An original albumen carte-de-visite photograph depicting the highly detailed combat guidon or presentation standard of Battery L, 1st U.S. Regular Artillery. The flag features a centralized laurel wreath enclosing the designation 1st U.S. and a massive array of meticulously painted battle honors running down both the left and right fields. The reverse boasts a spectacular, crisp gold-tinted graphic backmark for Alex. Gardner, Photographer to the Army of the Potomac, Galleries 511 Seventh Street and 332 Pennsylvania Av., Published by Philp & Solomons, Washington, D.C. A clear, period pencil notation at the top edge reads: "Btry L 1st US."

This photograph captures the extraordinary visual record of Battery L, 1st United States Regular Artillery, showcasing a flag that serves as a literal timeline of the unit's extensive operations. Unlike volunteer regiments whose actions were often confined to a single theater, Regular Army artillery batteries frequently saw continuous, highly varied deployments across multiple fronts. To that end, the banner proudly displays a sprawling timeline of Regular Army service across multiple theaters, featuring meticulously painted battle honors that include early coastal bombardments at Santa Rosa Island and Fort Pickens, grueling Louisiana and Trans-Mississippi clashes at Irish Bend, Port Hudson, Sabine Cross Roads, and Pleasant Hill, and final Eastern Theater campaigns through the Shenandoah Valley and the trenches of Petersburg and Richmond.

Battery L's performance during the ill-fated 1864 Red River Campaign under General Nathaniel P. Banks was particularly notable; during the chaotic Union retreat at Sabine Cross-Roads (Mansfield), the artillerymen fought tenaciously to save their pieces under a blistering Confederate assault. Following the conclusion of operations in Louisiana, elements of the battery were transferred east to participate in the hard-fought campaigns of the Shenandoah Valley and the trenches of Petersburg. This card was produced shortly after the war's conclusion at Alexander Gardner's premier Washington studio to document the Regular Army's storied combat lineage.

Wartime and immediate post-war photography of Regular Army artillery flags is exceptionally scarce, and this specimen represents a premier tier of historic value.

[Photography, Early Photography, Historic Photography, Daguerreotypes, Ambrotypes, Tintypes, Cased Images, Union Cases, Albumen Photographs, CDVs, Carte de Visites, Cartes de Visite, Carte-de-visite, Cartes-de-visite, CDV, Cabinet Cards, Stereoviews, Stereocards, Stereographs] [Civil War, Union, Confederate]

Excellent. The albumen print exhibits rich, deep contrast and superb definition, allowing nearly every individual battle honor and the centralized unit wreath to be read clearly under close inspection. The mount is crisp and structurally sound with sharp corners.