Snapshots of the Past

[William Cranch, half-length portrait, three-quarters to left] – Historic Photo Reproduction

[William Cranch, half-length portrait, three-quarters to left], [between 1844 and 1860] — historic photograph
[William Cranch, half-length portrait, three-quarters to left], [between 1844 and 1860]. 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

Few images capture their era like this historic photograph of [William Cranch, half-length portrait, three-quarters to left]. The original is held by the Library of Congress, so what you hang is a true record of its time.

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[William Cranch, half-length portrait, three-quarters to left]

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Scratched on the back of this half-plate daguerreotype is the name "Judge Cranch," though the Library of Congress also notes an alternative reading, "Judge Crouch," so the sitter's identity rests partly on that inscription. The likeness was reproduced in a 1903 Senate document on the Washington National Monument, which suggests the plate was once tied to a painting used for that history. William Cranch (1769-1855) served for decades as a judge of the U.S. Circuit Court for the District of Columbia and compiled the early volumes of Supreme Court reports, so he was a prominent figure in Washington when Brady's studio was active there. Gold toning, which was used to strengthen and warm daguerreotype images, is worth noticing in this plate.

Created / published[between 1844 and 1860]
Medium1 photograph : half plate daguerreotype, gold toned.
GenrePortrait photographs 1840-1860.Daguerreotypes 1840-1860.
NotesIdentification from reproduction of a painting Harvey, History of the Washington National Monument, 1903. (57th Congress, 2nd sess., Senate doc. 227). Scratched on back of plate: 20; Judge Cranch. Alternative identification: Judge Crouch (cat. 5). Transfer; U.S. War College; 1920; (DLC/PP-1920:46153). Forms part of: Daguerreotype collection (Library of Congress). Produced by Mathew Brady's studio.
SubjectsCranch, William,--1769-1855.
SourceLibrary of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division
Original scan3,267 × 4,096 px · prints to 11 × 14 in at 300 dpi
Reference123_William_Cranch_halfleng_1844

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