Michael Lehr Antiques
Live Auction

Fall Photographic History Auction, 2025

Sat, Sep 6, 2025 01:00PM EDT
  2025-09-06 13:00:00 2025-09-06 13:00:00 America/New_York Michael Lehr Michael Lehr : Fall Photographic History Auction, 2025 https://auction.michaellehrantiques.com/auctions/michael-lehr-antiques/fall-photographic-history-auction-2025-20189
We are pleased to announce our next auction, featuring approximately 200 individual lots drawn from a diverse and compelling range of 19th- and early 20th-century photography. This sale focuses on vernacular images, photographs created not as formal studio portraits or elite commissions, but as direct, unscripted records of lived experience. These are objects made by and for everyday people, preserving moments of intimacy, labor, travel, performance, identity, and loss.
Michael Lehr Antiques info@michaellehrantiques.com
Lot 342

Cabinet Card of Two Businessmen with Money and Tools, Lancaster, 1892

Estimate: $200 - $300
Starting Bid
$100

Bid Increments

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1892 cabinet card by Otto E. Weber of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, capturing a rare and unusual occupational portrait of two well-dressed men engaged in what appears to be a financial business transaction. One seated gentleman holds out a small stack of U.S. currency, while his standing companion grasps both the bills and a large compass or drafting tool, perhaps signifying a professional field such as engineering, surveying, or architectural design. Both men wear tailored three-piece suits with watch chains and display serious, confident expressions befitting their professional roles.

At their feet rests a doctor-style bag with more tools or papers spilling out, while envelopes lie scattered on the floor, further evoking a transaction or consultation. The interior studio setting includes a finely patterned carpet, table draped with a damask cloth, and lush potted plants, all of which enhance the formality and theatricality of the moment. Dated in pencil on the verso: "July 12 1892." Photographer’s imprint appears on both sides: “Otto E. Weber, Portraits, 106 N. Queen St., Lancaster, PA.”

A superb image that elevates the genre of occupational photography through its detail, symbolism, and formal composition. A rare and compelling historic financial related image.

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