Vintage Passports In Leather Cases

Vintage Passports Leather Cases

What you see here are four beautiful passports from the collection of my fellow collector Brian, a British collector who build truly a fine collection of US and UK  passports.

Such travel documents in leather cases are not standard. The usual US or UK passport in the 19th century came just on plain thin paper and made the documents easily vulnerable especially on frequent travels.

The shown leather cases were extras offered by passport agents to make the document more durable and at the same time more “important”. I guess it was a difference when you showed an official just a plain piece of paper or such a “posh” passport in a leather case with a golden imprint.

The second picture shows an invoice for a passport agent which is absolutely rare to find. You can see all the extra services offered and you get an impression of the costs. We can assume that such passports in leather cases were rather made for wealthier people.

The US passport of Benjamin Avery and his family is even fixed on a stronger linen background to make the paper more durable. Such documents are not often to find.

Thank you for sharing, Brian! Old Passports Leather Wallets

Vintage Passports Leather Cases