Bidspirit auction | Civil War Era Sixth-Plate Tintype

Civil War Era Sixth-Plate Tintype Portrait of Two Union Soldiers - This mid-19th-century American photograph is a sixth-plate tintype (ferrotype) depicting a double portrait of two men, likely soldiers from the American Civil War era (c. 1861-1865). The subject in the foreground is seated and wears a dark, multi-button coat with evidence of original gold-colored hand-tinting on the buttons. He is dressed in light-colored trousers, characteristic of the sky-blue kersey wool issued to Union troops. The subject in the background holds a wide-brimmed slouch hat and wears a dark military-style coat with a small, light-colored insignia in the shape of a spread-wing eagle on the left breast. A small rectangular mark is visible next to the eagle, though no characters are legible. There are no visible maker marks or photographer imprints on the front or reverse of the metal plate. Dimensions: 2.5 inches x 3.5 inches. The photograph is in fair to good condition. The image exhibits good contrast and clarity of the subjects. Notable condition issues include a prominent semi-circular scratch in the emulsion on the left side, scattered surface scratches, minor pitting, and small spots of emulsion loss visible as light-colored flecks. The reverse of the plate shows surface oxidation and wear consistent with an uncased tintype of this age.