EXTREMELY RARE SHIP’S PAPERS FOR A WHALING VOYAGE SIGNED BY ABRAHAM LINCOLN AS PRESIDENT AND SECRETARY OF STATE WILLIAM SEWARD

LINCOLN, Abraham. Printed document signed: ship's papers. Washington, DC: September 26, 1864. Broadside, measures 22 by 17 inches, partially printed, engrossed in manuscript, original white wafer seal of the Presidency affixed; handsomely matted and framed, entire piece measures 34 by 28 inches. $38,000.

A remarkable ship’s passport signed by President Lincoln and his Secretary of State William Seward during the Civil War, authorizing passage for the ship Illinois, "lying at present in the port of New Bedford bound for Pacific Ocean, and laden with provisions, stores, and utensils for a whaling voyage."

Written authorization to sail the high seas and dock at the country's harbors, in the form of presidentially signed ship's papers, was a valuable and desirable privilege. Before conferring such a license, officials were charged with establishing the legitimacy of a vessel, its cargo and its personnel, and the ship's papers were intended to authorize a craft's mission and purpose. Printed in four columns with text in French, Spanish, English, and Dutch.

Toning to document edges from previous framing, expert restoration to splits along folds and a few small holes, affecting printing and secondary writing but not readability; Lincoln and Seward signatures unaffected.