Cabinet Card
The bigger sibling of the CDV — large albumen portraits on heavy ornamental mounts.
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s A.G. Gosting Young Girl Lace Collar Strawberry Point IA
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Hoppe Young Man In Suit Holding Rifle Horton Kansas
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Gutekunst Girl In White Dress & Floral Hat Phila. Pa
Cabinet Card 1890s Traveling Photographer Mahan Woman Ornate Feathered Hat Chair
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Victorian Family Group Outdoor Scenic Waterfall
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Peoria Photo Co. Young Man In Uniform Peoria Il
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Reed Man With Goatee Bowler Hat Suit Quincy Illinois
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s James F. Ryder Man Glasses Mustache Vest Cleveland Ohio
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Jean Baptiste Feilner Woman Profile Hat Oldenburg
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Mathieu Schramm Woman White Dress Flowers Santa Rosa Ca
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Catholic Priest in Cassock Clerical Robe Christian
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s The Crown Priest in Robes Lowell Massachusetts
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Gasberg Two Young Boys in Coats Sailor Ogden Utah
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Perry Ayers Family Group Seated Patriarch Lake View IA
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Chs. Desautels Man and woman in formal Montreal, Canada
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Helmbold Mourning Funeral Floral Display Rest Camden NJ
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s C.A. Smith Photo Co. Two Young Women Lace Dover Maine
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Shorey Eight Young Men In Suits Group Augusta Maine
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Arthur & Philbric Three Young Women Detroit Michigan
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Lewis Child In Lace Dress & Large Black Dog Hudson Mass
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Sarony Two Women Mrs. Atwood Cross Necklace New York NY
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s G. R. Crane Young Girl with Bangs Holding Doll New York
Cabinet Card Circa 1890s Baxter Bearded Man In Overcoat Leaning Boston Mass
Cabinet Card C. 1890s W.E. Butler Four Dapper Men Cigars West Superior Wisconsin
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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