#143 1870 30¢ With grill

Basic Information

Color: Black
Subject: Alexander Hamilton
Paper: Soft porous paper
Printing method: line-engraved intaglio on flat plates
Printer: National Bank Note Co
Perforations: 12
Plate #: 22
Grills: H or I grill (see below)
Scott #: 143 (H grill) 143A (I grill) - only one I grill known
Quantity issued: 77,000
Issued: April 12th, 1870

Value

An unused stamp with perfect gum: H grill - I grill -
An unused stamp with gum and a hinge mark: H grill $2,000
$3,000 I grill $76,700
A used stamp: H grill $500-$2,000 I grill -

About the large bank note stamps

A National Bank notes from 1870
Click image to enlarge

"Large Bank Note" stamps refers to a major definitive series of postage stamps issued between 1870 and 1890. They are called "Bank Notes" because they were produced under contract by three private security printing firms—the National, Continental, and American Bank Note Companies—before the Bureau of Engraving and Printing took over production in 1894.

Key Characteristics
Size: They are called "Large" to distinguish them from the "Small Bank Notes" (or "Baby Bank Notes") issued from 1890 to 1894, which were reduced in size to cut production costs.
Paper and Grills: Early issues (National) often feature "grills" (embossed patterns intended to prevent reuse), while later issues moved from hard paper (National and Continental) to soft porous paper (American).
Secret Marks: To identify which company printed which stamp, "secret marks" (tiny design modifications) were often added to the original plates when contracts changed hands.

Historical Timeline
National Bank Note Co. (1870–1873): The original printers who introduced the designs.
Continental Bank Note Co. (1873–1879): Took over the contract and added secret marks to the 1¢ through 15¢ denominations.
American Bank Note Co. (1879–1890): After merging with Continental, they printed the same designs on soft porous paper and later introduced re-engraved versions with slightly modified details.

Grills (H, I and J grills)

H Grill 11-13 x 14-16 points 10 x 12mm
I Grill 10-11 x 10-13 points 8½ x 10mm
Click image to enlarge
The grills as they appear on the stamp
Click image to enlarge
It is common to see only a partial grill
Click image to enlarge

The H grill (#143)
The H grill is often confused with the I grill. If a grill measures roughly 10 x 12 mm, it is generally considered an H grill, while smaller ones are I grills. If an identification cannot be firmly made, the default classification is usually the H grill, as it is generally more common than the I grill

The I grill (#143A)
It is small, typically measuring 8½ x 10mm with 10 vertical rows. Examples, such as on the 30-cent stamp, are extremely rare

Usage

#143 earliest date of use, August 18th, 1870

Usages of the 30¢ 1870 Stamp:
There are only two known covers with #143. In both cases the stamp was used in conjunction with other stamps.

The Inspiration for the Design

Giuseppe Ceracchi's marble bust of Alexander Hamilton

The inspiration for the design of the 30¢ stamp, featuring Alexander Hamilton, was a marble bust by Giuseppe Ceracchi.

1791 or 1792, Ceracchi created a now-lost terracotta model of Alexander Hamilton, an American Founding Father and the first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury during George Washington's presidency. His initial work on the model was completed during Ceracchi's stay in Philadelphia, then the post-Revolutionary capital of the new nation.

The work was then sent to Rome, where Ceracci created the marble version. In July 1792, he wrote Hamilton, saying he was "impatient to receive the clay that I had the satisfaction of forming from your witty and significant physiognomy".