18th and 19th C. press identification and desirability
Greetings, I typically appraise antiques, paintings, etc. but I am working on a project that has two early presses and I am hoping for guidance. These presses will need to be relocated soon and the owner is trying to determine marketability or possible donation potential. Thank you in advance for for any help you may be able to lend! I am having trouble attaching more than one image so I am sending this request out with the earliest press which is believed to date from around 1770 and was used in Connecticut. Linda Stamm
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Hello Linda
I am the Executive Director and curator of the International Printing Museum in Carson (Los Angeles) CA www.printmuseum.org, which is one of the largest printing museums in the world. I also do appraisals on presses, etc., so I may be able to provide some assistance. I am very familiar with these presses. Feel free to give me a call directly at 714-529-1832 (cell) at any time.
regards,
Mark Barbour
[email protected]
The pic isn’t quite clear enough to see, bit are there any nail holes on its ‘shoulders’ showing where braces to the ceiling joists above would quite often have been. Perhaps the wood was unusually strong on this press… . .
Linda, please send me a larger version of the posted photo and a photo of the second press. I think I can identify the first press, and it is essentially priceless as it is unique. You can contact me through Briar Press. Thank you
Robert Oldham
Printing Technology Historian