Two unidentified young girls are portrayed in this sixth plate daguerreotype produced at Root's Gallery, 140 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia. The image dates to the period when Erastus E. Root operated the studio, placing it within the mid-1840s to mid-1850s. The portrait is housed in a leather case with a gilt paper mat framing the image beneath an arched opening, with a separate inner cover bearing an embossed floral and rose motif in relief.

The elder girl stands at left in a light-colored dress with a wide cape collar, large decorative buttons down the front, and a multi-tiered ruffled skirt; curled ringlets frame her face on both sides. The younger child sits in a turned wooden chair at right, wearing a patterned short-sleeve dress with a matching tiered ruffle skirt, and a dark beaded necklace at her throat, her hands resting quietly in her lap.

Erastus E. Root was among Philadelphia's notable daguerreotypists of the early 1850s, operating from 140 Chestnut Street in a city that was then a leading center of American daguerreotype practice. The studio's imprint, embossed in gilt lettering on the inner case cover, reads: ROOT'S GALLERY 140 CHESTNUT ST PHILADA.