Carte de Visite
Albumen-print portraits on small card mounts — the calling-card photo of the Civil War era.
Antique CDV S. Piper Toddler Girl White Dress Floral Chair Manchester
Antique CDV W C Tuttle Handsome Man Mustache Striped Tie Belfast Maine
Antique CDV W. C. Tuttle Woman Victorian Dress Leaning Pose Belfast Maine
Antique CDV W. J. Newell Woman Lace Collar High Bun Hair Lawrence Mass
Antique CDV S. Piper Cute Baby in Coat Manchester NH Portrait
Antique CDV Howell Young Boy Suit Bowtie Portrait New York City NY Photograph
Antique CDV Sutton Woman High Collar Dress Earrings Hornellsville NY
Antique CDV Baby Infant Sitting in White Gown Dress Studio Portrait
Antique CDV Starbird Baby Sitting in Patterned Armchair Farmington
Antique CDV Reimer Seated Woman Dark Dress Book Philada PA
Antique CDV Elderly Woman Seated Silk Dress White Lace Collar Chair
Antique CDV Geo W Butler Standing Woman Plaid Dress Column Bath me Maine
Antique CDV J. S. Howard Toddler Baby Toddler White Dress Chair New Bedford
Antique CDV Otto Wagner Baby Gingham Pattern Dress Plush Armchair New York
Antique CDV Manchester Bro Young Boy Dark Suit Bowtie Providence
Antique CDV D M Fulton Woman Cross Necklace Earring Lancaster Ohio
Antique CDV Moses Seated Young Man Bowtie Vest Suit Trenton NJ Photo
Antique CDV W. B. Glines Young Man Plaid Ascot Tie Suit Norwalk Conn Connecticut
Antique CDV J M Hittler Young Woman Plaid Shirt Marysville Ohio
Antique CDV Victorian Seated Woman Full Length Dress White Bow Scarf
Antique CDV Taylor's Photographic Studio Woman Portrait Bust New York NY
Antique CDV C. E. Hayes Cute Baby Girl White Lace Collar Oval Portrait New Haven
Antique CDV Thos Cummings Standing Woman Hoop Skirt Dress Lancaster PA
Antique CDV Faded Portrait Bust Handsome Man Mustache Suits Jacket
The carte de visite (CDV) is a small albumen photograph mounted on a stiff card the size of a calling card. First proposed by Louis Dodero in 1851 and patented in France by André Disdéri in 1854, CDVs became a worldwide craze after Disdéri photographed Emperor Napoleon III in 1859 — and stayed in production into the 1920s, collected and pasted into family albums by the millions.
HistoryOrigin & era
CDVs are produced from a glass-plate negative printed onto thin albumen paper, then trimmed and pasted to a card mount. Studios printed them by the dozen; the same sitter could order several copies of the same exposure to hand out. The format was largely displaced by the larger cabinet card from the 1880s onward, though CDV-sized prints continued to be made by smaller studios and itinerant photographers into the 1920s.
IdentificationHow to spot a CDV
- Card mount roughly 2½ × 4 inches.
- Albumen print — slight surface gloss, often warm brown or sepia tones.
- Studio imprint usually on the back (photographer + city).
- Square-cornered mounts are earlier (c. 1860s); rounded corners and decorated backs come in later.
- Tax revenue stamps on the back date it to 1864–1866 (U.S. Civil War tax).
CDV sizes
CDVs are largely standardized — the mount size barely varies — but the photo on the mount and the mount stock evolved over time.
| Format | Inches | Millimeters | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard CDV mount | 2½ × 4 in | 64 × 100 mm | Universal mount size from the 1860s on. |
| Albumen print on mount | ≈ 2⅛ × 3½ in | ≈ 54 × 89 mm | Photo trimmed to fit the mount with a small border. |
| Victoria (mini-CDV) | 3¼ × 5 in | 83 × 127 mm | Brief 1870s variant — slightly larger than standard. |
Common questions
What is a CDV photograph?
A carte de visite (CDV) is a small albumen photograph mounted on a card the size of a calling card — roughly 2½ × 4 inches. The format was first proposed by Louis Dodero in 1851 and patented in France by André Disdéri in 1854. CDVs were the dominant portrait format from the early 1860s through the 1870s and continued to be made into the 1920s.
How can I tell if a CDV is from the Civil War era?
A revenue tax stamp on the back dates a CDV to between August 1864 and August 1866 — the only window when the U.S. taxed photographs. Square corners, plain mounts, and two-line photographer imprints also point to the 1860s; rounded corners and elaborate decorated backs are 1870s and later.
How much is an antique CDV worth?
Common 1870s studio portraits typically run $5–$25, while Civil War soldier images, identified subjects, occupational portraits, and outdoor scenes can run from $75 into the thousands. Condition, identification, and historical interest of the sitter drive value far more than age alone.
Are CDVs and cabinet cards the same thing?
No — they share the albumen process but cabinet cards are larger (about 4¼ × 6½ inches on heavier card stock) and came into vogue in the late 1860s. CDVs and cabinet cards coexisted from roughly 1866 into the 1890s before cabinets took over the standard portrait market.
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