Daguerreotype By Charles Boucher - Portrait Of A Man Of Quality, XIXᵉ Century

A very fine antique daguerreotype in its original blackened wood and stucco frame, with imitation tortoiseshell view surround.
The plate depicts a gentleman of quality dressed in a dark frock coat, shirt with an empesé collar and lavaliere, a pocket watch with a gilt chain that has been finely enhanced by hand on the plate. The pose, dress and accessories carefully underline the respectability of the subject.
On the back of the frame is a handwritten inscription in black ink:
‘À l'époque où le portrait a été fait j'avais 30 ans’,
followed by a legible signature: ‘Ch. Guignon’, probably Charles Guignon, who would therefore be the protagonist.
Identified photographer: Charles Boucher, active in Fontenay-les-Louvres, as indicated by the label visible in the frame. The man in the photograph was probably one of the very first generation of Daguerrian operators.

^{About the daguerreotype: The founding process of photography, nicknamed ‘the mirror that remembers’, the daguerreotype was invented by Louis Jacques Mandé Daguerre after years of research with Nicéphore Niépce. Officially presented to the Institut de France in 1839, it marked the beginning of the public history of photography. It is a process without a negative: each image is unique and irreversible. The plate, generally made of silver-coated copper, is made photosensitive with iodine, exposed to light and then revealed with mercury vapour. This process produces extraordinary, almost microscopic images. Used mainly between 1840 and 1860, the daguerreotype quickly became popular for portraits, particularly in bourgeois circles. Its high cost made it a prestigious object.}

Condition: Very good overall condition for this type of object. The subject is clean and fresh.
Some bluish oxidation is visible, particularly around the top and right sides: this is a classic phenomenon on early daguerreotypes, caused by prolonged exposure to air or humidity when the mount was not perfectly sealed.
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Signatures:
- Subject: Charles Guignon.
- Photographer : Charles Boucher.
- Label: visible on the back, indicating the photographer's name.
- Handwritten inscription: ‘At the time the portrait was taken I was 30 years old’.

Period: circa 1845 - 19th century.

Frame dimensions: Width 22 cm - Height 25 cm.
Dimensions of the view : Width 12.5 cm - Height 16.2 cm.
Plate dimensions : Width 14.5 cm - Height 18 cm.

For information: the price indicated is without shipping.
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