Objects in Focus: Daguerreotypes

Join Curator of Exhibitions, Katherine Fecteau for a behind-the-scenes look at some of Old Sturbridge Village’s collection of daguerreotypes. The invention of the daguerreotype by Louis Daguerre in 1839 created the first photographic process available to the public. This process was groundbreaking, allowing people to have images of their loved ones or to capture moments in time. Join us as we learn the process of creating a daguerreotype, and what they can tell us about the people of the past.

[@valcair]

Awesome presentation! Thank you for all the work you do to preserve these pieces of the past!

[@cromwellchild]

I love the dag of the Fenno House. My uncle knew it when it was abandoned and open to the elements in Canton back in the late 1930s-early 1940s.

[@holdinghistory4538]

Excellent presentation! Your image of Mr. Freeman can be restored by a skilled conservator. The discoloration is a result of silver tarnish, which indicates that the original seals failed or were removed long ago. Several processes exist that can safely remove this tarnish, the best of which involves electrolysis and will not alter the original surface of the plate. If the image remains in its present state, the tarnish will continue to encroach upon the image, eventually obscuring it. Dr. Mike Robinson of the Century Darkroom is by far the most skilled conservator experienced in this type of restoration, having handled some of the most valuable images to come to market over the last 20+ years.

[@noxema2000]

A crystal clear image means they were most likely dead .

[@cromwellchild]

That's not true at all.

[@susan9498]

Sadly, they're all dead.