North America, ca. 1840 to 1900 CE. This is a collection of two daguerreotype and ten tintype photographs. Daguerreotype was the first publicly available photographic process, created by rubbing a sheet of silver-plated copper with fumes to make its surface light sensitive and then exposing it. The image was made visible by fuming it with mercury vapor, and then it was treated with liquid chemicals and dried before being enclosed behind glass to protect. The two here are both clear and in original protective frames. One is of a child with a strikingly serious gaze and the other is of a young woman with her elegant clothing clearly visible. Unlike any other photographic preparation, daguerreotypes give the impression that the image is floating inside of the metal upon which it is imprinted. The tintypes, meanwhile, are from the next phase of photographic technology. They replaced the daguerreotype by the 1860s because they could be made in a matter of minutes. People out at fairs or carnivals could often have their photographs taken and receive the images shortly thereafter. The colleciton here shows several portraits of individuals in protective sleeves, a couple, a family of four, a well-dressed man standing in a beautifully decorated room, and an older man seated outdoors. Size of largest: 3.3" W x 3.75" H (8.4 cm x 9.5 cm).

Provenance: Ex-Historia Antiques, James Caswell, Santa Monica, CA.

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#111734

All have some wear and fading; the one inside the covered frame has its binding broken, but both pieces are present.