AMBROTYPE OF J. FRANKLIN REIGART SOLICITOR OF PATENTS INVENTOR & PATENTEE GUIDE

Description

This lot consists of 3 items which belonged to J. Franklin Reigart: an ambrotype of himself, a personal copy of a book he wrote, and a box (which houses the ambrotype and book) with his name and photo on the top, and another photo inside. Also, there is incidental ephemera with this lot.
1) THE AMBROTYPE.
A rare occupational ambrotype of J. Franklin Reigart, Solicitor of Patents, Washington D.C. It is an occupational, as it shows him at work with piles of papers around him. Ambrotypes are positive images on glass, and each one is unique.
Size: Half plate, which is considered a very large size.
Housing: Full case. Original spine.
The mat is stamped, at lower left: "AMBROTYPE BY T. & W. CUMMINGS."
Craig’s Daguerreian Registry
, by John Craig, gives us the following information: CUMMINGS, THOMAS. Listed as a daguerreian at 21 North Queen Street, Lancaster, Pa., 1857 to 1860. He was listed in business as T. & W. Cummings & Co. The firm offered patent ambrotypes and melainotypes. The gallery was listed over Screecher’s new hardware store. T. Cummings lived on Mulberry Street. He was reportedly the first photographer to use the ambrotype/collodion process commercially in Lancaster. CUMMINGS, W. Listed as a daguerreian at 21 North Queen Street, Lancaster, Pa., 1857, 1859-1860. He was listed in business as T. & W. Cummings & Co. The firm offered patent ambrotypes and melainotypes. The gallery was listed over Screecher’s new hardware store.
Directory of Pennsylvania Photographers 1839-1900
, by Linda A. Ries and Jay W. Ruby, with a foreword by Kenneth Finked, corroborates this information. It has Thomas Cummings at various addresses on North Queen Street (6, 9, 21, 23 & 40) from the 1850s into the 1880s but W. Cummings only in operation in the 1850s.
The mat is stamped, at lower right: "PATENT JULY 4 & 11, 1854."
This refers to Cutting's patents, which were awarded to James Ambrose Cutting, of Boston, Massachusetts. They are listed in
American Photographic Patents: The Daguerreotype & Wet Plate Era 1840 - 1880
, by Janice G. Schimmelman:
No. 11, 213; Improvement in the preparation of collodion for photographic pictures; James A. Cutting; Boston, MA; July 4, 1854.
No. 11, 266; Improvement in compositions for making photographic pictures; James A. Cutting; Boston, MA; July 11, 1854.
No. 11,267; Improvement in photographic pictures on blass; James A. Cutting; Boston, MA: July 11, 1854.
Condition: Small brown spots over the surface. We have scraped away all the peeling black paint and replaced it with black velvet. There’s a large spot of discoloration on his face that is easily seen at an angle. However, the image looks great with straight on viewing. We have included scans to show both straight on viewing (the 1st image) and viewing at an angle (the 2nd image). Upon request, we can paint a new black backing and dispense with the black velvet.
Appearance: Very unusual flowing, modern composition.
2) THE BOOK
.
Inventor's & Patentee's Guide
, by J. Franklin Reigart.
A label inside the cover: "Property of J. Franklin Reigart," indicates that this is a personal copy of his own book.
Published in Lancaster, PA. Printed and published by John Baer & Sons, 1856.
Hardcover. 179 pages. Approximately 6 1/8 x 4 inches.
3) THE BOX
. Both the ambrotype and the book are housed in a wood box.
Engraved on the lid, in gold lettering: "Franklin Reigart, Solicitor of Patents, City of Washington, D.C."
There is an albumen photograph of Reigart glued to the lid, above the text. There is another, larger albumen photograph of him glued inside the lid.
Inscribed on the inside, in ink: "To my son. Samuel W. Reigart, October 13, 1864."
Handwritten on the bottom of the box: "J. Franklin Reigart. Washington DC United States."
Approximately 8 1/2 x 11 3/8 x 2 1/8 inches.