Victorian era

Vintage: Tight Corset (Victorian era)

26 December 2018 0

The corset has been attributed to Catherine de’ Medici, wife of King Henry II of France. She enforced a ban on thick waists at court attendance during the 1550s. For nearly 350 years, women’s primary means of support was the corset, with laces and stays made of whalebone or metal. Other researchers have found evidence of the use of corsets…

Vintage: Victorian Fashion (19th Century)

10 June 2018 0

During the Victorian Era, a woman’s place was at home. Unlike in the earlier centuries when women could help their husbands and brothers in family businesses, in the nineteenth century, the gender roles became more defined than ever. Their dress styles reflected their lifestyle. Victorian fashion was not intended to be utilitarian. Clothes were seen as an expression of women’s…

Biography: 19th Century Royal photographer William Bambridge

7 May 2018 0

William Bambridge (1820 – 1879) was born in Windsor, Berkshire, England. In 1848 Bambridge joined the studio of William Fox Talbot in the castle at Windsor. In 1854, he was appointed the Royal Photographer to Queen Victoria, remaining in the Queen’s employment for 14 years. His subjects include not only members of the Royal family and their pets but also…

Vintage: Whitby, England in the Late Victorian Era by Francis Meadow Sutcliffe

23 March 2018 0

Francis Meadow Sutcliffe (1853 – 1941) was an English pioneering photographic artist whose work presented an enduring record of life in the seaside town of Whitby, England, and surrounding areas, in the late Victorian era and early 20th century.

Vintage: Models in Victorian Era (19th Century)

29 December 2017 0

Toward the end of the era (about the 1890s) women’s fashions became simpler and less extravagant and bustles fell out of fashion. The new, looser dresses gave way to a more flowing look. Corsets were still worn, but became slightly longer to provide the slimmer shape that was coming into fashion.

Vintage: Glass Plate Negatives Portraits of Victorian Era Ladies (1860s-1870)

10 December 2017 0

Glass plates were far superior to film for research-quality imaging because they were extremely stable and less likely to bend or distort, especially in large-format frames for wide-field imaging. Early plates used the wet collodion process. The wet plate process was replaced late in the 19th century by gelatin dry plates. Glass plate photographic material largely faded from the consumer…

Historic 19th century Cabinet Card Portraits with reverse side (1870s to 1880s)

28 November 2017 0

Collection of vintage 19th century Victorian Era Cabinet Card Portrait with reverse side (1870s to 1880s). The cabinet card was a style of photograph which was widely used for photographic portraiture after 1870. It consisted of a thin photograph mounted on a card typically measuring 108 by 165 mm.

Vintage: Victorian Era Child Criminals (1870s)

27 October 2017 0

All the prisoners photographed here spent time in Newcastle Gaol between December 1871 – December 1873. They were all under 18. via Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums

Victorian Era 19th century Cabinet Cards with reverse side (1870s to 1880s)

2 October 2017 0

Collection of vintage 19th century Victorian Era Cabinet Cards with reverse side (1870s to 1880s). The cabinet card was a style of photograph which was widely used for photographic portraiture after 1870. It consisted of a thin photograph mounted on a card typically measuring 108 by 165 mm.

Vintage: Victorian Era Portraits by Lady Clementina Hawarden (1860s)

26 July 2017 0

Lady Clementina Hawarden (1 June 1822-19 January 1865) was a noted portrait photographer of the 1860s. Hawarden first began to experiment with photography in 1857, taking stereoscopic landscape photographs before moving to large-format, stand-alone portraits of her daughters. Much of Hawarden’s life remains a mystery to us. It is doubtful that she kept a diary as nothing has been discovered,…

Vintage: Amsterdam in Victorian Era by Jacob Olie (1890s)

4 June 2017 0

At the end of the 19th century, the Industrial Revolution reached Amsterdam. The Amsterdam-Rijn kanaal was dug to give Amsterdam a direct connection to the Rhine and the Noordzee kanaal to give the port a connection with the North Sea. Both projects improved communication with the rest of Europe and the world dramatically. They gave the economy a big boost.…

Vintage: Victorian Era Portraits by Julia Margaret Cameron (1860s-1870s)

21 March 2017 0

In 1863, when Cameron was 48 years old, her daughter gave her a camera as a present, thereby starting her career as a photographer. Within a year, Cameron became a member of the Photographic Societies of London and Scotland. She remained a member of the Photographic Society, London, until her death. In her photography, Cameron strove to capture beauty. She…

Victorian Era Ambrotype Portraits of Children (1850s and 1860s)

7 January 2017 0

Photo collection of mid XIX century Victorian Era Ambrotype Portraits of Children (1850s and 1860s). From the collection of Lisby @ Flickr.

Vintage: London Underground Construction (Victorian Era)

26 December 2016 0

In the first half of the 19th century, London had grown greatly and the development of a commuting population arriving by train each day led to traffic congestion with carts, cabs and omnibuses filling the roads. By 1850 there were seven railway termini located around the urban centre of London and the concept of an underground railway linking the City…

Vintage: Father Christmas in the Victorian Era (19th Century)

17 December 2016 0

At the start of Victoria’s reign, children’s toys tended to be handmade and hence expensive, generally restricting availability to those “rich folk” again. With factories however came mass production, which brought with it games, dolls, books and clockwork toys all at a more affordable price. Affordable that is to “middle class” children. In a “poor child’s” Christmas stocking, which first…

Late 19th century Victorian Era Cabinet Cards (1880s to 1890s)

2 November 2016 0

Historic Victorian Era Cabinet Cards (1870s to 1880s) from the collection of John S. Rochon @ flickr. The cabinet card was a style of photograph which was widely used for photographic portraiture after 1870. It consisted of a thin photograph mounted on a card typically measuring 108 by 165 mm.