The Nantucket Historical Association (NHA) (click here) is pleased to announce the recent acquisition of an 1833 engraved facsimile copy of the Declaration of Independence as a gift from David M. Rubenstein, a nationally-renowned philanthropist and history enthusiast. It will be on display in the Overlook Gallery at the Whaling Museum, 13 Broad Street, beginning Saturday, July 4, 2015.
In 1820, John Quincy Adams noticed that the original Declaration of Independence was deteriorating and suggested creating duplicate copies to preserve the document for years to come. With Congressional approval, he commissioned engraver William J. Stone to create a facsimile. It took Stone three years to finish the copperplate engraving, in which the image of the original embossed Declaration was cut into a surface with carved lines or sunken areas holding the ink for printing. Two hundred and one copies were printed on vellum and distributed to the surviving signers of the original document, current and former presidents and vice presidents, governors, and educational institutions, among others. Just over a quarter of these vellum prints are known to have survived....
