Description & Notes: Early ‘Union’ ‘Grapes in Four Corners’ thermoplastic case with original female portrait daguerreotype of a young girl in dress, made and taken by Samuel Peck & Co., Connecticut, 1844-1857.
The front and reverse display an intricate stylized oval design set within a further border set with grapes and vines at the four corners. The front and back are fitted with an imbedded hinge and the cover interior cushioned with orange velvet embossed with a central geometric decoration, the back cover retaining the original S. Peck & Co Union Case endpapers.
The daguerreotype is of a young girl wearing fancy dress with a tight ringlet hairdo. It shows all but her feet, her hands carefully folded over her lap, her mouth slightly open and her dark eyes wide in a trance. She is stiff but we believe this due to a possible hidden brace rather as a result of being a post mortem photo.
Dimensions: 3” H x 2 ½” W
Markings: original papers, “GENUINE / UNION CASE, / IMPROVED. / Fine Gilt and Burnished / Hinge. / S. PECK & CO. / MANUFACTURERS”
Condition: Excellent Vintage Condition – no damage, no repair. There is some slight age to the dag as expected, the preserver does not appear to opened and retains its original seal. Hinge and clasp are in perfect working order.
Reference & Literature: Thermoplastic Case: pp.159 2-80 Grapes in Four Corners [C]; pp.42 Case Manufacturer= Peck “Samuel Peck & Co.”; Mat: pp.29 nonpariel (14-7) late 1840’s-mid-1850’s; the preserver pp.30 “introduced about 1843”; classification pp.8, “Common [C] seen frequently, many times a year, very easy to obtain”; pad, pp.10, “By 1850 the use of velvet had completely replaced the use of silk and the velvet was usually made more attractive by having it embossed with a geometric or floral theme. While the geometric pattern was most commonly used, floral motifs are found in abundance.; Manufacturer, pp.13, 20, see pics; hinge, pp.16, Imbedded hinge.
