Currently not on view

Arsenath,

ca. 1852

American photographer
x1982-67.3

This elaborate case contains individual portraits of members of the Norris family—a husband and wife and their two adult daughters. These photographs were created using the ambrotype process, which produced unique images on glass plates. Like the neighboring daguerreotype, a single ambrotype was commonly presented in an intimate case that could be slipped in a pocket, enabling people to carry images of their loved ones. This peculiar and finely crafted variant hinges together multiple images, emphasizing the bonds between the family members and serving as a marker of the family’s status.

Information

Title
Arsenath
Dates

ca. 1852

Maker
Medium
Ambrotype with applied color
Dimensions
image: 6 x 5 cm. (2 3/8 x 1 15/16 in.) mount: 8.1 x 7 cm. (3 3/16 x 2 3/4 in.) case: 9.7 × 16 × 2.3 cm (3 13/16 × 6 5/16 × 7/8 in.)
Credit Line
Robert O. Dougan Collection, gift of Warner Communications, Inc.
Object Number
x1982-67.3
Place Made

North America, United States

Culture
Materials
Techniques