Ambrotype of a Young Woman, 1850s
Subject
Title
Date
Description
The sitter portrays typical styles of the 1850s, which include fitted bodices, set-in sleeves, dropped shoulder seams, and natural waistlines. These are the same features seen in fashion plates of the early 1850s, specifically the open sleeves known as pagoda sleeves. These were sleeves that widened out just below the elbow. Although the lower arms are not visible, they would have been covered by undersleeves that matched the collar.
The sheen of the fabric implies that it was made of silk. Velvet covered buttons fasten the bodice at the center front, and they decorate the upper sleeve. Velvet had only recently been produced on power looms, but it quickly made its way into fashionable apparel.
The case is made of embossed cardboard with an embossed velvet pad and an embossed copper matte.
Purchased at auction in Allentown (PA?)
References
Joan Severa, Dressed for the Photographer: Ordinary Americans and Fashion, 1840-1900. Kent, OH: Kent State University Press, 1995.