Sixth-plate daguerreotype plate under an oval gilt brass mat with delicate stippled inner border and foliate-embossed preserver, housed in a hinged miniature pressed-leather case with an untouched salmon-silk facing pad and brass closure hook. Ca. 1850 - 1855. Plate measures approx. 2 3/4 x 3 1/4 in.; case measures approx. 3 1/4 x 3 3/4 in.

Unusually composed antebellum family portrait highlighting a father's role during the early daguerreian era. While the majority of early studio photographs featuring young children relied on a "hidden mother" concealed beneath heavy drapery to hold an infant still, this plate captures an affectionate, deliberate partnership between father and son. The young toddler sits upright facing forward with a wide-eyed, calm expression, dressed in a square-neck, short-sleeved tunic over light-colored shorts. Supporting him from the right is his father, rendered in sharp, dramatic partial profile. The father is dressed in a tailored dark frock coat, high standing white shirt collar, and black silk neck cravat, his arm gently steadying the boy's waist to ensure stillness during the prolonged studio exposure.

The compositional balance lends the portrait a powerful, tender dynamic that elevates it above conventional Victorian studio arrangements.

[Daguerreotype, Sixth Plate, Father and Son, Paternal Portrait, Hidden Father, Antebellum Childhood, Victorian Children, Boy in Tunic, Profile Portrait, Family Heirloom, Cased Image, 1850s Photography]

Very good condition. The plate displays strong clarity and tone, with honest perimeter halo tarnish along the inner mat bevel and minor scattered wipes.