|
Gilt Jewelry
Notice the gold chain and pendant around her neck. While popular even in the 1850s, this treatment continued into the 1860s. Gilt application declined rapidly in the 1870s, as it was replaced with water colors which were much cheaper. |
- Chair
- Gilt Jewelry
- Evidence of a Card Mount
Sometimes you have to look deep into a photo to help identify it or tell how old it is. We have mentioned frequently that tintypes missing their case or sleeve can be very hard to date.
At first glance, this one seemed to fall into that category. However, a few things stood out besides the baby and dog. One was the chair, or that portion you can see.
The other clue dealt with how the picture looked in the past. There was some forensic evidence that helped place the picture in the late 1860s and how it might have originally looked.
Fringe Chair
We like to refer to this type of chair as a 'fringe' chair. These were adjustable chairs made for photography studios. Introduced around 1864, they were popular through the 1870s. A blanket has been placed on the chair for a reason other than just for the baby to sit on. (See next column.)
|
Est. Date: 1867 +- 2 Years
Evidence of Original Look
There are artifacts of an oval shape around the center of the picture. These artifacts (dust) and fading inside the oval shape indicate this photo was once mounted in a sleeve or on a card with an oval opening. In this case we believe it was an embossed card which the tintype was taped to the back, with the image showing through the oval opening.
A couple observations were not important to dating the photo, but they were fun to uncover. These include:
What Dog?
With a quick glance you may miss the friendly mutt on the right. The dog moved a little, hence the blur. The baby seems frozen in time.
What Mother?
The blanket under the baby extends to the back and you can see the ghostly-shaped outline of someone under it. This is the mother holding the baby still. We see this very often.
|
|
|
|
Relative Size - This scan, with a quarter overlaid on the image, shows how small the tintype is. Still the photo contains some very nice detail.
Reconstructed Card - After carefully measuring the scarred oval area, and comparing the size to numerous examples of the 1860s, we found a tintype card that fit exactly. And, the type of card fits the era. Boldly embossed cards were available at the end of the Civil War and stayed popular until about 1870 when the embossing became much finer. Of further evidence, the tintype still has tape on the back. |
Likely look of the original tintype. |
|
