Michael Lehr Antiques
Live Auction

March 2026 Unreserved Photo Auction — Curiosities, Performers & Vernacular Photography

Sat, Mar 28, 2026 01:00PM EDT
  2026-03-28 13:00:00 2026-03-28 13:00:00 America/New_York Michael Lehr Michael Lehr : March 2026 Unreserved Photo Auction — Curiosities, Performers & Vernacular Photography https://auction.michaellehrantiques.com/auctions/michael-lehr-antiques/march-2026-unreserved-photo-auction-curiosities-performers-vernacular-photography-22648
Our March 2026 auction presents a wide selection of historical photographs, postcards, entertainment memorabilia, and visual curiosities spanning the mid-nineteenth through twentieth centuries. Every lot is offered completely without reserve, ensuring that each item sells to the highest bidder regardless of price. Combined purchases totaling $500 or more qualify for free shipping, providing collectors an added incentive to bid across multiple lots. The unreserved format creates opportunities for both new and experienced collectors to acquire unusual and historically interesting material.
Michael Lehr Antiques info@michaellehrantiques.com
Lot 119

Boy with Pet Parrot Cabinet Card, Randall West Jefferson Ohio

Estimate: $50 - $400
Starting Bid
$10

Bid Increments

Price Bid Increment
$0 $10
$200 $25
$500 $50
$1,000 $100
$2,000 $250
$5,000 $500
$10,000 $1,000
$20,000 $2,000
Cabinet card portrait of a young boy posed beside a small table draped with patterned fabric, resting his hand near a live perched parrot. The child wears a dark one-piece outfit with a large plaid bow at the collar and buttoned boots, standing confidently in a traditional studio interior setting with painted backdrop and architectural elements.

The mount bears the imprint “Randall, Photographer, West Jefferson, Ohio.” Studios in small Midwestern towns often used birds, animals, and other props to add visual interest to children’s portraits, creating compositions that combined portraiture with symbolic or novelty elements. The bird in this photograph serves as a focal point and may represent either a pet brought to the studio or a prop supplied by the photographer.

The reverse carries a period pencil inscription reading “This is Christie,” identifying the bird depicted in the photograph. Cabinet cards such as this were popular family keepsakes in the late nineteenth century and often served as personal mementos documenting childhood within local community studios.

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Spend $500 or more at our auction and all of your SHIPPING IS FREE, buyers to pay insurance if they want it.