Untitled (Portrait of a Man)
1848
Medium
Daguerreotype
Dimensions
8.2 × 7 cm (3 1/4 × 2 13/16 in.); Open case: 9.1 × 16 × 0.9 cm (3 5/8 × 6 5/16 × 3/8 in.); Case: 9.1 × 8 × 1.6 cm (3 5/8 × 3 3/16 × 11/16 in.); Plate: 8.3 × 7 cm (3 1/4 × 2 3/4 in.)
Classification
portrait
Department
Photography and Media
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
249906
Art Historical Context
Step into the dawn of photography with *Untitled (Portrait of a)*, a captivating daguerreotype from 1848 created by unknown maker. This intimate portrait, measuring just 8.2 × 7 cm, captures solemn gentleman gazing directly at the viewer, his features rendered with astonishing clarity on a polished silvered copper plate. Housed in a protective case—typical for these fragile treasures—it exemplifies the early portability and personal nature of 19th-century photography. ed by Louis Daguerre in 1839 and publicly unveiled soon after, the daguerreotype was the world's first practical photographic ...