Carte de Visite
Albumen-print portraits on small card mounts — the calling-card photo of the Civil War era.
Antique CDV Roessinger-Jeanneret Man On Sled Toboggan Winter Sport Davos Swiss
Antique CDV Young Boy Sailor Suit Wide Brim Hat Toy Wheelbarrow
Antique CDV Young Soldier Military Uniform Glengarry Cap Portrait
Antique CDV Man Violinist Musician Holding Violin Bow Suit Portrait
Antique CDV Two Couples Outdoors Hats Bowler Bonnet Garden Portrait
Antique CDV J Boe Woman Traditional Norwegian Bunad Folk Costume Bergen Norway
Antique CDV Ph Frey CO Inneres Der St Jakobi Kirche Chemnitz Germany
Antique CDV Industrial Cityscape Lake Couple Parasol Top Hat
Antique CDV Ph Frey CO Chemnitz Markt Square Germany Cityscape View
Antique CDV Chemnitz Real U. Hohere Burger-Schule Germany Building
Antique CDV Joh. Zimmermanns Etablissement Factory Chemnitz Germany
Antique CDV Hospital St Georg Chemnitz Germany Architecture View
Antique CDV Ph Feev & CO Chemnitz Hohere Webe-Schule Germany Building
Antique CDV Konigl Hohere Gewerb-Schule Chemnitz Germany Building
Antique CDV Schillerplatz Actienspinnerei Factory Chemnitz Germany
Antique CDV 1880s Two Men Hats One With Arm Sling Cigar Pocket Watch Chain
Antique CDV 1870s Bearded Man Oval Portrait Vignette Dark Suit
Antique CDV 1875 Rev B John Ordained Native Minister Lutheran Church India
Antique CDV W. L. Wilder Elderly Woman Bonnet Dark Pleated Dress Laconia Mich.
Antique CDV 1860s C. S. Sanderson Elderly Man Suit Dover New Hampshire
Antique CDV Jas Noble Portrait Elderly Man Sideburns Deposit NY
Antique CDV P Bahl Man Spectacles Bow Tie Purple Tinted Tablecloth Mansfield OH
Antique CDV 1860s Handsome Older Man Vignette Portrait Bow Tie Suit
Antique CDV 1870s Elderly Woman Dark Dress Lace Collar Bonnet Seated
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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