Lovely pair of sixth plate daguerreotypes of a family. On the left side is a doting father with his two young sons. He gently holds the hand of the littlest one, who is standing next to him on a small stool. He places his arm around the older boy, drawing him nearer. The boy rests his head next to father’s shoulder and places a hand on his father’s leg for support. They are dressed in formal outfits and there is not a hair out of place - quite an accomplishment for boys! The youngest son wears frilly attire that perfectly accompanies his unusual hairstyle, which features a large curl in the center of his part.

On the right we have an artistic portrait of the mother and oldest son. Posed in semi-profile, her gaze is filled with adoration for her first born. She places one hand on his shoulder while tenderly holding his hand with the other. The boy almost manages a smile and seems quite natural in front of the camera. She wears a very stylish dress with a delicate black lace scarf and a beautiful cameo pin at her neckline.

Both plates are in very good condition with nice tonal qualities and contrast. There is a small amount of perimeter tarnish and some light hand tinting to the faces. There is one small mat mark on the right perimeter of the father’s portrait. Both plates had a very brief electrolytic cleaning to lessen the effect of the small brown spots that are visible. Each had old seals fully intact and have now been resealed with new glass. The images are contained in a full leather case.

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