Michael Lehr Antiques
Live Auction

June 2026 Vernacular Photo History Auction

Wed, Jun 24, 2026 11:00AM EDT
  2026-06-24 11:00:00 2026-06-24 11:00:00 America/New_York Michael Lehr Michael Lehr : June 2026 Vernacular Photo History Auction https://auction.michaellehrantiques.com/auctions/michael-lehr-antiques/june-2026-vernacular-photo-history-auction-23574
Our June 2026 auction presents a focused and exceptional selection of historical photographs spanning the 1840s through the early twentieth century, with unusual depth in named subjects, rare formats, and documented provenance anchored by strong vernacular material that rewards close looking.
Michael Lehr Antiques info@michaellehrantiques.com
Lot 528

Real Photo Postcard, Woman With Enlarged Feet, Sideshow

Estimate: $25 - $50
Current Bid
$10

Bid Increments

Price Bid Increment
$0 $5
$100 $10
$200 $25
$500 $50
$1,000 $100
$2,000 $250
$5,000 $5,000
$10,000 $1,000
$20,000 $2,000
$50,000 $5,000
A young unidentified woman stands at center in this real photo postcard, her massively enlarged bare feet dominating the lower foreground in what is almost certainly a trick photographic composite produced for the sideshow and novelty postcard trade. She wears an embroidered folk-style garment with a heavily decorated bodice, long sleeves with cuffed wrists, and a hemline trimmed with a patterned border, along with a dark headband or cap tied at the back. The setting is a domestic interior papered with a dense floral-patterned wallpaper, and she stands directly facing the camera with a neutral expression and hands loosely at her sides.

The feet, clearly manipulated through props, darkroom technique or photomontage, rest on a gathered circular cushion or pad and are outsized to a grotesque degree, each toe distinctly rendered and the skin texture convincingly matched to the figure above. The construction of the composite is skillful for the period, with the join at the ankles concealed by gathered fabric bunched above each foot.

Novelty sideshow postcards employing trick photography enjoyed wide commercial circulation in Europe and the United States from the late nineteenth century through the 1930s, produced as curiosities for carnival audiences and mail-order consumers alike.

The reverse bears a pencil inscription reading "Nelly go aug. Sept. 1928," a printed catalog number 5839, and a handwritten notation reading "AFGHZ 98."

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