1850 Poodle Daguerreotype

Vintage_poodle_photograph

Poodle with Bow on Table by Anonymous American Photographer, 1850

This sweet Poodle daguerreotype is up for auction at Sotheby’s New York on Monday March 30, 2009.  The catalogue’s  condition report highlights its “excellent condition” and points out that “this daguerreotype is astonishing for the clarity of its rendering of a
difficult subject. Looked at under magnification, this image shows a
wealth of detail in the dog’s face and in the texture of its fur.”

What I find astonishing is that its one of the earliest dog photographs I have ever seen.  And, it is yet another indication that our deep love of our pets is nothing new.  Not only does the photographer spend time, money, and materials in a complicated and time consuming process to memorialize the dog, someone also took the time to give her jaunty bow.  Wonderful!

Estimate is $5,000 – $7,000.  Visit Sotheby’s for more information.

Hat tip to my friend Kevin Hannigan who sent me this story via Andrew Sullivan’s blog.

(If you like this post, please leave a comment or subscribe to Dog Art Today.  This blog is powered by traffic from readers like you.  Thank you for visiting!)

Advertisement


Comments

4 responses to “1850 Poodle Daguerreotype”

  1. WendyB Avatar

    Clarity is right! Incredible.

  2. Tara Avatar

    This is so, so wonderful!! What a unique photo!

  3. Linda O'Neill Avatar

    Wow, gorgeous old photo. I loved Ziggy too…what a master painter! Ziggy…painter of light.

  4. the nag Avatar

    I love the fluffiness!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *