Poor Isaacs Bank, Tamworth, 3 Pence, 9 July 1792, serial number 492, signature of I. Hare, with several engravings at left including a Hare called Loo Loo and a crude depiction of Tamworth Castle, top left corner tip missing, otherwise fine and quite scarce, one of the earliest known skit notes in existence
Outing 4087a £120-£160

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Sir David Kirch Collection of Skit Notes.

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Isaac Hare, born 1750, was a draper by trade, and did indeed live in Tamworth. The signature on his marriage certificate to Mary Spear in 1784 matches the one on this note. He lived to a ripe old age, dying in 1827 having been described locally as ‘a gentleman’. The purpose of the note is probably to advertise his business as it mentions ‘Mercer, Draper, Buyer, Seller’, and promises to pay ‘at the sign of the Puss’, presumably referring to a pub sign or similar local landmark.