Arts & Culture

They thought they had a rare copy of the Declaration of Independence. Turns out it’s even more special.

Archivists at the American Philosophical Society suspected the rare engraving may have been more than a “cheap Victorian facsimile,” but it took quite a while to make sure.

by Stephan Salisbury
Published Jun 23, 2021

The archive of the American Philosophical Society, consisting of an ever-expanding universe of 13 million manuscripts and 350,000 bound volumes and periodicals, with images and audiotapes proliferating on a daily basis, has reached the point where it is its own universe.

So it should be no surprise that APS, founded in 1743, has discovered that it possesses an exceedingly rare engraved copy of the Declaration of Independence ordered up by John Quincy Adams two centuries ago, and given to the society in 1842 by Daniel Webster. The society has just announced the discovery.

The unearthed document now ascends to APS’s pantheon of Declarations consisting of rare drafts and early printed copies from newspapers, broadsides, and pamphlets held.

There are no immediate plans to exhibit this unusual Declaration, engraved by William J. Stone, but it would be instantly recognizable to anyone who has ventured into a gift shop in the vicinity of Independence Mall. The original Declaration of Independence, held in the National Archives, is quite stressed and faded, almost retiring in its aspect. The Stone engraving, bold and clear, is the source for the countless copies exhibited and sold across the country. ... They are copies of Stone’s copy.

“This find adds yet another piece to what may be one of the best collection of Declarations in the world,” society librarian Patrick Spero said in a statement. “The APS holds Thomas Jefferson’s handwritten draft of the Declaration, two Dunlap copies, one of which is the only known oversized copy, the first printing in the Pennsylvania Evening Post, and the first printing in Europe. We also have the chair that Thomas Jefferson is believed to have sat in to write the Declaration. Discovering that we have a Stone copy completes this story.” ... But what exactly is a Stone copy?

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