Sixth Plate

IN NEED OF A DAGUERREOTYPE! I bought this monumental and very primitive chap, done on a crudely buffed sixth plate recently, in need of new glass, an archival seal and a proper case. It was plain to see that the rudimentary skills of a traveling daguerreian were quite obvious. I wonder if he fancied himself as a carpenter too? That was the crudest example of a piece of furniture that I have ever seen used as a prop in a daguerreotype! Looking at the entire image on the naked plate leads me to say that this fellow wasn?t placed inside a daguerreian wagon. The finish work on that window sill, supporting a stack of books, was too well crafted. Not only was the serious subject totally in front of the depth of field, since the camera operator had focused his lens on the inside of the woodwork, the lad also bounced his head slightly when the dark slide was pulled. For those of you who have read my captions over the years, you know how much I love primordial dags. On this day, circa 1847, the portrait represented the best likeness the man behind the camera could produce on his heavy SCOVILLS plate. Since the bottom of the leather case was inappropriate for the piece, I found a fine leather case, with a professionally repaired spine. On the cover is a Maiden wrapping her arms around a cornucopia surrounded by fancy filigree. The reverse is an explosion of flowers, grapes and vines! Inside is pristine red silk pad! Since the dag was ?resealed poorly at least twice? before arriving here, many mat scrapes were visible, mostly because previous hands had been careless and the brass octagonal mat had been flipped. The bulk of the marks are in the thick patina across the bottom. There are some mold spiders too. Oh, the maker even added a splash of red pigment to embellish his client?s face. I should direct your attention to the portion of paper or an envelope that peeked above the lower fold of the fellow?s rumpled jacket. It probably had been thrust into an outside pocket before he assumed this casual pose. As always, I wonder if his hat had any significance concerning his occupation? His calf length boots suggest that he arrived at the location on horseback.