J. Cosmas Vintage Photography, CDV's, Cartes de Visite

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CARTES DE VISITE / PAGE SEVEN

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CDV151-7	Terrific CDV of a drawing of George Washington as a Mason. In one hand he holds an unfurled scroll containing a quote by him, and in the other he holds a spade. He's also wearing the white silk apron known as the "Lafayette Apron", with the symbols of the "all seeing eye", the square and the compass. Backmark of "Kellogg Brothers, Hartford, CT". There are two, very small patches of abrasion to the sash on the verso, and a series of numbers stamped on the recto. Else in fine, clean condition. $50.00
CDV152-7	Studio CDV portrait of the beautiful, raven-haired American actress Madeline Henriques (1841-1929), showing a scandalous amount of bare shoulder! There are a number of CDV images of Miss Henriques from this era, including others from this very studio, but none showing her in such a state of "déshabillé". Most likely she was posing "in character". Note her beautiful, glossy hair. Backmark of "Fredricks & Co., NY". Some uneven trimming to edge of image with very light soiling to mount. Else in fine condition with great contrast. $60.00
CDV153-7	Brady studio CDV of the east front of the US Capitol building. Under magnification you can see that those dark spots are people sitting on the sea of white steps. Backmark of "Brady & Co., 352 Pennsylvania Ave., Washington, DC". Tiny piece of top left corner missing, with a slight crease to upper right mount. Else very nice and clean. $95.00
CDV328-7	Interesting pair of vignetted portraits of a middle-aged man and woman. These are not "life images", but are photographs of existing pencil (?) portraits of the couple and applied to cdv mounts. Though there are no backmarks, they are presumably British. In absolutely fine and as-new condition. $20.00.
CDV155-7	Studio CDV portrait of Union General Ambrose Burnside (1824-1881). Backmark of "E. Anthony, NY, from a Brady negative". Light soiling to recto with wear to mount edges. Additional light soiling to verso. Else, very good. $50.00
CDV156-7	I love this later (circa 1890) CDV of a baby positively smothered in clothes and a bonnet, propped up on a wicker chair. Although it looks like that's a sidewalk, I think it's probably the rear of a brick townhouse, with a bulkhead just to the right. The wall behind is covered with vines which are beginning to bloom. No backmark. In near fine, clean condition. $15.00
CDV 157-7	Particularly fine, full length studio CDV portrait of a very elegantly dressed Charlotte Cushman (1816-1876), American actress. Admired as one of the greatest actresses of her time, she spent her life openly involved in relationships with other women. Backmark of "Silsbee, Case & Co., Boston". Touch of scattered soiling to top edge of image and mount recto. Else clean and bright with superb contrast. $65.00
CDV270-7	Terrific CDV of a Civil War era building. This fine brick and mansarded structure could have served any number of functions such as college, hospital, etc. I love the way that it sits so isolated in a field without a tree in sight. No backmark. In good, unmarked condition. $25.00
CDV338-7	Studio portrait CDV of a very handsome, blue-eyed young man with a classic profile. Written on the verso in ink in a period hand is "Geo. W. Dunn (?) / 1873". Perhaps he was a British or American traveler stopping at one of the premier spa cities of Europe. Studio and backmark of "Mondel & Jacob, Wiesbaden". In as-new condition. $18.00 SOLD
CDV 161-7	Tinted studio CDV of two young women, one holding a straw basket and the other an umbrella, wearing the traditional folk costume of the "Weserbergland", Germany. The coloring on this example, and the others that follow from the same studio, is so fine that they transcend the mere "tinted CDV" description and become miniature works of folk art. Studio mark of "F. W. Kuhlmann, Bückeburg (Germany)". Touch of soiling to mount recto, else fine. $50.00
