What year is this photo?

P

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Unfortunately, I don't actually own this photo.

It's in a book I an preparing to sell...a 400+ page Sotheby's year book from the early 70s. It is so wonderful with Sali, Warhol, Rembrandts, jewelry, and so much more in it.

This photo is in it having sold for gobs of money and I was a little perplexed about guessing the date. (there was no date in the description). The photo to me looks like it could be American, and i get a real frontier feeling to it as if it was from a large city, we hair would probably be really done up. The photos tended to be from 1865-1880s. It was from a small album of photos that one sister took to gift to her sister.

<img src="http://image.inkfrog.com/pix/kitschnsink/sothebysphoto.jpg" width=288 height=413>

What do you all think?

Chris
 
Well, I could cheat and look in the book I have of Julia Margaret Cameron's work...... :)

But, I'm going to guess that it is around the turn of the century.

:)
 
Did you get this at that recent auction? I love old photos. I have no idea but I will go with Sue's guess.
 
This is freaky that chick looks like me. I just showed my husband and my son. They it is very very freaky. I only difference is that I have blond hair, but otherwise looks like me.

-Chris
 
I'm thinking 1860s. The center-part in her hair, the full sleeves, the collar....they just look mid-Victorian to me.

Laura
 
I'd say that it was early to mid 1860's (1862- 1865) due to the full Bishop sleeves and the center part as well. Her loose, unfitted dress is unusual and due to her long hair been worn loose, she may have been an early supporter of Rational dress? Although I can see the line of the corset at her bust so she may have not been THAT "rational" :)
It may have been been an artistic pose on the part of the photographer though. I have 1860's photos just showing back views of the person being photographed so they were into experimental photographs in the 1860's when it came to poses and dress.

Lei
 
well, the photographer was British, but I'm not sure if she travelled. Here's an exhibition that was on here recently - was very popular:

<a href="http://www.npg.org.uk/live/cameron.asp">http://www.npg.org.uk/live/cameron.asp</a>

this photo will have gone for a lot because it is so characteristic of her work, and because of the really close provenance (Julia's sister?)
 
it makes me think Pioneer days.....so whats that??? early cameras??? crikey!! give me a dress to date anytime...that looks to be 1850s by collar length could it be???
sara
 
The photo did go for quite a lot of money. The album went for $96,000 at Sotheby's in 1973 or 74. Who knows where it is now - maybe in a collection somewhere.

I didn't know they had a whole book of her work Sue, but I guess they would if she was important enough to note in the Sotheby's yearbook.

Linda...I have had this book for a long time and am just deaquisitioning. I have way too much stuff. Its an interesting book with everything from Tiffany, to Rembrandt...to...well Julia Cameron. There is one picture that I have to scan for Lin because I instantly thought of her....(now you will be all wondering what the heck it is of!)

As this photo is shown in the Sotheby's book, so I guess no real "need" for me to date as I am selling the whole book, but the photo intrigued me. It says that it is a portrait of Annie Cameron, so am guessing this is third sister, or maybe the daughter of the sister, Mia, who this album was dedicated to.

Lei, I was wondering if this was a fantasy dress. (it looked pioneer to me like it did Sara, because of the American frontier rejection of the corset in most day to day cases as well as the style) or whether if Annie was indeed very young so wouldn't have always worn the full corset to the degree that a more mature lady would be.

There are other photos of folks more "done up" in the book by other photographers that went for gobs of money even then that are a bit easier to date, but this one really intrigued me

Thanks for all of the detective work everybody.

Oh and Chris, yes, we need to see some photos in a head on pose like that. If your family all said it looks like you, than it must be really really a strong resemblance to Annie Cameron!

Chris
 
Another 1860's vote here.

Juliet Magaret Cameron was a very famous early British photographer. She was a rich society woman. A middle class woman wouldn't have been able to afford a camera/darkroom back then. As far as I know, she strictly took pictures of her friends and society ladies so I doubt it is a frontier outfit. She has a really interesting picture of Alice Liddel (Alice in Wonderland) all grown up, as Pomona.

Connie
 
I am lookging through photos. I am smilling or making faces in them. gotta reproduce the expression. Will get my boy to take picture.

The whole thing is that my Mother was adopted and we never found out who her parents were. My mother brother and me all look the same and I always wonder if there is family out there....

-Chris
 
OK my guesson the date... ( you can shoot me) Turn of the century and she is wearing a dressing gown?

I would shoot my sister if she took a picture of me looking like that unless it was very personal thing. I would not be hangin it on the mantel.

-Chris
 
p.s. I googled the Mia Album name, and it looks like it was exhibited at the Davis Museum at Wellesley in 1995, so maybe they bought it?

L
 
Hmmm... that is possible.

Could be they own it, one of their benefactors lent it to them or it changed hands sometime in between 1974 and the exhibit and they are another owner down the line.....This was
the only photo shown of hers in the book, though there were many others.

This was also in the book Lin. (photo below) Surprisingly it only sold in the $15,000 range (6,631 pounds in 1973 money so will have to get that inflation website out) but i thought of all of your persian influenced prints...
 
This weighty tome (all 4+ pounds of it!) has no been unleashed to the public at auction

HERE

It will be joined by additional interesting books later on today/this evening, etc., as well as other odds and ends.
 
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