Item No. 3189662

A man and woman—likely a married couple—pose together jointly holding a CDV photo album in this 1860s image by Williamsport, Pennsylvania, photographer T. J. Trapp. When the carte de visite format of photography became available in America in the 1850s it was enthusiastically embraced by the American public. The inexpensive and reproducible CDVs were traded between friends and families. As the popularity of the CDV grew, so too did the need for methods for keeping and displaying one’s collection of cartes—such as the album held by the couple in this image. Both finely dressed, the couple displays the album quite purposefully. It may have been that they were enthusiastic CDV traders, or maybe they were symbolically displaying the importance they placed on the family members pictured within the album.

Artist Trapp’s faint imprint can be seen on the verso. The carte measures 2 1/2” x 4” and is in very good condition with light foxing and toning.