ERRANT ORMSBY PLATE NOTES Público Deposited
The E-Sylum: Volume 7, Number 2, January 11, 2004, Article 10
ERRANT ORMSBY PLATE NOTES
David Gladfelter writes: "I mentioned the fact that plates
cannibalized from broken-up Ormsbys were circulating among
us. If you will turn to lot 17236 of the current Heritage-CAA
auction, or look it up on line, you will see an example of this.
It is a supposed "progress proof of an unadopted design for the
Erie & Kalamazoo Rail Road Bank" and is about to become
enshrined as such in our literature (Dr. Wallace Lee's
forthcoming book on Michigan obsoletes). It is nothing of
the sort.What it is, is a clipping from plate 7 of Ormsby, specifically the
image with check letter C. This plate, Ormsby tells us, was
made by his 17 year old son as an example of how easy it is
for an untrained person to counterfeit bank notes (Ormsby's
book is an elaborate polemic against counterfeiting and for
wall-to-wall intaglio engraving as the best protection against
counterfeiting). The plate is superficially impressive except
that the central vignette is a ludicrous alteration of a railroad
scene used on several legitimate bank notes. The perspective
is all wrong on the alteration, and gives you the feeling that
the sea is about to wash over the train, carrying the
not-so-distant steamship with it!Ormsby's kid remembered to put check letters A, B & C on
three of the images on his creation but somehow overlooked
letter D on the 4th!The description by Heritage-CAA is certainly not an intentional
misrepresentation, but it is wrong nevertheless. I hope Dr. Lee
catches the error in time to correct his listing. Collectors
familiar
with Ormsby should watch for other fugitive notes finding their
way onto the market undetected. The same thing happens with
fugitive plates from Heath counterfeit detectors."- 2004-01-11
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