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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;2manybooks, post: 9577111, member: 8267&quot;]If the image does not have a mirror-like surface, it would not be a daguerreotype. And if it does not attract a magnet, it would not be a tintype, which were made on a lacquered iron plate. That leaves the possibility of an ambrotype, which is a collodion image on glass. Ambrotypes were popular from 1855 to about 1865.</p><p><br /></p><p>This article provides a good description of the characteristics of an ambrotype, as well as a guide to dating the cases in which they were typically mounted -</p><p><a href="http://www.phototree.com/id_amb.htm" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.phototree.com/id_amb.htm" rel="nofollow">http://www.phototree.com/id_amb.htm</a></p><p><br /></p><p>Based on the elaborate framing elements on your image, (the mat and preserver), the case dates from the 1860s.</p><p><br /></p><p>To confirm whether the photograph is an ambrotype on glass, or some other type of image, you might remove it from the case so that you can examine the back. If you have a very thin tool or spatula, you should be able to insert it between the outer case and the edge of the first metal frame - the &quot;preserver&quot; - and pop the whole sandwich out of the case. Here is a diagram of the structure of early cased photos - daguerreotypes and ambrotypes:</p><p><br /></p><p><img src="https://www.nedcc.org/assets/components/phpthumbof/cache/DM_Explode_Composite2.97c7bc02b20567eb970b46a5e66fae9a.jpg" class="bbCodeImage wysiwygImage" alt="" unselectable="on" /></p><p><a href="https://www.nedcc.org/about/nedcc-stories/dolley-madison-daguerreotype" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.nedcc.org/about/nedcc-stories/dolley-madison-daguerreotype" rel="nofollow">https://www.nedcc.org/about/nedcc-stories/dolley-madison-daguerreotype</a>[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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