JF Ptak Science Books   Quick Post

I found this tiny photograph (nearly coverable by a U.S. quarter) quite some time ago, part of a collection of titles that I thought I would turn into an imaginary 19th century mug book, complete with biographies and crime chronologies. It hasn’t happened yet, though I do enjoy looking closely at this images, and their housing.  This photo is a tintype–a process invented in the early 1850’s beginning life called melainotype and then ferrotype before coming to be called tintype–which I think was made in 1865-1875, and has a home-made mat that measures 2.5 x 4″ and with the photographic image 1 x 3/4″. While the image of the woman with her hat is interesting in itself, there is a certain distraction of interest in the mat, with its slightly uneven opening cuts and the remnants of the penciled guidelines.  The photo is held in place against the mat by two pieces of advertisements–and truth be told I like that nearly as much as the photo on the other side.  The Mona Lisa is what it is, of course, but the back of the Mona Lisa’s frame and backing is fascinating in itself.