Sixth Plate

COULD HAVE BEEN HIGHER! If her daguerreotypist had the ability to raise that table another six inches, I believe that his adolescent subject might have been more comfortable in front of his camera when she posed for this full-length portrait. Why did he hand her that book? And then instruct the curious child to remain perfectly motionless. Sometimes when I examine recently taped sixth plates and I reconstruct the components of likenesses, two plus two really doesn’t equal four from a practical standpoint. Asking a kid to stand in front of a camera, probably for the first time, supporting herself on one side on furniture placed too low and then adding the weight of a tome to hold; well in my lexicon of practicalities, the operator already had two strikes against his possible success. The child was resolute in her attempt and that is what attracted me when I saw her through horribly filthy glass. Her entire costume was on display, which is rather unusual. Red rouge colored her cheeks. The likeness has fine deep depth and nice contrast. There is a green speck above the tabletop. Nearly invisible vertical diagonal lines that you might notice in my scan are hard to find. Patina touches the mat and the remainder of the specks is less noticeable. The leather case is intact but missing pieces of leather on the rails.