Lot 106

Humorous Cabinet Card Portrait Man Rolling His Eyes – Fairbanks

Estimate: $50 - $400

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 cabinet card photograph showing a mustached man posed with arms crossed and eyes rolled upward in an exaggerated expression. The subject wears a vest and soft cap and appears deliberately posed for comic effect, an uncommon but appealing form of late 19th- or early 20th-century vernacular studio photography. The photograph was made by O. D. Fairbanks of Adrian, Michigan, whose imprint appears on the mount.

Humorous expressions and novelty portraits were occasionally produced in commercial studios but survive far less frequently than conventional portraits. The exaggerated upward gaze and theatrical mustache give the image a distinctly playful character typical of informal vernacular commissions rather than standard studio work.

Mount imprint reads O. D. Fairbanks, Adrian, Mich. The reverse bears a pencil inscription reading “O. D. Fairbanks”.

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