Sixth Plate

HER SUNNY DISPOSITION! Okay, maybe she wasn’t beaming overboard with joy while she was seated in front of a camera when she was taken on a well-polished and newly sealed sixth plate, but I was extrapolating from her clothing and that marvelous warm weather hat so well displayed that it was summer and . . . well you folks who have suffered through hundreds of my captions will understand. I think this gal’s portrait shows us the best look at the top of a woven reed or straw sunbonnet that I have ever owned in a dag. The daguerreian bathed his beautiful subject (if only she had smiled) with a broad sunbeam that entered his room from overhead. There are so many wonderful patterns and reflections. Small scrapes are visible inside the double elliptical brass mat along with oxidation. The hazy white object seen upper right was part of a reflector. Those faint white circles, the largest near the sitter?s face, are harmless. A leather push button case has a detached hinge. This is really a delightful dag!