Sixth Plate

WOODWIND INSTRUMENT? If only the studious chap had held that object slightly differently we might have been able to identify what it was with certainty. His maker, who worked at an advanced level of proficiency circa 1845, permitted his youthful client to assume a rather daring pose. Three books were placed on that table to support the lad?s elbow thus making the height perfect to rest his dimpled chin on his curled fingers. Could the daguerreian have been using a prism on the front of his lens or did he ask the teenager to shift that wedding band from one finger to the other? There was immense power in the composition that gave the individual strength and composure. Unfortunately time has not been overly kind to the excellent resealed sixth plate that is kept in a complete leather case that had a common horizontal lyre motif on the cover and a plain reverse. Wipes, harsh buff strokes, mold spiders and spotty tarnish cover the surface. The silver still maintains fine depth. I must mention the magical illumination that helped define the unidentified fellow with such perfection.