CDV162-7	Tinted studio CDV of a young woman, posing in a chair with an open book, wearing the traditional folk costume of the "Weserbergland", Germany. No markings, but from the studio of "F. W. Kuhlmann, Bückeburg (Germany). In fine condition. $50.00
CDV163-7	Tinted studio CDV of a young woman, posing in front of a spinning wheel, wearing the traditional folk costume of the "Weserbergland", Germany. No markings, but from the studio of "F. W. Kuhlmann, Bückeburg (Germany)". In fine condition. $50.00
CDV164-7	Tinted studio CDV of a young woman, standing with an open umbrella, wearing the traditional folk costume of the "Weserbergland", Germany. No markings, but from the studio of "F. W. Kuhlmann, Bückeburg (Germany)". In fine condition. $50.00
CDV165-7	Tinted studio CDV of a "milkmaid", posing with one leg up on a chair as she adjusts her stocking, and with a milk can at her feet. She wears the traditional folk costume of the "Weserbergland", Germany. No markings, but from the studio of "F. W. Kuhlmann, Bückeburg (Germany)". Touch of soiling to mount recto, else fine. $50.00
CDV 166-7	Tinted studio CDV of a young woman, posing with a rake, wearing the traditional folk costume of the "Weserbergland", Germany. No markings, but from the studio of "F. W. Kuhlmann, Bückeburg (Germany)". In fine condition. $50.00
CDV167-7	Tinted studio CDV of a young woman, posing in front of a spinning wheel, wearing the traditional folk costume of the "Weserbergland", Germany. No markings, but from the studio of "F. W. Kuhlmann, Bückeburg (Germany)". In fine condition. $50.00
CDV168-7	Tinted studio CDV of a wedding couple wearing the traditional folk costume of the "Weserbergland", Germany. The coloring on this example is amazingly fine and intricate. No markings, but from the studio of "F. W. Kuhlmann, Bückeburg (Germany)". Light soiling to recto. $65.00
CDV169-7	Studio CDV of a real charmer! Doesn't she look relaxed, draped in the chair like that, and looking directly into the camera with her big brown eyes. Backmark of "S. Piper, Manchester, NH". In as-new condtion, with a particularly decorative backmark. $15.00
CDV271-7	Uncommon CDV portrait of a bearded man sitting outside on a chair in front of a backdrop. Very likely taken by an itinerant photographer who has set up "shop" outside with the barest of neccessities. No backmark. Touch of soiling to mount. Else in fine, clean condition. $20.00
CDV339-7	Pair of studio CDV portraits of the same young woman (in one she's holding a fan and in the other she's reading) from seperate photographic establishments. Backmark of first image is '"W. L. Parry, Hungerford (Berkshire)" with studio and backmark of second image being "J. Hawke, Plymouth". Both CDV's in fine, clean condition. $18.00.
CDV221-7	Studio CDV of a mother posing with her four children. Though she looks a little care-worn, there's a real feeling of familial love in this image, with everyone smiling, relaxed and in physical contact with each other. Backmark of "G. Drabble, Portland (England)". In fine, clean condition. $22.00
CDV223-7	Terrific studio CDV portrait of a man posing in full Masonic regalia. Studio mark of "Vandyke & Brown, Liverpool". In fine, as-new condition. $30.00
CDV174-7	CDV of a mother and her two children posing in a photographer's studio. I believe that this is a photo of an existing daguerreotype, with it's almost black and white tones and shadows, and the edge of the plate noticeable at the top left. Backmark of "H. J. Rodgers, New Haven Conn". In fine, clean condition. $15.00
CDV175-7	Full length studio portrait CDV of Lord Elcho (Francis Charteris, 10th Earl of Wemyss, 1818-1914), wearing the uniform of the London Scottish Regiment, of which he was commander. Backmark of "The London Stereoscopic and Photographic Co.", but photo credited on mount recto to Lake Price. William Lake Price (1810-1896) was a true proponent and practitioner of the "photographer as artist" movement in Victorian England. There are any number of standard CDV images of Lord Elcho, but here the subject is relaxed and pensive, his sword cradled in his arm, and his gaze directed away from the viewer as he stands amidst scattered rocks and vegetation, in front of a dramatic painted backdrop of mountain crags and a turbulent, cloud-filled sky. It took someone such as Lake Price to take the standard CDV image and make it into something so special. Some light wear to mount with a few scattered marks to image (which I believe are in the negative). Very scarce. $95.00 SOLD
