Quarter plate studio portrait daguerreotype. N.p., ca. 1850s. Separated full leather case. Features hand-tinted details. 

This studio composition captures three young women, likely sisters, posed in a tiered arrangement with the youngest standing between and behind the two seated older women. All three display distinctive center-parted hairstyles and Victorian jewelry, highlighted with delicate hand-applied gold and red tinting.

The seated young woman at left is attired in a tailored silk dress with tiered shoulder trim, wide white lace-edged cuffs, a pointed lace collar with hand-gilded brooch, and a long slender neck cord. The seated young woman at right wears a matching style silk gown with an ornate patterned bow at the bodice, lace collar, delicate gilded drop necklace, and holds a small cased image in her lap. The younger sister at center wears a patterned off-the-shoulder frock accented with a vibrant red hand-painted coral-style necklace.

Multi-sitter daguerreotype portraits require exceptional skill in lighting and depth of field, and group studies of young women showcasing such finely coordinated period parlor fashion and hand-tinted jewelry remain perennial favorites among 19th-century cased image collectors.

[Daguerreotype, Quarter Plate, Early Photography, 19th Century Photography, Cased Images, Sisters, Victorian Fashion, Hand Tinted, Gilt Accents, 1850s Photography, Women in Photography, Multi Figure Portrait]

Very good condition. The plate retains sharp focal definition, with light surface dusting under the glass.