Victorian Fold Out Photograph Album

By virtue of their 3.5” x 2.25” size, the eight albumen prints in our expanding picture album qualify as carte de visites (CdV), a form of photographic presentation patented in 1854 by Frenchman Andre Adolphe Eugene Disderi, but popularized by his countryman Louis Dodero. As the name implies, CdVs were the same size as, and usually backed on, personal calling cards which were left if someone was not at home or receiving guests. This expedient new format which made socializing more convenient, if less personal, caught on quickly as manners grew in degree and formality in Victorian England and post-Civil America. Our CdVs were taken in the 1880s -1890s and most likely picture different generations of the same family. We do not know the name of the sitters or of the photographer because the images were permanently affixed to cardboard supports and any information that may have been on the reverse is lost. We do know, however, that George Squire, the “Artists' Colourman” who made the photo