Snapshots of the Past

[Laying the cornerstone of the new Masonic temple, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania] – Vintage Wall Art

[Laying the cornerstone of the new Masonic temple, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania], [1853 Nov. 21] — historic photograph
[Laying the cornerstone of the new Masonic temple, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania], [1853 Nov. 21]. Historic photograph from the Daguerreotypes & Early Photography collection.

(Originally scanned by the Library of Congress. Each image is professionally and digitally cleaned of artifacts such as color bars and extra borders prior to printing.)

Description

[Laying the cornerstone of the new Masonic temple, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania] comes to life in this historic photograph, reproduced from the original with every detail intact. An authentic image from the Library of Congress, it carries the weight of the real historical record.

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[Laying the cornerstone of the new Masonic temple, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]

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Freemasons laid the cornerstone of a new temple in Philadelphia on November 21, 1853, and this stereoscopic daguerreotype records that public ceremony. Cornerstone laying was a formal civic and fraternal occasion, with members in regalia taking part in a ritual that drew crowds. Stereoscopic pairs like this one were made to be viewed through a stereoscope, which gave the scene depth. Because a daguerreotype is a single unique plate rather than a print from a negative, each surviving example is one of a kind.

Created / published[1853 Nov. 21]
Medium1 photograph : stereoscopic daguerreotype.
GenreDaguerreotypes 1850-1860.Stereographs 1850-1860.
SubjectsFraternal lodges--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia--1850-1860.
SourceLibrary of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division
Original scan4,565 × 3,670 px · prints to 15 × 12 in at 300 dpi
Reference607_Laying_the_cornerstone_1853

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