## Facts

- The Tariff Act of 1930 provided duty-free entry for “original sculptures” and for “replicas or reproductions of original sculptures” limited to not more than two for each original; other sculptures and additional reproductions were subject to a 20% ad valorem duty.
- Angela Gregory imported into the United States a reproduction of a sculpture.
- The imported article was described as the tenth reproduction of an original sculpture.
- The reproduction was created by the original sculptor’s wife, Angela Gregory.
- The collector of customs classified the import as dutiable and assessed a 20% ad valorem duty on the ground that it was a replica or reproduction beyond the statutory duty-free limit.
- Gregory protested, arguing the imported piece should be treated as duty-free because it was allegedly the first or second replica or reproduction of that original sculpture imported into the United States.

## Issues

1. Whether a sculpture that is the tenth reproduction of an original qualifies for duty-free entry as one of “not more than two” replicas or reproductions of that original under the Tariff Act of 1930, based on the order of importation into the United States.

## Decision

- The court held the imported sculpture was dutiable at 20% ad valorem.
- The court rejected the importer’s argument that the “not more than two” limitation turns on whether earlier reproductions had been imported into the United States.
- The court sustained the collector’s classification because the article was undisputedly a tenth reproduction and therefore outside the statute’s two-reproduction allowance for duty-free treatment.

## Legal Principles

- A tariff provision allowing duty-free entry for “replicas or reproductions” of an original sculpture “not more than two of each such original” imposes a strict numerical cap tied to the original work.
- The statutory two-reproduction limit is not determined by the sequence of importation into the United States; it is a limitation on eligibility that cannot be expanded by showing the item is among the first imported.
- When an imported sculpture is shown to be beyond the statutory limit for duty-free replicas or reproductions, it is properly classified as dutiable under the tariff rate applicable to additional reproductions.

## Conclusion

Gregory v. United States held that a bronze reproduction that was the tenth reproduction of an original sculpture could not enter duty-free under the Tariff Act’s allowance for “not more than two” replicas or reproductions per original, even if the importer claimed it was among the first reproductions brought into the United States; the Customs Court therefore sustained the 20% ad valorem duty assessment.


Gregory v. United States, 32 Cust. Ct. 228 (1954)