WRITTEN IN GOLD!

Obviously the gent was 66 years old. However, if you notice, the “66” was reversed on the white card! Being an enterprising daguerreotypist looking to really please his client, he used golden paint to right the wrong! There are some faint wipes on a diagonal to the left of the resealed sixth plate gent and others coming upwards from the bottom but they don’t encroach upon him. Of course, at the best viewing angles they disappear. Those white spots on the left look like a deposit from the bad original glass. Mat scrapes and hazy blue patina are also visible, plus a couple other mold spiders. However, those black tendrils on the left were part of the image. Even with the mat off I couldn’t determine what they were. AND, notice that a tripod with a crank handle supported the age sign. This really is a weird and yet compelling dag kept in a leather case in two parts. I must mention the subject’s huge hands with interlaced fingers held quietly on his thighs. Two thumbs up in anticipation of this excellent rendering.