Details
Creator Notman Photo Co. (Boston, Mass.)
Contributor L’Africain, Eug. (Eugène), 1859-1892, artist.
Title Eminent women [graphic] :/ Mary A. Livermore. Sara Jewett. Grace A. Oliver. Helen Hunt. Nora Perry. Lucy Larcom. Frances Hodgson Burnett. Elizabeth Stuart Phelps. Louise Chandler Moulton. Louisa M. Alcott. Julia Ward Howe. Harriet Beecher Stowe / Notman photo @ 3 Park St. Boston, Mass.; Eug. L'Africain.
Publisher Boston: The Notman Photographic Co. Limited, 3 Park St
Publisher MA. Boston. 1884
Date 1884
Physical Description 1 photograph: albumen on card mount; mount 17 x 11 cm (6.5 x 4.25 in.) (cabinet card format)
Description Composite photograph created through the "paste-up" technique of cut-up negatives that are arranged, pasted together, and then rephotographed to present a realistic scene. Depicts a group of eminent Victorian women, including authors, writers, and women's rights, temperance, and abolitionist movements advocates, "posed" in the Montreal residence of railway financier George Stephens. Sitters (left to right), in the background, and standing, include: Mary A. Livermore; Sara Jewett; Grace A. Oliver; Helen Hunt; Nora Perry; Lucy Larcom; and Frances Hodgson Burnett. Sitters (left to right), in the foreground, and seated, include: Elizabeth Stuart Phelps; Louise Chandler Moulton; Louisa M. Alcott; Julia Ward Howe; and Harriet Beecher Stowe. Backdrop interior imagery shows parts of the reception hall, drawing room, stairwell, and conservatory of the Stephens' residence. Vases, a mantel, light fixtures, drapery, and a fountain are included in the backdrop. Pictorial details of foliage and a pond surround the portrait within a circular frame. Canadian photographer William Notman created the original portrait negatives used in the composite created by L'Africain. Notman was known for his innovative photography and his studio specialized in composite photographs by the 1870s. This image was also distributed "compliments" of the Travelers Insurance Company of Hartford, CT.
Notes Title from item.
Date in negative in lower right corner.
Name of photographer and publisher from imprint in negative and printed on mount and verso.
Name of artist in negative in right corner.
Sitter's names in title depicted with a single dot between first, middle, and last names and with double dots between full names.
Copyrighted.
Photographer and publisher's illustrated imprint printed on verso: W. Notman. The Notman Photographic Co. Limited. 3 Park Street, Boston, Mass. Also at 48 North Pearl St. Albany, N. Y. Saratoga, N. Y. Newport, R. I. Illustration depicts an objet d'art composed of a crown, foliage, banners, scrolls, coat of arms, and exhibition medals, including from the Centennial Exhibition of 1876. Image also contains text, including: "Honi Soit Qui Mal [Y Pens]e. Photographer to Her Majesty. Montreal." Imprint surrounded by ornately-designed border including lavishly-ornamented cornices.
Purchased with the Davida T. Deutsch Women’s History Fund.
Lib. Company. Annual report, 2016, p. 64-66.
Description reviewed 2022.
Access points reviewed 2022.
Subject Alcott, Louisa May, 1832-1888 -- Portraits.
Burnett, Frances Hodgson, 1849-1924 -- Portraits.
Howe, Julia Ward, 1819-1910 -- Portraits.
Jackson, Helen Hunt, 1830-1885 -- Portraits.
Jewett, Sarah Orne, 1849-1909 -- Portraits.
Larcom, Lucy, 1824-1893 -- Portraits.
Livermore, Mary Ashton Rice, 1820-1905 -- Portaits.
Moulton, Louise Chandler, 1835-1908 -- Portraits
Oliver, Grace A. (Grace Atkinson) 1844-1899 -- Portraits.
Perry, Nora 1831-1896 -- Portraits.
Phelps, Elizabeth Stuart, 1844-1911 -- Portaits.
Stephens, George 1829-1921 -- Homes and haunts.
Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 1811-1896 -- Portraits.
Women authors, American.
Women abolitionists -- United States.
Women -- Political activity -- United States.
Women social reformers -- United States.
Genre Group portrait photographs -- 1880-1890.
Albumen prints -- 1880-1890.
Cabinet photographs -- 1880-1890.
Composite photographs -- 1880-1890.
Location Library Company of Philadelphia| Print Department| cabinet card portraits - photo - Notman [P.2016.73]
Accession number P.2016.73

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