The Declaration of Independence, Dunlap Broadside

This is the most accurate copy of the Declaration of Independence ever made. It very closely follows the Library of Congress’s copy of the first printing, known as the Dunlap Broadside. The antique laid paper is made by hand and bears the beautiful J Honig & Zoonen crown and post horn watermark. We even used period appropriate fiber—flax and hemp. Then we re-made the type and set it, letter by letter, and space by space, to match the original. We carefully blended inks to get the beautiful black commonly used in the 1700s. Finally, we printed it by hand, one copy at a time. 

We’ve grown to love this document: the sentiments expressed in it, the 250 years of the great experiment it launched, the aesthetics of it, and the extraordinary risks and efforts that made it more than just another piece of paper lost to time. We send this new run out as a birthday salutation to an idea and a land we love.

Note: The response to the Declaration has been extraordinary. I’m amazed and genuinely grateful to everyone who’s placed an order. I hadn't anticipated this volume so I’m hard at work making more paper, printing and packaging. It takes about 4 days to take a batch from making the paper to the final printed broadside. I do it all by hand and there's no way to speed it up without making it something else. If your order is in, it's in queue, and I am at the press as many hours as I can stand. You should expect your copy in two to three weeks, hopefully sooner. Also, I'm extending the discounted price until my dad's birthday—July 15. I miss him and I think he would have thought this a pretty neat project.

Pricing: $150

Dimensions: About 19.5 inches by 15.5 inches

Care and feeding: Because each handmade sheet is unique we can only give you rough dimensions. Don’t buy a frame until you receive yours (unless, of course, you plan to trim it to match your favorite original copy). For safety reasons we’re shipping these in mailing tubes. When you receive it, carefully unroll it and place it on a clean flat surface. Then place some clean, heavy books on the corners. After a couple of days in this position the curl should settle out and it will be ready for framing. Alternatively, any decent frame shop will know how to prepare it prior to mounting and framing. Just take the rolled copy to them.

Who we are: Hi! We're Tryst Press (sorry, our site is getting an update right now). We're an award winning  letterpress/papermaking/art studio that started way back in 1993. We make limited edition books and ephemera. Our work can be found in public and private collections all over the world.

We have a 30-day return policy: If you happen to find an original at the flea market, or something like that, we’ll refund your purchase minus the shipping costs.  Let us know before you return it—we can only accept returns that we know are coming and that arrive in the same condition in which we send them out. If your order gets damaged in shipping, we’ve got you covered—every shipment will be sent fully insured.