Cabinet Card
The bigger sibling of the CDV — large albumen portraits on heavy ornamental mounts.
Antique Cabinet Card Large Multi Generation Family Group Porch House Ivy Vines
Antique Cabinet Card Hildahl Two Women Leaf Vignette Victorian Austin Minn
Antique Cabinet Card Town Crowd Schoolhouse Bell Tower White Picket Fence
Antique Cabinet Card Galerie D'Appolon Musee Du Louvre Paris France
Antique Cabinet Card Man Suit Standing Outside Gable Roof Wood Church Building
Antique Cabinet Card Aw Ge Howes Farm Family Horses Plow Ashfield Mass
Antique Cabinet Card Sailboats Rowboats Dock Men Lake Merritt Oakland CA
Antique Cabinet Card Man On Porch American Flags Decorated Victorian House
Antique Cabinet Card Aw Ge Howes Farmhouse Oxen Cart Ashfield MA
Antique Cabinet Card Atelier Scheurich Queen Louise Prussia Portrait Berlin
Antique Cabinet Card H. S. Drake Five Men Uniforms Athletic Fraternal Group
Antique Cabinet Card Zweifel Married Couple Wedding Victorian Dress Monroe WIS
Antique Cabinet Card Kauffman Group Man Bowler Hat Women Ostrich York PA
Antique Cabinet Card H Henderson Episcopal Methodist Church Kingston Ontario
Antique Cabinet Card O'Neill Military Cadet Uniform Sword Studio Wheeling WV
Antique Cabinet Card Cyrus Hetrick Men Drinking Beer Revolver Gun Continental OH
Antique Cabinet Card Cyrus Hetrick Men Playing Cards Bottle Hats Continental OH
Antique Cabinet Card Outdoor Large Family Group Girls Dolls Bicycle Hammer Yard
Antique Cabinet Card A C Moore Theatrical Play Costumes Group Arcola ILL
Antique Cabinet Card Henry Levin Funeral Floral Memorial South Bend in
Antique Cabinet Card H Thillier Working Couple Cobbler Apron Angers France
Antique Cabinet Card Sarony Actress Rose Stahl Lace Dress Gown New York NY NY NY
Antique Cabinet Card Anselm Schmitz Cologne Cathedral Westseite Dom Coeln Rh
Antique Cabinet Card Lummis Studio Woman Hat Boy Tricycle Chicago Chicago IL
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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