1982 Gracemont OK Verse

FRAMED "YOU ENCOURAGED ME" VERSE - PRESENTED AT GRACEMONT, OKLAHOMA, MAY 4, 1982, WITH TYPED PRESENTATION LABEL ON THE BACK A small framed inspirational verse print in a gold and black composition frame. The printed sheet is titled "You Encouraged Me" in a script face over a fourteen-line verse in italic type, with a small hand-colored green tree branch at the upper right and a leaf spray at the middle right. The frame is a stepped design with a gold outer molding cast in a repeating leaf-and-dart pattern, a flat black band, and a beaded gold inner lip, glazed and closed with a black cardboard back held by bent metal tabs. The back carries a typed adhesive label reading "PRESENTED TO TOMMY HANCOCK BY 8TH GRADE GRADUATING CLASS, MAY 4, 1982, at GRACEMONT, OKLAHOMA." - a local Caddo County presentation piece. Flaws include a torn punched hole and lifted paper in the cardboard backing above the label, faded and now illegible printed lettering stamped along the top edge of the back, light toning and scattered tan spotting on the label, chips and rubbing to the gold finish on the outer molding and corners, and dust and small specks trapped under the glass. UNTESTED - the frame has not been opened, the print has not been examined out of the frame, and no glass has been removed, so the condition of the sheet behind the mat line and any hidden foxing cannot be confirmed. Sold as one framed piece. Description Form: small vertical framed verse print, tabletop or wall scale, stepped gold-over-black frame with a beaded inner lip Print: "You Encouraged Me," fourteen lines of italic verse on a cream sheet with hand-colored green foliage accents at the right Construction/Finish: molded composition or plastic frame with gold paint and a black recessed band, glazed front, black cardboard back secured with bent metal tabs Marks: typed presentation label on the back reading "PRESENTED TO TOMMY HANCOCK BY 8TH GRADE GRADUATING CLASS, MAY 4, 1982, at GRACEMONT, OKLAHOMA."; faint stamped lettering along the top edge of the back is worn away and illegible, and no maker, publisher, or poet credit is legible anywhere Size: approximately 5 1/2 in wide by approximately 6 1/2 in tall by approximately 3/4 in deep overall, per the tape-measure photographs Attribution note Small framed verse prints of this kind were staples of the mid-twentieth-century gift and church-supply trade, sold blank and then engraved or labeled for presentations, retirements, graduations, and church recognitions. The typed label on the back is the interesting part of this lot: it ties the piece to a specific date and place, an eighth-grade graduating class at Gracemont, Oklahoma on May 4, 1982, which gives it real appeal to Caddo County and local-history buyers as well as anyone connected to the Gracemont school. The verse itself is a widely circulated inspirational text of the "I will not pass this way but once" family and carries no printed author credit or publisher line on the visible portion of the sheet, so no poet, publisher, or copyright date is claimed. The frame is a commercial molded gift frame rather than a wood carved one and is not attributed to any maker. All period, maker, and origin comments are offered as the consignor's photo-based opinion and are not guaranteed. Bid on the item(s) as pictured. Notes for bidders Framed paper wants dry, stable storage - keep it out of direct sun and off exterior walls and heat registers, since fading and toning are not reversible. Do not open the backing to inspect or reframe unless you are prepared for the paper to be fragile at the edges and for the old label to tear; the typed presentation label is the part that carries the local interest, so leave it in place and do not attempt to clean or re-stick it. Wipe only the glass, with a barely damp cloth, and keep moisture away from the frame's painted composition surface, which will spot. Only the item(s) pictured are included in this lot. Terms Sold as-is, where-is, with no warranty expressed or implied. All sales final. Please ask any questions before bidding. Buyer is responsible for pickup or shipping arrangements per auction terms.