Name/Title
MARIA E. BOYLE [WORKMAN], CA. 1854Entry/Object ID
98.48.1.1Description
Color: Brown, gold
A daguerreotype of Maria E. Boyle [Workman], 1854. The image shows the girl wearing a full-length, off the shoulder dress with white cuffs on the short sleeves; a necklace with brooch and earrings. She rests her right arm on a table covered with a cloth and holds a flower in her hand. The other hand holds a handbag. Color tinting was done to render the dress a light blue with gold fringe at the collar and to make the necklace gold. The image is housed in a leather-bound case with gold metal framing with a vine-like border on the outside. On the rim of the case is gold embossed designs that may be a vine-like pattern, as well, and the inner lining of the top is a green velvet with a stylized border, within which is a Grecian-type vase. Glued to this lining is a piece of paper with the following typewritten on it: "Maria Elizabeth Boyle / (Mrs. William H. Workman) / in 1854, aged seven years, / just before leaving her / birthplace, New Orleans, / for California, via Nicaragua." This was probably done by Mary Julia Workman, daughter of Maria. The outer section of the case has stylized floral borders with clover-like figures on the corner and, within this, a four-pointed design with semi-circular center. The same gold border from the inside is on the front and back cover. With separated covers; tarnished metal; fading of the image; and fairly heavy damage to the silvering, the daguerreotype is in poor condition.Lexicon
Search Terms
Three-dimensional, Daguerreotypes, Photography of children, Clothing and dressLegacy Lexicon
Object Name
Daguerreotypes