Cabinet card portrait by Winter & Pond, among the most prominent photographers of late 19th-century Alaska, showing a young indigenous woman posed in a studio with bamboo furniture and a painted backdrop evoking Gothic arches and verdant foliage. The sitter stands confidently, one hand resting lightly on a rustic chair. She wears a sharply tailored striped blouse with exaggerated leg-of-mutton sleeves and a wide belt cinched at the waist with a bold clasp, paired with a floor-length patterned skirt. Her hairstyle is short and neatly curled, projecting a modern and self-possessed demeanor.

The mount features the scalloped edges and high production quality characteristic of Winter & Pond’s best work. Their imprint is printed at bottom: “Winter & Pond / Front Street / Juneau, Alaska.” The verso is blank aside from light pencil notations including “Native Alaskan” and a few stock or pricing marks. While the exact heritage of the sitter cannot be confirmed, the image invites inquiry into the diversity of individuals present in Gold Rush-era Juneau, including the presence of African American, Native, and mixed-race communities.

An evocative portrait that challenges assumptions about race, identity, and fashion in territorial Alaska. Rare in both composition and geographic origin.