Winter Photographic History Auction 2026
Sat, Jan 31, 2026 01:00PM EST
Lot 129
CDV Portrait of an African American Woman, Waterloo, New York
Estimate: $100 - $200
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 |
Albumen carte de visite portrait depicting an African American woman seated in three-quarter view, photographed by Manier & Kelley’s Gallery of Art, Waterloo, New York. The sitter is shown with composed dignity, her hands folded in her lap, wearing a dark, fitted dress with a defined waist, buttoned bodice, and white cuffs. Her hair is neatly arranged and pulled back, and her calm, direct bearing reflects the formal studio conventions of the Civil War era.
The verso bears the photographer’s printed imprint, “Manier & Kelley’s Gallery of Art, Waterloo, N.Y.,” within an ornate cartouche, firmly attributing the image to this upstate New York studio. The refined mount design and albumen tonality are consistent with mid-1860s production.
This is a strong and increasingly scarce example of early photographic portraiture of an African American woman in the CDV format. Such images are historically significant, documenting Black presence, self-presentation, and respectability during and immediately following the Civil War period. Condition is consistent with age, with light surface wear and toning to the mount; the image remains clear and well-defined.
The verso bears the photographer’s printed imprint, “Manier & Kelley’s Gallery of Art, Waterloo, N.Y.,” within an ornate cartouche, firmly attributing the image to this upstate New York studio. The refined mount design and albumen tonality are consistent with mid-1860s production.
This is a strong and increasingly scarce example of early photographic portraiture of an African American woman in the CDV format. Such images are historically significant, documenting Black presence, self-presentation, and respectability during and immediately following the Civil War period. Condition is consistent with age, with light surface wear and toning to the mount; the image remains clear and well-defined.
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The Elsa Schaar Collection is a large, intact assemblage of early American photographic portraiture dating circa 1839–1870, formed primarily between the 1920s and 1950s by collector and antiques dealer Elsa Schaar Beugler Haase (1894–1976). The collection comprises 453 photographic works, including 258 daguerreotypes and ambrotypes in a wide range of original cases, 139 tintypes, 56 carte-de-visite photographs, and several Civil War–era and tintype albums. Elsa Schaar, based largely in Elmira, New York, actively bought, sold, and corresponded with collectors nationwide, often through ads in Hobbies (later Antiques & Collecting Magazine), developing a focused interest in early portrait photography. Following her death, the collection passed intact to her brother, architect William R. Schaar, and is now being offered by his descendants, preserving a clear and well-documented line of descent spanning more than a century
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