1766 "Stamp Act" Almanac

This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 5/31/2006

1766 Ames's Almanack "revised and improved," About Fine. 7" x 4.5", 12 leaves, stitched self-wrappers, chipped, waterstained, minor edge tears (in short, typical of the Almanacs of this period -- after all, they were used regularly in their year of issue). This the so-called "Pirated Edition", issued according to the preface because the late Dr. Ames had not calculated an almanac past 1765. Ames' son had indeed continued the almanac, but had refused permission for it to be published by the printers of this edition. The real Ames's Almanack for 1766 is of considerable importance, as it contains the first Paul Revere illustration to appear in an almanac -- a small metal cut of an eclipse. The pirated edition also contains an illustration of an eclipse, but not by Revere. This almanac is noteworthy because of the way it is priced on the front: "Price Before the Stamp-Act takes Place, Half a Dollar per Dozen, and 6 Coppers single. After the Act takes Place, more than double that Price." This was a reference to the British Parliament's "Stamp Act", which placed a revenue on all papers or paper goods used in the American Colonies, including almanacs! Includes a short blurb that mentions the 40 Shillings penalty for carrying unstamped paper after November 1765.

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