A matching pair of original albumen cartes-de-visite documenting Cpl. Oliver Barrett of Company K, 23rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry. The first image is a vignette bust portrait housed within an ornate printed oval frame with decorative draped tassels. Barrett is sharply attired in an enlisted frock coat displaying corporate sleeve stripes on his left arm and a small, delicate cross pin pinned to his shirt front. The lower front margin bears beautiful period ink identification reading: "Oliver Barrett / Co. K. 23d Regt." The second image is a spectacular, full-length portrait showing Barrett in civilian attire or modified camp dress, wearing a slouch hat and light-colored trousers, proudly holding the regiment's heavily frayed, tattered and battle-damaged combat colors aloft on its wooden staff. The reverses of both cards are blank.

This remarkable pair represents a direct continuation of the highly important visual archive for the celebrated 23rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry, the legendary Regiment of Presidents. Raised in mid-1861, the unit famously counted among its ranks two future United States presidents, Rutherford B. Hayes and William McKinley. Barrett of Company K served with the regiment through its brutal early campaigns in the Western Virginia mountains and the Eastern Theater, where the unit suffered severe battlefield attrition at South Mountain and Antietam.

The full-length portrait is a stunning vexillological study, showing Barrett personally holding the regiment's historic, shredded national standard. The tattered condition of the flag's stripes and fringe directly matches the earlier 23rd Ohio flag lots by Columbus regional studios, showcasing the intense physical toll of the 1862 and 1863 campaigns. In July 1864, the three-year enlistment of the original 23rd Ohio volunteers expired. The non-veterans were ordered back to Columbus to be officially mustered out of the service, while the remaining veterans consolidated into a reorganized battalion. These portraits capture Barrett during this poignant transit window, celebrating his survival alongside the sacred, battle-shattered colors he helped defend.

Rick Carlile had an incredible eye for the aesthetic, and this lot is a prime example; he likely loved this pair because they bridge the gap between stark material reality and high-contrast composition, capturing the raw physical toll of the war on both the young corporal and the fragile silk banner he grips so tightly. 

[Civil War, Union, Confederate] [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]

Very good. Both albumen prints retain impressive clarity, strong contrast and rich sepia tones, with only nominal, uniform age-toning and minor localized foxing consistent with their age. The mounts are structurally sound and unclipped.