CDV176-7	Charming studio CDV of a boy standing between a twig chair and gate. What a great outfit he's wearing! And note his hat with the button on the top and ribbon, resting on the chair. Studio mark of "Prescott & Gage, Hartford, Conn". With a hand cancelled orange two-cent "bankcheck" tax stamp affixed to verso. Fine condition. $18.00
CDV177-7	CDV of an etched portrait of Franklin Pierce (1804-1869, President 1853-1857). Portrait based on a Brady daguerreotype. Labeled on recto, no backmark. A few scattered "holes" in emulsion, else in fine, clean condition. $25.00 SOLD
CDV178-7	Very endearing CDV of two indentified dark-eyed sisters posing in a photographer's studio. The younger one in the chair is clutching a cat in her arms. Written in ink on verso in a period hand is; "Lela and Minnie Diehl / 8 years-5 years". No backmark. Near fine condition. $23.00
CDV233-7	Full length studio CDV of a young woman culled from an English album. I love the various studio props. The painted backdrop hanging to the right, the glossy chair, the curtain, and the column on which sits a china basket of flowers and a pair of binoculars. No backmark. In fine, clean condition with excellent tones. $20.00
CDV180-7	View of a portion of Trafalgar Square and the church of St. Martin-In-The-Fields, London. What I particularly like about this CDV is how animated a scene the photographer caught while duly taking his picture of the church. There's the great play of the fountains, the long line of carriages and especially the people, with the two men in their stovepipe hats, the young persons standing around, or sitting on the fountain's edge, and also the tiny figure of a London Bobbie, standing at the base of the equestrian statue. Most of them are looking directly at the photographer. Backmark of "Fred Jones, Oxford Street, London". In fine, clean condition. $20.00
CDV181-7	CDV of Westminster Abbey, London. Backmark of "Fred Jones, Oxford Street, London". In fine condition. $15.00
CDV182-7	CDV of the College Chapel, Cheltenham. Built in 1858 it is still standing, but was replaced as the College Chapel by another structure, erected in 1896. Backmark of "F. Bedford, Photographer to H. R. H. The Prince Of Wales". Though not his first Royal Commission, Francis Bedford (1816-1894) was appointed as the photographer on the tour of the Middle East by Edward, Prince of Wales in 1862, and it was after this that he was given the "Photographer To" privilege. In absolutley fine condition. $22.00
CDV183-7	Beautiful CDV of the ruins of Tintern Abbey, Wales. Backmark of "J. & J. Dutton, Bath". The ivy that once covered the walls, and condsidered so romantic by the early tourists who "re-discovered" the Abbey in the 19th century, has long since been removed. Very light foxing to mount, both recto and verso. Else, fine. $15.00
CDV184-7	Superb horizontal CDV of Balmoral Castle, Scotland. I love the fellow sitting there, on an elaborate iron bench within that large expanse of lawn, enjoying the "view". Titled on mount recto; "Balmoral Castle, from the South". No backmark. In fine condition. $24.00
CDV329-7	I don't know whether I've ever seen tinting so expertly applied as in this vignetted studio portrait CDV of a woman. Every bit of the image has been tinted; hair, skin, bow, buttons, with the utmost refinement. It's more an exquisitely delicate watercolor than it is a photograph, and is the work of a true master "colorist". Backmark of "Gorham & Co., Providence". Touch of soiling to surface. Else, fine and unmarked. $25.00
CDV222-7	Full length studio CDV portrait of a tall, unlovely woman wearing a bonnet and a long cape, and posing in front of a particularly fine painted backdrop. Backmark of "W. James, Newcastle on Tyne (England)". In absolutely fine, as-new condition. $20.00