The latest addition to the Hammond ephemera archive is this wonderful receipt from London, December 16th, 1902. A properly completed receipt is a gold mine of information and gives us another piece of the Hammond DNA network.

On October 31st something was done, and the number 27,328 likely refers to the machine’s serial number. Eighteen pounds, however. According to Google, £18 in 1902 is worth £2,830.60 today.

At that price this was almost certainly for the purchase of a brand new No. 2 machine. That also fits with the serial number database for that time period. Ten pence and two penny’s, however, is a little more of a mystery. Perhaps a ribbon? Paper?

The last bit of this receipt is the blue one-penny revenue stamp. This was an “impressed duty stamp,” and were embossed onto cheques and other types of documents to indicate that a particular duty had been paid. A revenue stamp (or a dual-purpose postage and revenue stamp) was required to pay the tax if the document did not already have an impressed stamp.

Given that this receipt was in the possession of Mr. Young, it’s possible he paid by cheque and when the cheque cleared he could get the machine, or perhaps the check receipt was sent afterward.