INDIA: 2 EXTRAORDINARY CARTE DE VISITE (CDV) ALBUMS
NEW Price $3200. USD
PLEASE NOTE. We have not taken the photographs out of their slots, as we want to keep these albums intact. Therefore, we are not able to examine all the backs for writing or photographer backmarks. In the cases where information is already visible, we have provided it below.
PLEASE READ EVERYTHING BELOW AND SCRUTINIZE ALL SCANS BEFORE PURCHASING. THANK YOU.
ALBUM 1. On the front cover: "MARY." There are a total of 35 CDVs in this album. There are 24 double sided pages, which can hold 48 CDVs (one per side). 13 slots are empty.
SOME FEATURES. 11 CDVs of Indian girls and women in sarees, 10 CDVs of Indian men in turbans, 1 CDV of an Indian baby, 1 CDV of an Indian girl with a white doll, 1 CDV of 3 Indian holy men, 1 CDV of an Indian family, and 1 CDV of 5 impoverished Indians. There are also 5 CDVs of Caucasian men, 1 CDV of a woman with a basket, and 1 CDV of a Caucasian teenage girl.
VISIBLE BACKMARKS AND WRITING. Backmark on the CDV of the Indian girl holding a white doll: "M. THOTHARAM PHOTOGRAPHER ELECTROPLATER & GILDER Mount Road MADRAS." Writing on the back of a CDV of a white man: "Rev Stevenson." Backmark on a CDV of a white man: APPLETON & CO. PHOTOGRAPHERS & ARTISTS HORTON LANE AND MANNINGHAM LANE BRADFORD." Backmark on the CDV of the woman with a basket: "MASELAWMONEY BROTHERS PHOTOGRAPHERS, MADRAS." Writing on the back of the same CDV: "Mrs. Bauboo." Backmark on the back of a CDV of a white man: "R. MOLKENTELLER & CO. PHOTOGRAPHIC ARTISTS INDIA." Writing on the same CDV: "Rev Campbell Secunderabad Deccan."
SIZE. CDVs are approximately 4 x 2 1/2 inches. Some of these may be slightly smaller or larger. As mentioned above, we have not removed any CDVs from their slots, so cannot give exact measurements. The entire album is approximately 6 1/8 x 4 7/8 x 2 3/8 inches.
CONDITION. This album has a damaged spine, and so not all of the pages are attached. The first 3 pages are attached to the front cover and the last 5 pages are attached to the back cover. The remaining pages are in 4 loose groups: 1 page alone, 4 pages together, 8 pages together, and 3 pages together. The outside of the album has wear. The pages have varying degrees of soiling. The photos are as seen in the scans. We have shown all 35 CDVs, so please scrutinize before purchasing.
ALBUM 2. On the front cover: "U. H. L." There are a total of 183 photos: 178 CDVs and 5 tintypes. There are 25 double sided pages, which can hold 200 CDVs (4 per side). 17 slots are empty.
SOME FEATURES. This album is primarily portraits of Caucasian men, women, and children. There are 3 CDVs of Indian women in sarees, and 3 CDVs of Indian men in turbans. There are 11 CDVs of illustrations/other artwork. There are 10 CDVs of places in England.
VISIBLE BACKMARKS AND WRITING. Writing at the top of a CDV of a Caucasian baby: "died 17/7/82." Backmark on a CDV of an Indian man with a turban: "M. THOTHARAM PHOTOGRAPHER ELECTROPLATER & GILDER Mount Road MADRAS." Backmark on a CDV of a Caucasian woman: "Photographed by J. COSS, Main Street, Over the Mad RIver National Bank, SPRINGFIELD, OHIO." Handwritten on the CDVs of various places in England: "... City Road Chapel London," "Coronation... near Westminster...," "Albert Memorial...," "Great Towers of Westminster Abbey," "Lords' entrance to House of Parliament," "No tree here clock tower Parliament House London." Handwritten on the backs of 2 of the CDVs of places in England: "St Paul's Cathedral" and "Queens throne in House of Lords."
SIZE. CDVs are approximately 4 x 2 1/2 inches. Some of these, and the tintypes, may be slightly smaller or larger. As mentioned above, we have not removed any photos from their slots, so cannot give exact measurements. The entire album is approximately 9 1/4 x 7 1/4 x 2 1/2 inches.
CONDITION. The first page for photos is torn, coming apart in layers, and separated from the spine. The rest of the pages are attached together, though the spine is weak. The outside of the album has wear. The pages have varying degrees of soiling. The photos are as seen in the scans. We have shown all 183 CDVs and tintypes, so please scrutinize before purchasing.
LOOSE PHOTOGRAPHS. There are 23 loose images: 18 CDVs, 2 cabinet cards, 1 tintype, and 2 small paper images of artwork. 1 feature of this group is a CDV of an Indian man holding an interesting cap. It has handwriting on the back: "Rev. Bauboo." (Mrs. Bauboo is in Album 1.) It also has a backmark: "Photographed BY MASALEMONEY BROS MADRAS." Another feature in this group is a CDV of an Indian couple, with the man in a turban and the woman in a saree. (Both of their individual portraits are in Album 1, next to each other.)
