Michael Lehr Antiques
Live Auction

Spring Photographic History Auction

Sat, May 3, 2025 01:00PM EDT
Lot 139

Ninth Plate Daguerreotype Pendant of a Gentleman

Estimate: $100 - $200

Bid Increments

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Elegant and sharply detailed ninth plate daguerreotype portrait of a seated young man housed in a rare oval pendant-style case. The subject wears a dark frock coat, waistcoat, and cravat, his hair parted and carefully styled in a fashionable 1850s manner. He is posed with his arm resting on a table draped with a boldly patterned cloth, his expression formal yet composed. The clarity of the plate is excellent, with fine facial detail and strong contrast.

The image is held within a finely engraved oval brass surround, which would have originally been fitted with a suspension ring for wear as a pendant or display. The ring is now missing, but the reverse brass plate remains intact, showing the original cloth backing and aperture. Tarnishing along the perimeter frames the sitter nicely without distracting from the overall composition.

Highly displayable and evocative, this is a strong example of personal portraiture in portable form, ideal for collectors of jewelry-form daguerreotypes and rare presentation formats.

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