#1 November 12th, 2010 01:17 AM

ashmedi

Member

1892 photo - My Garage Sale Find

This photo isn't as old as the one Bliss posted, but she has special meaning to me, this photo is 118 years old, give or take a few months, and the unknown beauty would have been born circa 1870 (just a guess) and would have been a fore runner to the pinup girls.

In the early 1980's my wife needed some cheap frames to create a rogues gallery of old family photos. We stopped at a garage sale, found 2 small empty frames and one 8x10 simple frame with a 1950's magazine pic in it. The seller was asking 10 cents each for the small frames and a quarter for the big one, I didn't bother haggling, just gave him 2 quarters and told him to keep the nickle.

That afternoon I took the pic out to clean the frame and glass and this is what I found inside. Behind the glass was a non-descript magazine pic, behind that was a heavy board with some writing on it and the name of a photographic business in New York, and behind that as the back layer was a piece of corrugated cardboard. Thank God the cardboard was there to fill out the frame and protect the contents inside. I took the cardboard off to see what and why this heavy board was there and found this beautiful girl.

This is a photo of the hanging photo and I apologize for the glare, she has been framed and I do not wish to open the sealed frame or damage the seals to get a better pic.

Clicking on the photo takes you directly to Webshots and a larger version ...

The photo was imaculate, not a mark or blemish on it. It is a signed and dated photo, Edouard Bisson - 1892, the back of the photo carried the name of a NY photographic studio and because of the sealed framing, it is hidden from view, I used to remember the name but it is long gone from memory

In the olden days photographers often touched up their photos while in the developing fluid, this photo shows tiny black marks created by some type of a wheeled rowel with tiny spikes and the negative would have been punched to create the black dots. Using a magnifying glass I could see the brush strokes where the photographer/artist had "air brushed" the photo to create the illusion of a painting and not that of a phograph with harsher lines and contrasts. The work was beautifully done.

I promptly took my 25 cent treasure to a proffessional framer and had my 8x10 beauty matted, framed, and sealed in a 14x18 simple frame and she has now graced my living room as if she was family for over 25 years. The total cost of this treasure jumped to $75.25 to have my 25 cent photo properly framed.

If you're interested, this is a link to Webshots where you can view a larger cropped version (1024x1277),  and a super-sized photo (3888x2592) of the photo showing much more detail and some of the matting and new frame, pic was also cropped. Webshots will open the photos in a reduced viewable size, but on the right hand side near the top is a link to view the image in its upload and full size.

http://home-and-garden.webshots.com/alb … 0676HqULKk

Last edited by ashmedi (November 12th, 2010 01:23 AM)

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Ashmedi is an ancient demon of rage and lust.
Rage is not my thing, but I must admit to committing my favorite of the 7 deadly sins for most of the contributors

blissed

Member

Re: 1892 photo - My Garage Sale Find

Ash that's a really nice photo.

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kar0O1O

Member

Re: 1892 photo - My Garage Sale Find

Oh là là! Beauty is timeless. Nice photo indeed. She  do deserved  $75.00 to be properly framed!

ashmedi

Member

Re: 1892 photo - My Garage Sale Find

Thanks Bliss and Kar

You're right Kar, beauty is timeless, her hair style is dated, but she would draw a second look for sure if you saw her on a street ... she makes a beautiful addition to the walls

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Ashmedi is an ancient demon of rage and lust.
Rage is not my thing, but I must admit to committing my favorite of the 7 deadly sins for most of the contributors

ngaio

Member

Re: 1892 photo - My Garage Sale Find

That's beautiful and what a great story!

ashmedi

Member

Re: 1892 photo - My Garage Sale Find

That's beautiful and what a great story!

Thanks ngaio Would have responded earlier but was away with no computer

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Ashmedi is an ancient demon of rage and lust.
Rage is not my thing, but I must admit to committing my favorite of the 7 deadly sins for most of the contributors