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Up for sale is a captivating piece of 19th-century American history. This is an authentic 1850s Glass Plate Ambrotype depicting a formal family of five. Upon carefully opening the case tray, an incredible original child\'s pencil/graphite drawing was discovered fused to the interior backboard—likely used by the family as an original shim/backing when the photograph was first cased.
Condition Details:
• Ambrotype: Clear glass plate is in stable condition. Held to the light, it reveals a sharp under-exposed negative image.
• Case Note: Please note this listing includes the bottom tray half-case only; the top closing cover is missing. The remaining half-case is an original 1840s-1850s embossed leather/paper-covered wooden frame with a floral scroll relief motif and gold-leaf tooling. The red velvet border pad is faded due to age and shows significant historic wear.
• Hidden Art & Fabric: Includes the highly rare, intact piece of original 1850s black woven cotton backing fabric. The child\'s drawing remains permanently affixed to the bottom of the tray and shows age-related fracturing and minor paper loss near the center and cannot be safely removed and will be sold as-is within the tray.
