Sixth Plate

OUT OF THE WOODS! The woman’s daguerreotypist handed his client a mother of pearl case to hold while she was seated in front of a painted background whose out-of-focus swirls pushed the subject outward and almost into our space. She rested one arm on a book that had been placed upon a coverlet over a small wooden table. The maker’s patron must have been a demanding person. She had survived this long in life and surely wanted his best effort. I keep looking at her wedding band cutting into the flesh of her ring finger. The tonality of the retaped sixth plate is astounding! I love the folds and patterns in the lady’s ribbons that were secured with a decorative pin. There is one teeny green speck in the accumulation of white specks near the mat on the upper right side. They are all invisible as the portrait is admired in the bottom of a composite case that is missing a cover. Colorful patina serpentines completely around the periphery and mostly masks small mat marks top center.