'Oldest Surviving Original' Photo Featuring A US President To Be Sold At Auction
- 7 years ago
Sotheby’s will soon offer an 1843 photographic image of President John Quincy Adams.
Sotheby’s will soon offer an 1843 photographic image of President John Quincy Adams.
The New York Times reports that it is "the oldest surviving original photograph of an American president."
Back then, image-making technology did not allow for multiple prints and the process didn’t produce negatives, so the item on offer is truly of the one-of-a-kind variety.
According to Sotheby’s, the picture was taken at one of the two sittings Adams had with Washington, D.C. photographer Philip Haas and is, “the only one currently known to have survived from the Haas sessions.”
Emily Bierman, head of photography for the auction house, told the New York Times, “Not only is it an incredibly important historical record…it’s also a stunning composition. You really get a sense of who Adams was.”
The photographic portrait will be auctioned on October 5 and is estimated to bring between $150,000 and $250,000.
Sotheby’s will soon offer an 1843 photographic image of President John Quincy Adams.
The New York Times reports that it is "the oldest surviving original photograph of an American president."
Back then, image-making technology did not allow for multiple prints and the process didn’t produce negatives, so the item on offer is truly of the one-of-a-kind variety.
According to Sotheby’s, the picture was taken at one of the two sittings Adams had with Washington, D.C. photographer Philip Haas and is, “the only one currently known to have survived from the Haas sessions.”
Emily Bierman, head of photography for the auction house, told the New York Times, “Not only is it an incredibly important historical record…it’s also a stunning composition. You really get a sense of who Adams was.”
The photographic portrait will be auctioned on October 5 and is estimated to bring between $150,000 and $250,000.