Lot 322
A Whole Plate Ambrotype Full Length Portrait of Three Creole Dandies, 1860s, probably New York, housed in the well-known "Landing of Columbus" thermoplastic Union case, image size 8 1/2 in. x 6 1/2 in., case size 9 5-16 in. x 7 1/2 in., case signed front and back "F.B. Smith & Harmann, N.Y." E4000-6000 Note: The size and fine toning of this impressive group portrait suggest that a momentous occasion was being recorded. The serious gazes of these well-dressed men are emphasized with light tinting of faces and hands, and their similar poses, right feet forward, assert confidence and dash. There is a marked family resemblance between the center figure and the man to his left, evident in the set of the eyes and the hairlines. The Union case based on the John Vanderlyn (1775-1852) painting "Columbus Landing at the Island of Guanahani, October 12, 1492" in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda is an acknowledged tour-de-force of die engraving and dates to c. 1858. Reference: Floyd & Marion Rinhart, American Miniature Case Art, 1969, pp. 55, 184, pl. 1.
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