Sixth Plate

RATHER DARK. Standing there with one hand on that table, draped with a printed cloth, must have been a daunting task for the little Miss, when she had a sixth size plate taken that has been recently archivally taped. The overall exposure was flat but this example doesn’t seem to have been copied from an original. The girl did move her head. The larger question is what was the child standing on? At first I thought the object was a small tea table that was stenciled or painted on top. Would a daguerreotypist be so desperate to make the portrait in this fashion? Although his chemistry was perfect and many mold mites have migrated to the silver, there is still the allure of the teeny kid. Ancient patina hugs the inside edges of the very peculiar brass mat. A complete leather case completes this offering.