10c Black – Scott 2

The Act of March 3, 1847, signed by President Polk, specified that Postmaster General Cave Johnson "be authorized to prepare postage stamps, which when attached to any letter or packet, shall be evidence of the payment of the postage..." The law’s effective date was July 1, and the Post Office acted immediately to secure a contract with Rawdon, Wright, Hatch and (the new partner) Edson, so that stamps could be distributed by that date. The Washington vignette is based on the iconic image painted by Gilbert Stuart.

The early imperforate issues are often found with margins close or cutting into the design, because of the difficulty in manually cutting along the narrow gap between stamps. This stamp, with its mostly intact smooth original gum, large margins and beautiful impression, surely ranks among the finest known original-gum examples of the first United States postage issue.