Snapshots of the Past

Unidentified man, half-length daguerreotype portrait in gold case – Vintage Wall Art

Unidentified man, half-length daguerreotype portrait in gold case, 1840 — historic photograph
Unidentified man, half-length daguerreotype portrait in gold case, 1840. Historic photograph from the Daguerreotypes & Early Photography collection.

(Each image is professionally and digitally cleaned of artifacts such as color bars and extra borders prior to printing.)

Description

This historic photograph of Unidentified man, half-length daguerreotype portrait in gold case brings a moment of history to your wall. It comes from the Snapshots of the Past collection, curated over 25 years for its historical value.

Choose the framed print, ready to hang the day it arrives, or the unframed print for a frame of your own. A fine choice for anyone who loves history, and a gift that gets noticed. Free shipping in the lower 48 states. Snapshots of the Past has been bringing history to the wall since 2001, for tens of thousands of customers worldwide.

Unidentified man, half-length daguerreotype portrait in gold case

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Few of the daguerreotypes on this board come with a sitter we can name, and this one is no exception: the man's identity is lost, leaving only his face, his dress and the gold case that once protected the plate. Dated to 1840, the year after Louis Daguerre's process was made public in France, the portrait belongs to the earliest years of photography, when a sitter had to hold still for several minutes in strong light. The mirror-like silver surface, which shows the viewer's own reflection at certain angles, is a hallmark of the form. The half-length framing and the hinged case also reflect how these small portraits were prized as keepsakes.

Created / published1840
Original scan3,998 × 5,000 px · prints to 13 × 17 in at 300 dpi
Reference413_Unidentified_man_halfle_1840

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Snapshots of the Past helps heritage brands, museums, historians and storytellers tell stories with history: historic prints, image licensing and historical storytelling drawn from more than 25 years of research and curation.

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