An examination and explanation of clues to establish the
date of 19th century photographs.
This Week's Photograph - October 1, 2012
Photo Facts
Photo Type
Carte de visite
Card Size
2.5" x 4"
Card Color
Natural
Card Edges
Beveled, Gilt
Front Imprint
None
Back Imprint
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Print Technology
Albumen
About the Case Studies
Each week a new case study of a picture typical of 19th century photographs will be published.
These examples can help genealogists learn the skills that will help date their own photos.
An estimated date (if one was not available) will be given with a +/- number of years it could be. Dating old photos is a science that provides answers usually within 2 - 6 years of when the photo was taken.
The lady's dress highlights two strong fashion styles of the transition period around the 80s/90s. The Queen Victoria look of the single row of buttons down the front with the high neckline is classic 1880s. Yet the shoulders have begun to rise and become loose. Of course this would trend towards the very large shoulders and sleeves of the mid-1890s. But they got their start in 1889.
Card Style
Woman's Dress
Back Imprint
This carte de visite (CDV) at first glance jumped out and said, 'I'm a mini cabinet card'. Indeed it is.
The small CDV format came into popularity during the Civil War and remained the standard of paper photographs through the 60s and 1870s.
The late 1870s saw the larger cabinet card use become widely available, and then by the mid 1880s the cabinet card was by far the most common format. While not rare, a CDV from this late timeframe is uncommon.
Mimicking the style of the cabinet cards, this CDV has the beveled and gilt edges popular in the 1880s.
Back Imprint
In addition, the back imprint exhibits one of the hallmarks of late 1880s and 90s cabinet cards. This is the use of a two-letter monogram of the Photographer. Usually seen on the front of cabinet cards, the CDV space constraint caused it to be printed on the back.
Confirmed Date: 1889
Written on the back of this CDV was a loving note and December '89.
Even without the grateful date noted on the back, dating this card to the turn of the 80s/90s decade would have been fairly obvious.
This close up of a corner shows the beveled edges and gilt treatment typical of 1880s cabinet cards.
Written "Mih(sp) dearest love from Elizabeth G.W. December '89".
Lovely transition fashion style from the 1880s to the 1890s.
You can become an expert at analyzing photographs.
Much of the information used in this 19th century photograph case study covered in the Identification Section of this web site. In addition, comparison to similar yet dated photographs in the Gallery of 1000 Images will help confirm the estimates. Even greater detail, organized for this type of research is available in PhotoTree.com's books.