Today’s word: ambrotype
Today, a man brought in a whole box of wonderful family ambrotypes. This was a cheaper photographic process than the daguerreotype and was later superseded by the tintype.
That helped us date them neatly from some time in the early 1850s to the early 1860s. Not that he didn’t have his documentation together!
One was a very elderly man – possibly a posthumous portrait – meaning I reckon he was born around 1780. He had an old-fashioned cravat to prove it. Spooky.
(Not the example picture, though. That’s an ambrotype of Abe Lincoln. I think we can all agree Abe was a very freaky looking dude).
The man was donating all these family pictures and the meticulous research that went along with them. People do that a lot – give us their family histories. I think they feel they’ve done a duty by handing them over. We’ll get the names in our database and future historians will have access.
The best part? He knew who every one of those people were and he had documentation to go with them.
People, I am begging you – with my professional hat on – don’t leave all your pictures digital. Print your favorites and write on the back who they are.
RIP Angela Lansbury. G_d’s Middle Finger take the dick. Back here. Friday.
Dead Pool 159.
October 11, 2022 — 7:37 pm
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