A print from the original copper plate engraved by Paul Revere, who reportedly participated in decorating the obelisk, depicting the four sides of the structure celebrated under the Liberty Tree on Boston Common, as noted in the Boston Gazette on May 19, 1766, marking the repeal of the Stamp Act.
Produced by R.D. Child & A.O. Crane in 1881, from the Winfield Robbins Print Collection of Arlington, MA.
Only one original Revere print survives, held by The American Antiquarian Society in Worcester, MA, while the original copper plate is at Harvard University.
Item Date: 1881 (printed from original plate, original engraving circa 1766)
Measurement: Frame: 21.5" x 18.5"; Engraving: 14.75" x 10.25"
Material: Ink on paper
Item Condition: Scattered trivial staining, else fine
Reference: See Paul Revere by Clarence S. Brigham for further details.
From Catalog IV
Revere's engraving of the paper obelisk lit on the Common the same night the lantern hung in the tree — the two objects belong to one evening. The obelisk itself burned before the celebration was over; Revere's plate, which he reportedly helped design, is the only record of what it looked like.
