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John Alden Signature, Seventh Signer of the Mayflower Compact. ...
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Sold on Sep 21, 2023 for:
$10,625.00
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Description
John Alden Signature, Seventh Signer of the Mayflower Compact. One partial page, 4.62" x 5", [Plymouth, Massachusetts]; undated. Portion of a testimony, witnessed and signed by Alden as Assistant to the Governor of Plymouth Colony. Accompanied by a note that dates from the nineteenth century written by a previous collector describing the signature. It reads in part: "The signature here given is from an instrument which was acknowledged before him as one of the Assistants to the Governor."John Alden (1599-1687) arrived in North America on the Mayflower in 1620. He was the seventh signer of the Mayflower Compact, living to be the last survivor of the signers. Hired as a barrel cooper for the transatlantic voyage, Alden decided to stay and help found Plymouth Colony after the Pilgrims landed. He held a long and diverse political career in Massachusetts. Between 1632 - 1640 and 1650 - 1686, Alden acted as the Assistant to the Governor, signing this document at some point during his tenure. In addition, he served as Deputy Governor, Treasurer, and Deputy from Duxbury; participated in the colony's Council of War, Committee to Revise Laws, and the Committee on the Kennebec Trade; and acted as a town magistrate.
Alden gained popularity as a historical figure 171 years after his death when Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote his 1858 poem, "The Courtship of Miles Standish," about the love triangle between Alden, his wife, Priscilla Mullens, and militia captain, Miles Standish. In the poem, the maiden interrupts Alden as he delivers a marriage proposal from Standish with the famous retort, "Why don't you speak for yourself, John?" Alden and Mullens did marry in 1623, shortly after both arrived on the Mayflower.
Condition: Significant staining throughout, with staining showthrough from the verso where the paper has been mounted to a slightly larger sheet. Two bits of paper loss just below signature, affecting flourish. Paper loss along the left margin, and small tears at all four margins.
Auction Info
2023 September 21 Historical Manuscripts Signature® Auction #6272 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
September, 2023
21st
Thursday
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 18
Lot Tracking Activity: N/A
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