Ok- I managed to succumb to indiscretion and bought the rest of the “C.R.” cartes-de-visite. If you’re new to my blog, I posted earlier about this set of cartes-de-visite a “C.R.” purchased and collected during what I assume was his (not hers) journeys across Europe during and after the US Civil War. It’s a fascinating travelogue spanning three countries and twenty-one years. Two of the images in this second set are in fact photo reproductions of sketches. Given the dates and locations of the earliest ones in the set, one can’t help but wonder if “C.R.” was a Union or Confederate supporter, perhaps even a Confederate agent sent to the U.K. to try and purchase arms and ships for the Confederacy. Or was “C.R.” just a Northern businessperson whose work frequently took him to England, Scotland, France, Italy and Germany (there were one or two more in the set that I was unable to acquire that showed German churches) and had a soft spot for ecclesiastical architecture?
The oldest one in the complete set of nine CDVs dates from July 1864, and the last one is May 1885. Here’s the complete set, in chronological order.
AllowayKirk, Ayr, Scotland, July 16, 1864
Chester Cathedral, July 19, 1864
Palazzo Diamantini, Ferrara, December 29, 1864
The Cathedral of Pisa, January 1865
Church of St. Michael, Dijon, France, November 1867
Villa Pallavicini, Genoa, November 25, 1867
Interior of La Nunziata, Genova, November 25, 1867
Genova Cathedral, 1868
The Cathedral of Rouen, France, May 31, 1885
What a wonderful set of photos! They are beautiful images, plus it’s a treat that they are connected by the annotations. I can see why you succumbed to it, but I’d say it’s a completely justifiable purchase.