Mike Serpa
Major
- Joined
- Jan 24, 2013
Mathew Brady: Believed to Be Earliest Known Daguerreotype Portrait. A quarter plate daguerreotype of Mathew Brady, housed in an embossed leather frame (separated at spine). Outside of some faint scratches to the plate, concentrated towards the bottom, it is in excellent condition. The paper seals have been replaced. There is some very faint blue tinting to his vest. Brady appears relaxed and totally comfortable with the novelty of sitting for a photographic portrait. He is quite youthful, likely in his early twenties which, along with the format, would date this image to the mid 1840's. The image matches very closely a lithograph of the youthful Brady published in 1851 (illustration credit: Granger NYC - All Rights Reserved).
As always when a new image without provenance appears, the identification must be qualified. In this case, our own research and the opinions of experts we have consulted convince us "beyond a reasonable doubt" that this daguerreotype does indeed depict Brady. But in the absence of provenance or other ironclad evidence, this attribution cannot be absolutely guaranteed.
Heritage Auctions text and photos. - https://historical.ha.com/itm/photo...6145-42369.s?ic4=GalleryView-Thumbnail-071515
What do you think?
Charles Loring Elliott painting of Brady - 1857 - The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Mathew Brady, about 1875 - LOC
As always when a new image without provenance appears, the identification must be qualified. In this case, our own research and the opinions of experts we have consulted convince us "beyond a reasonable doubt" that this daguerreotype does indeed depict Brady. But in the absence of provenance or other ironclad evidence, this attribution cannot be absolutely guaranteed.
Heritage Auctions text and photos. - https://historical.ha.com/itm/photo...6145-42369.s?ic4=GalleryView-Thumbnail-071515
What do you think?
Charles Loring Elliott painting of Brady - 1857 - The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Mathew Brady, about 1875 - LOC