Figure 1.--This 1897 portrait was taken in Chicago during 1897. The mount is ivory with rounded corners. Mote how the studio name is impressed which makes it difficult to read. |
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The distinguishing feature of the cabinet card was the commercially printed mounting cards on which the actual photograph was pasted. There were various kinds of mounts. The variations in the mounts are of considerable interest because they can be used to help date the image. As large numbers of these images are today found without any provenance and are undated. At first raw paste board was used. Later cards appeared with a gloss finish. The printed cardboard mounts that the image were pasted on were printed with information about the photographer and studio. Almost all cabinet cards and an imprint giving the name and location of the studio. The colors, script style, and art work used to decorate the mounts varied over time and can also used to help date these cards. There were also change in borders and other aspects of he mounts. Some of the mounts were quite fancy including those with ornate gilt borders. The popularity of the nount colors, shapes, embossing, and gilding varied over time. This can be used to help date the portraits.
The card stock used for cabinent cards is thicker than that used for the smaller carte de visite (CDVs). The first cabinent cards were made from Bristol Board (a single layer card stock). Gradually in the 1870s various types of press board became used. Press board was an early version of carboard. Press board as the name suggests was made by pressing layers of paper together, essentilly a paper sandwich. Most cards during the 1880s and 90s were made froim pressboard. The technology for manufacturing pressboard steadily increased during this period. Some cards that have not been well preserved can be seen to have separating layers at the edges are made with pressboard.
A problem working with cabinent cards, as with other formats is that most are not dated. There are a variety of indicators that can help date these cards. HBC is a fashion and history site. We decided early on that we would focus on the image rather than the entire card or mount when we post the image. Gradually we have come to the conclusion that it would be a good idea to post the entire mount, especially when the portrait is dated. This will help up date the portraits that are undated. Thus we have decided to begin doing this.
The edges of the cabinent cards may also have useful chronological information. Most cabinent cards had smooth edges. We think all the ealier cards had smooth eddges. Thus the smooth edges provide no useful chronological information. Serated edges, however, do provide useful chonological information. Some authors use the term scalloped edges. We think serrated is a more accurate term. We note cards in the 1880s and 1890s that had serated edges. This was not the most common alternative, but we do see a number of them. We do not yet have the precise chronology of these serated edge cabinent cards. And the variations in the serations may help us further identify the chronological range.
We have noted blank CDV mounts. They seem to be the earliest ones. We have not yet noted blank caninent card mounts.
The color of the mounts varied widely. Ceratain colors were popular on a chronological basis and can be used to help date the poertrait. The first cards which appeared in the mid-1860s were white and rather light weight. This continued until about 1880. About 1880 you begin to see cards with face and back of different colors. This was common until about 1890. We note black mounts in the 1890s, but are not yet sure of the chronology, we think they first appeared in the 1880s. About 1882 you begin to see buff faces, matte finished, with a back of creamy yellow, glossy. This was popular until about 1888. Here we see an 1897 card done in what looks like an ivory color (figure 1).
We note some very plain mounts. We at first thought that the plain mounts were early ones, probably dating to the late 860s or early 70s. We have continued seeing them, however, into the 1890s. These were cards without colored mounts and with plain printing. They do not seem to be very common. We see more fancier mounts done with colored mounts. We believe these plain mounts were most common in rural areas. The ones we have founded have tended to comne from small rural towns. Studios in big cities tended to have fancier mounts.
Several different colors were used for the printed lettering on the cards which identifying the photographer and location. We notice many different colors being used.Usually the same color was used on the front and back. We do not yet know just what the color trends were and the chronological pattern if any. This was often the same color as borders, but we will consider borders separately. The color trends may have varied from country to country. That is another question we needed to address.
We don't have much information on the backs of cabinent cards yet. We think that most in the 1870s and 80s had printed backs with informtion bout the studio. Some even had printed dates, but this was not very common. We note cards with blank backs in the 1890s. Some had a smooth grey finish. We are not yet able to assess the chronology based oin the backs, but we have begun to collect some information.
Cabinent card borders are quite a complicated topic. Various color borders appeared over time and their were variations in with. The variations here are so complicated that it is a bit difficult to sort out. Some authors have described these trends over time. There may have been variations from country to country which furrther complicates the issue. Many of the cabinent cards we have archived are Ameican, but we notice comparable styles and trends in Europe. Actually the various styles may have originated in Europe. Red or gold rule borders (single and double lines) were popular from the beginning to about 1880. Wide gold borders were only seen about 1884-85, but gold beveled edges were popular about 1885-92. Rounded corner rule with a single line were popular 1889-96. Metallic green or gold impressed borders were briefly populat during 1890-92. There were impressed outer border, without color during 1896.
Square, lightweight mounts were common from 1866-80. Square corners with heavy board and scalloped sides were common during 1880-90. The rounded corner card here was produced in 1897.
We notice standard printing on the front of the card with the stidio name and location. We note that sometimes a kind of enmossing where the letters are punched down below the surface of the card. The 1897 Chicago portait is an example here.
About the turn-of-the 20th century in the United Sattes we notice portraits with paper frames begin to replace cabinent cards. We are not sure why this change occurred at this time. But the shift is very pronounced. Oval portraits were very popular in the 1900s. One reflection of this shift is cabinent cards designed to resemble the oval portraits with paper mounts. One example is Donald W. Simpson in 1901. There may have veen some in the 1890s, but we don't think that they were very cmmon.
Cabinent cards in America were much less prevalent after the turn of the 20th century. We note for some reason that many of the cabinent cards that were made had a much larger area surrounding the actual print. Other variations in the 20th century cards often had embossed frames around the image, heavy gray card stock, and blind imprints as hallmarks.
The basic chronology of cabinent cards helps to date undate images. The cabinet card was introduced in 1866 and soon surpassed the smaller CDV format in popularity. Note the date. This means that there were no Civil WAr cabinent cards. There were CDVs, but not Civil War cabinent cards. The cabinet cards were particularly popular from 1875-1895. hey began to decline in the late 1890s, but especially after 1900 with the development of the Kodak Brownie and the popularity of amateur snapshots. Also after 1895 new forms of portraits appeared. Cabinet cards declined as a result after 1895 and become increasing rare in America during the 1900s. The time line is somewhat different in Europe where cabinet cards were still being made at the inset of World War I in 1914. A few were even still being made in the early 1920s. A problem working with cabinent cards, as with other formats is that most are not dated. There are a variety of indicators that can help date these cards.
Our idea is to archive dated cabinent cards, both by mount characteristics and by date. An archive by decade will help us discdern trends over time. The basic chronology above helps to set the basic parameters for these cards. Here for example we see an 1897 Chicago portrait of Robert Mason Hamilton (figure 1).
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