By the time John Plumbe Jr. or one of his operators made this image c1845 he had a string of twenty-five studios operating in the US from Portland, ME down to New Orleans. There were also studios in Paris and Liverpool. This image is almost surely American though, and probably from the Northeast. The over-matted sixth plate image is very well-made and is a lovely portrait of the young man, who holds a folded newspaper that says, “The United…” It’s difficult to know what comes after those words. The dag, while a standard sixth plate, has been glammed up a bit with a larger mat and case that measures 4.25 x 4.75. This is not a standard size, although I have seen Plumbes that have used it before.
I have resealed the dag, which is in near fine condition. There are a few little scratches, one of which you can see in the enlargement of the paper. The case is whole.
