Cabinet Card
The bigger sibling of the CDV — large albumen portraits on heavy ornamental mounts.
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Wm Mills & Son Elderly Providence Olneyville RI
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1880s H M Beeles Handsome Young Man Plaid Barnesville
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Jw Miller Two Young Girls White Jackson OH
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Hollinger Little Girl Lace Dress Urbana OH
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1880s Glenning Baby Kenneth Lynnton Harriman Tenn
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Jones Elderly Woman Columbia City Ind
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1880s J. W. Clark Father Daughter Mendota ILL
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Moser Studio Baby Long White Decatur IND
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1880s D H Wright Toddler Baby White Terre Haute in
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Baldwin Baby Gown Fur Blanket Lafayette in
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Atlas Studio Young Woman Full Length Chicago IL
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1880s Four Young Men Suits Pocket Watches Studio
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1880s Reed Young Woman Lace Collar Chair Clinton IA
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1900s Young Boy Standing Overcoat Hat Holding
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1880s Jaeger Studio Elderly Woman Lace Chicago IL
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1880s Fw Mould Standing Woman Dark LA Crosse Wis
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1880s Dahllof Elderly Woman Lace Stockholm Sweden
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1880s Lee Studio Woman Lace Collar Phillipsburg NJ
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Maxwell Woman High Neck Dress Spokane WA
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1880s Hess Young Man Straw Boater Hat Cobleskill NY
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Wyatt & Phillips Elderly Woman Brattleboro VT
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1890s M. L. Sanders Woman Feathered Hat Waco Waco TX
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Gus Jackson Barefoot Baby Wicker Chair Waco TX
Antique Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Serdinko Woman Portrait Bust New Braunfels TX
Cabinet cards are larger albumen photographs mounted on thicker, often decorated card stock. First offered in London in 1863 and reaching American studios by 1866, they were dominant from the 1880s through the early 1900s — the ‘Golden Age’ of the cabinet card runs roughly 1870 to 1895 — and continued in declining numbers into the 1920s.
HistoryOrigin & era
Cabinet cards offered the same albumen process as CDVs but at a size more flattering to detailed studio work. By the 1880s mounts grew elaborate — gold edges, embossed studio logos, chromolithographed backs. The format faded sharply after Eastman Kodak's 1900 Brownie put cameras in everyone's hands; few cabinet cards date after 1906, and the last were produced in the early 1920s.
IdentificationHow to spot a Cabinet Card
- Mount roughly 4¼ × 6½ inches.
- Heavier card stock than a CDV, often with rounded corners and gold or beveled edges.
- Photographer's imprint usually on the front below the photo, with elaborate logos on the back.
- Plain pale mounts are earlier (1870s); dark green, black, and gilt mounts are 1880s–1890s.
Cabinet Card sizes
Standard cabinet cards are remarkably consistent, but several larger "deluxe" formats were sold by the same studios.
| Format | Inches | Millimeters | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard cabinet card | 4¼ × 6½ in | 108 × 165 mm | Universal mount size. |
| Cabinet print on mount | ≈ 3¾ × 5½ in | ≈ 95 × 140 mm | Photo trimmed to fit with a narrow border. |
| Promenade | 4 × 7 in | 102 × 178 mm | Taller variant, popular 1875–1900. |
| Boudoir | 5¼ × 8½ in | 133 × 216 mm | Larger format for full-length portraits. |
| Imperial | 6⅞ × 9⅞ in | 175 × 251 mm | Largest of the cabinet-family mounts. |
| Panel | 4 × 8 in | 102 × 203 mm | Narrow, full-length portrait format. |
Common questions
What is a cabinet card?
A cabinet card is a Victorian-era portrait photograph — an albumen print mounted on a heavy card roughly 4¼ × 6½ inches. First offered in London in 1863 and arriving in American studios by 1866, cabinet cards were the standard portrait format from about 1880 through the early 1900s and continued in declining numbers into the 1920s.
How do I date a cabinet card?
Mount color and decoration are the best clues: pale buff or cream stock with a simple imprint is 1870s; dark gray or maroon with gold edges is mid-1880s; deep green, black, or chocolate brown with ornate gilt lettering is 1890s. Beveled edges with gold appear around 1885.
What are cabinet cards worth?
Generic studio portraits typically run $5–$20. Cards depicting identified subjects, occupational scenes, ethnographic subjects, post-mortem photography, or well-known photographers can range from $50 to several hundred dollars. Condition, sharpness of the print, and subject interest matter more than age.
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