Photographs on Glass - the Ambrotype

Home  Back to Photos  Back to Material Culture

    Daguerreotypes dominated the photography industry for 20 years, but would be replaced rapidly by another form in the mid-1850s.  A few drawbacks of the daguerreotype were that it was difficult to view except at the correct angle, the plate was easily damaged (I have personally seen many that were permanently damaged when someone tried to clean them by polishing as one would polish a piece of silver), and over time, a daguerreotype can turn completely black.

    About 1855, the Ambrotype was invented.  The inventor's name was James Ambrose Cutting. The name for the new type of photograph was taken from the Greek word ambrotos meaning "immortal", thus it was thought to be an eternal image.  That is to say it was more durable than the daguerreotype.  The process was similar; the photographer still coated the plate with light sensitive emulsion, but instead of using a silver-coated copper plate, he used a glass plate.  This produced a negative image which then had to be backed with something black.  Many have piece of black felt behind the plate, others a piece of black paper.  More still have the reverse of the plate painted black.  This is well illustrated in the pictures here.  The left-hand image is a ghostly negative, showing what the photograph looks like when first struck.  Provided the photographer is satisfied with the results, he will then put a backing behind the plate to produce the positive image to the right.

    There was one other way to produce a positive image that negated the photographer backing or painting the plate.  He would use a piece of colored glass, usually a deep red or purple.  As a result, these ambrotypes are commonly called "ruby" ambrotypes.  This form of photograph also ushered in a need to make the image more life-like.  Most ambrotypes have been hand-tinted, such as the image above.  Cheeks are usually pink and jewelry, buttons, and watch chain painted the appropriate colors.  The image below is a ruby ambrotype of a Federal cavalryman during the Civil War, even his uniform has been tinted blue.

        One crucial step made the ambrotype durable.  Without it, the image could be lost with the swipe of a cloth.  Like painted images, ambrotypes had to be varnished to protect the image.  Otherwise, the emulsion was only protected as long as it was housed in its case with a clear glass plate covering it, like the above image.  Some ambrotypes did not get the coat of varnish and have been obliterated by some well-meaning person attempting to clean the image. 

Ambrotypes were quite popular throughout the decade from about 1855 to the end of the Civil War when cheaper forms of photography finally won out over the glass plates.

Home  Back to Photos  Back to Material Culture