One of the first separate printings of the Constituion - photo 1
One of the first separate printings of the Constituion - photo 2
One of the first separate printings of the Constituion - photo 3

One of the first separate printings of the Constituion

Lot 117
17.01.2024 11:00UTC -05:00
Classic
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$ 113 400
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUSA, New York
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ID 1119252
Lot 117 | One of the first separate printings of the Constituion
Estimate value
$ 100 000 – 150 000
One of the first separate printings of the Constituion

Thomas Bradford, September 1787

UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION – The Constitution, as Formed for the United States, by the Fœderal Convention, held at Philadelphia, in the year 1787, with the resolves of Congress, and of the Assembly of Pennsylvania thereon. Philadelphia: Printed by T. Bradford, in Front-Street, four doors below the Coffee House, 1787.



The extremely rare and only obtainable copy of the third Bradford printing of the Constitution—a completely unsophisticated copy held by the printer's family for over a century. One of the earliest separate printings of the Constitution, it documents two important historical milestones: the 28 September resolves of the Continental Congress to have the document sent to the states for deliberation and the Pennsylvania General Assembly's call for a state ratification convention the following day. The move by the Continental Congress, that the Constitution "be transmitted to the several Legislatures, in order to be submitted to a Convention of Delegates, chosen in each State by the People thereof, in Conformity with the Resolves of the Convention…." spelled the beginning of the end of the nation's first system of government. The resolves of the Pennsylvania General Assembly on the 29th marked the first move by a state to begin the process of ratification. The move could have occurred sooner as the Assembly had begun deliberating on it the day after the Convention adopted it on 17 September as both bodies were sharing the Pennsylvania State House at the time. Part of the delay on the assembly's part was due to the objections of those who sought authority to begin the process from the Continental Congress. On the morning of 29 September and express rider arrived from New York with news of the Continental Congress' resolves to begin the ratification process helping pave the way for the state assembly to authorize a convention to be held in November. But although Pennsylvania was the first to call a ratification, Delaware beat them to the punch when a convention of thirty delegates unanimously ratified the Constitution on 7 December 1787. Pennsylvania would do the same on the 12th making it the second state to ratify the Constitution. See Pauline Maier, Ratification: The People debate the Constitution, 1787-1788. (2010), pp. 59-69.



Bradford first printed the text of the Constitution in his newspaper, The Pennsylvania Journal on 19 September, two days following its adoption by the Convention. Afterwards, Bradford, like many printers, did not wish to see the 5,000 words set into type go to waste, so he re-framed them to print this fifteen page pamphlet. It was issued sometime before 29 September, as it omitted the resolve of the Continental Congress passed on the 28th (Evans 20808). Interestingly, the first two printings of the Constitution by Dunlap contain one error which can be found in Article V concerning the regulation of trade. The clause specifying that 1808 be the year that a ban on the import of enslaved persons would go into effect was misprinted as "one thousand seven hundred and eight." Unlike the other Philadelphia newspaper issues of 19 September, Bradford failed to correct the error, and it persisted in his two subsequent pamphlet editions. See Leonard Rapport, "Printed the Constitution: The Convention and newspaper Imprints, August-November 1787," Prologue, v. 2 (Fall 1970) pp. 82-83.



Extremely Rare. No other copies are known to be owned privately and less than ten are believed to be in institutional holdings. Evans 20794; Ford 11.



Octavo (175 x 110mm) with deckled edges, inscription, "Wm Bradford to her friend S G Walker May 10, 1883" at top of title. Folded and unsewn. Provenance: Descended in the Bradford family to William Bradford – S. G. Walker (presentation inscription from the former) – Parke-Bernet, 8-9 May 1940, lot 90 – Laird U. Park, Jr. (his sale, Sotheby's, New York, 29 November 2000, lot 361).

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