Michael Lehr Antiques
Live Auction

Fall Photographic History Auction, 2025

Sat, Sep 6, 2025 01:00PM EDT
Lot 164

CDV Photo Caricature Valparaiso Chile Photographer Montage

Estimate: $400 - $600

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Unusual carte de visite photographic montage from Valparaíso, Chile, incorporating a photographic head atop a caricatured, drawn body, with a whimsical background scene. The image appears to depict a local photographer, armed with tripod and camera, surrounded by cartoonish figures including a radiant imp-like creature with a human face chained to a box camera. The printed backdrop features a second caricature and signage for the “Salón de Fotografía” at “Calle de San Juan de Dios 41.” The photograph is signed in the print "Walton" near the subject’s foot. Verso bears the elaborate imprint of the “Establecimiento Fotográfico, Calle de San Juan de Dios 41, Valparaíso.” Likely a self-referential satire of the photographer himself or a playful promotional card circa 1870s to 1880s. A rare example of early Latin American photographic humor.

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