Father and Child, Sixth Plate Dag

BIG HANDS! Dad held onto one of the happiest little kids I have ever seen taken on a resealed sixth plate daguerreotype. How was it possible for the child to have been that animated while father sat so stolidly wishing the lens to be capped so he too could burst out in laughter no doubt. Ancient patina nicely framed the pair inside that fancy stamped brass mat. The marks on the fellow?s hand and vest are not scratches. My scan doesn?t reveal the superlative contrast and tonality nor can one dimension reproduce the fantastic depth. The separated leather case is in two parts.