95. Lincoln, Abraham. Rare carte-de-visite photograph signed (“A. Lincoln”) as President, being an albumen photograph of Lincoln by Alexander Gardner, with “Gardner, Corner 7th & D Streets, Washington, D.C.” backstamp, [taken on 9 August 1863], measuring (2.38 x 4 in.; 60.4 x 102 mm.) overall, the photograph is neatly mounted on stiff card within double-ruled borders. Signed “A. Lincoln” in dark ink in the blank area beneath the image. Hamilton and Ostendorf, Lincoln in Photographs, 0-72D. Image exhibits light scuffing; minor soiling on outer perimeter of card; mounting remnants on verso.

President Lincoln reads the Sunday Papers.

An image that shows a relaxed President seated at a marble-topped table, his reading glasses in his right hand, holding large, partially folded sheets of paper in his left hand, which rests on the table top. The sheets strongly resemble newspaper, and it seems a certainty that Gardner has here caught Lincoln in the act of reading the Sunday newspaper. The sitting, which produced this and six similar images of the President, took place on Sunday, 9 August 1863. In some large-format versions, the newsprint, in columns, is clearly visible. This marked Lincoln’s first sitting at Gardener’s recently opened Washington studio, upstairs at the corner of 7th and D Streets. Lincoln’s secretary, John Hay, noted in his diary that day: “I went down with the President to have his picture taken at Gardner’s. He was in good spirits” (quoted by Mark Katz, Witness to an Era: The Life and Photographs of Alexander Gardner, p. 112). Given recent war news, it is no wonder the President was in good spirits, for the last month had seen resounding Union victories at both Gettysburg and Vicksburg, while the Knoxville and Chattanooga campaigns were just entering their early phases. In all the portraits from this day’s sitting, Lincoln appears remarkably relaxed: serious and dignified, grave, but not somber. The image proved a popular one, and Gardner evidently sold a large number in different formats. $30,000 - $50,000

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June 11, 2015 11:00 AM PDT
26662 Agoura Rd
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$50 $499 $25
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$2,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
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