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#M11361
Authentic Civil War Era Photograph, Revenue Stamp on Reverse
$34.95
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Own a Real Civil War-Era Photograph with U.S. Revenue Stamp on the Back
This is your chance to get a vintage photograph from the Civil War with US Revenue stamp affixed to the back. This was done after the Office of Internal Revenue implemented a proprietary tax on photographs to help fund the Civil War.
The Revenue stamp was affixed to the back of a photograph to pay that tax. The denomination of the stamp usually ranged from 1¢ to 5¢, depending on the cost of the photograph. Red 1¢ stamps are most unusual and were mainly used in pairs for photographs ranging from 1¢ to 25¢ in price. Otherwise, a single Blue or Orange 2¢ stamp was used for photographs in this price range. 3¢ Green stamps were used for photographs priced at 25¢ to 50¢, while Red 5¢ stamps were used for those priced 50¢ to $1.
The photograph and Revenue stamp you receive will vary, but you'll enjoy discovering the unique details of the one you get!
Most photographs were carte de visite and cost 1¢-25¢, making 2¢ Revenue stamps the most commonly seen. Tintype photographs were more expensive (50¢-$1) and feature 3¢ Revenues. A carte de visite (French for "visiting card") is a small, card-sized photograph around 2.5 x 4 inches that became very popular in the 19th century.
There was no specific Revenue stamp for photographs, so it didn't matter which category of Revenue stamp was used, as long as the denomination was accurate. Your photograph might feature a Bank Check, Proprietary, Express, Playing Card, Telegraph, or general Internal Revenue stamp – you'll have to order to find out!
Individual photographers collected the tax from each customer and then manually canceled the Revenue stamp. There was a lot of backlash from photographers regarding this tax, and the government decided to repeal it in August 1866. (So the only ones that exist were produced sometime between 1864 and 1866 – that makes them over 159 years old now!)
You don't see these photographs every day and they're pretty cool!
Own a Real Civil War-Era Photograph with U.S. Revenue Stamp on the Back
This is your chance to get a vintage photograph from the Civil War with US Revenue stamp affixed to the back. This was done after the Office of Internal Revenue implemented a proprietary tax on photographs to help fund the Civil War.
The Revenue stamp was affixed to the back of a photograph to pay that tax. The denomination of the stamp usually ranged from 1¢ to 5¢, depending on the cost of the photograph. Red 1¢ stamps are most unusual and were mainly used in pairs for photographs ranging from 1¢ to 25¢ in price. Otherwise, a single Blue or Orange 2¢ stamp was used for photographs in this price range. 3¢ Green stamps were used for photographs priced at 25¢ to 50¢, while Red 5¢ stamps were used for those priced 50¢ to $1.
The photograph and Revenue stamp you receive will vary, but you'll enjoy discovering the unique details of the one you get!
Most photographs were carte de visite and cost 1¢-25¢, making 2¢ Revenue stamps the most commonly seen. Tintype photographs were more expensive (50¢-$1) and feature 3¢ Revenues. A carte de visite (French for "visiting card") is a small, card-sized photograph around 2.5 x 4 inches that became very popular in the 19th century.
There was no specific Revenue stamp for photographs, so it didn't matter which category of Revenue stamp was used, as long as the denomination was accurate. Your photograph might feature a Bank Check, Proprietary, Express, Playing Card, Telegraph, or general Internal Revenue stamp – you'll have to order to find out!
Individual photographers collected the tax from each customer and then manually canceled the Revenue stamp. There was a lot of backlash from photographers regarding this tax, and the government decided to repeal it in August 1866. (So the only ones that exist were produced sometime between 1864 and 1866 – that makes them over 159 years old now!)
You don't see these photographs every day and they're pretty cool!
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