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Vintage Mid Century Graphic Design Printing Archive Proofs Layout Lot
Farrell's Flashbacks: Premier Vintage Ephemera & Advertising Collectibles
Up for sale is a massive, incredibly rare piece of mid-century pre-digital publishing history. This is a one-of-a-kind commercial graphic arts and industrial offset lithography print shop production archive. This archive documents the technical layout and calibration phases for an oversized, softcover commemorative stamp portfolio/album celebrating classic U.S. postage designs.
This archive offers an exceptional, behind-the-scenes look at production technology from the 1950s and 1960s before the era of computers. It showcases layout work for iconic historical stamp issues, including the 1934 U.S. National Parks series (1¢ Yosemite, 2¢ Grand Canyon, 4¢ Mesa Verde, 5¢ Yellowstone, 9¢ Glacier, 10¢ Great Smoky Mountains), the 1935 Connecticut Tercentenary, the 1939 Printing Press Tercentenary, and the 1953 3¢ New York City Tercentenary.
What is Included in This Complete Production Lot:
* Large-Format Master Negatives & Transparencies: High-contrast commercial lithographic film separations measuring up to 18 inches (including the massive 3¢ New York City separation sheet). These make spectacular visual centerpieces for backlit lightboxes or custom framing.
* Workspace Layout Mechanics: Original production templates, large faux-perforation stamp border masks, solid background plate sheets, and the original working cardstock layout folder featuring hand-applied registration alignment tape lines.
* 46 Double-Sided Press Check Sheets: Heavy paper production sheets printed on both sides featuring dense, overlapping multi-color calibration runs used by the pressman to test ink density. Please note: This bulk stack features a diverse variety of stamp design combinations across the sheets, offering even more visual variation than what is visible in the main overview photos.
* 20 Single-Sided Proof Sheets: Large-format, crisp single-impression shop proofs showcasing exceptional line-art detail. This specific collection breaks down into the following exact verified totals:
- (8) 2¢ Grand Canyon National Park single-sided proof sheets
- (7) 4¢ Mesa Verde National Park single-sided proof sheets
- (2) 1939 3¢ 300th Anniversary of Printing in Colonial America single-sided proof sheets
- (1) 1953 3¢ 300th Anniversary of New York City single-sided proof sheet
Condition & Provenance:
Authentic, lived-in vintage print-shop condition. As working industrial artifacts, these pieces show expected production handling, printer notes, alignment markings, and minor shop wear that injects incredible graphic character into the lot. The entire collection is being kept intact and sold together as a single master archive. (One of the proof sheets has a large corner cut out of it).
Perfect acquisition for vintage advertising collectibles, graphic design archives, printmaking enthusiasts, or striking industrial commercial wall decor. Ships flat, secure, and fully insured via Farrell's Flashbacks. Buy with confidence!
*Please see pics for further details
