47003: Stephen Sewall Land Sale Contract Signed "Steph

Stephen Sewall Land Sale Contract Signed "Steph Sewall." One page, 7.5" x 11.75", no place [Essex County]; September 27, 1705. A contract, written in Old English, outlining a sale of land between Jonathan Woodman and Richard Bartlett, Jr. Signed on verso by Sewall as the recorder for Essex County. Signed at the bottom with a red wax seal by Jonathan Woodman. Additional signature by Samuel Soyer, Philip Morss, Joseph Hoyt, and Thomas Noyes as witnesses. Stephen Sewall (1657-1725), Judge Samuel Sewall's brother, was the court clerk in Salem during the Salem Witch Trials. He witnessed the intimate details of the trials, and later provided transcripts of the trial records to Cotton Mather, who published them in his book Wonders of the Invisible World. Sewall died 20 years later in Salem at the age of 68. Condition: Moderate toning and foxing throughout. Heaving dampstaining. Chipping at the edges and at the folds, with some paper loss. Flattened folds with separations at the horizontal folds. Paper loss and separations have been repaired or supported with archival tape on verso. Worn corners. The paper is fairly fragile. HID03101062020 © 2020 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved