and developed a ship's paper based on the British prototype. The issue was finally resolved in 1815 after naval victories by Commodores William Bainbridge and Stephen Decatur led to treaties ending all tribute payments by the United States. Estimated Value $400 - 600
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| Realized $357 |
