Michael Lehr Antiques
Live Auction

Fall Photographic History Auction, 2025

Sat, Sep 6, 2025 01:00PM EDT
Lot 208

Quarter Plate Ambrotype of Two Blacksmiths with Horseshoes

Estimate: $500 - $700

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Quarter plate Ambrotype featuring two men, possibly father and son, standing side by side and holding iron horseshoes in a rare occupational pose. Both figures wear work trousers and white shirts with rolled sleeves, projecting a sense of trade and labor. The younger man on the right wears a prominent neckerchief tied at the collar, while the older man sports a full beard and steady gaze.

The men are photographed against a plain backdrop with even lighting, emphasizing their firm stances and the symbolic tools of their trade. Horseshoes, held with care and confidence, suggest their vocation as blacksmiths or farriers, offering one of the few surviving visual records of such working-class tradesmen in ambrotype format. Images of artisans posed with tools or occupational objects are rare and highly prized for their documentation of American labor during the mid-19th century.

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