Carte de Visite
Albumen-print portraits on small card mounts — the calling-card photo of the Civil War era.
CIRCA 1900s CDV FRANK ZIVNEY YOUNG LADY IN FANCY WHITE DRESS MILWAUKEE WI
ANTIQUE CIRCA 1860s CDV WM. STROUD OLDER LADY IN DRESS NORRISTOWN PA
ANTIQUE CIRCA 1880s CDV LONDON PHOTOGRAPHIC COMPANY LADY MANCHESTER ENGLAND
ANTIQUE CDV 1886 TRADITIONAL JAPANESE LADY IN ROBES EATING MEAL HIOGO JAPAN
ANTIQUE CIRCA 1860s CDV BIZARRE TURKISH CHILD HOLDING SWORD AND DRUM RARE!
ANTIQUE CDV CIRCA 1870s M. PACAULT GORGOEUS YOUNG LADY WATER JUG HAND-TINTED
CIRCA 1870s CDV BABY ON ROCKING CHAIR IN WHITE DRESS UNMARKED
CIRCA 1870s CDV JOSIE MANSFIELD JIM FISK'S MISTRESS MURDERED BY NED STOKES
1865 ORIGINAL CDV REV JOHN PIERPONT AMERICAN POET AGE 80 ALEX GARDNER WASH D.C.
ANTIQUE CDV CIRCA 1860s HANDSOME BEARDED MAN IN SUIT ALBUM PRINT UNMARKED
CIRCA 1870s CDV COUPLE PORTRAIT MAN AND WIFE IN FORMAL WEAR UNMARKED
Antique CDV Circa 1880s D. Hurlbut Cute Baby Sitting in Greenville PA
Antique CDV Circa 1870s D. Hurlbut Portrait Greenville Mercer CO PA
Antique CDV Circa 1880s Handsome Bearded Man With Mustache IN Suit Unmarked
Antique CDV Circa 1860s W. A. Elwell Handsome Man in Su Gloucester MA
Antique CDV Circa 1880s Beverley Young Lady in Ruffled Dress & Bo Oldham England
Antique CDV Circa 1880s Hanna Forthmeier Black Gorgeous Lady Pearl Brooch
Antique CDV Circa 1890s E.m. Carver Old Handsome Bearded Man IN Suit Tracy
Antique CDV Circa 1870s Gorgeous Lady IN Patterned Dress Lace Collar Unmarked
Antique CDV Circa 1880s Hanna Forthmeiner Gorgeous Lady Brooch Helsingborg
Antique CDV Circa 1880s M. J. Simson Handsome Young Man Suit Sash Dillingen
Antique CDV Circa 1880s Webster Handsome Old Bearded Man IN Suit Oshkosh Wis.
Antique CDV Circa 1870s A. Michelson Young Handsome Bearded Man Suit Neenah
Antique CDV Circa 1880s F. F. Wolfe Cute Baby John W. Fairinger Jr Lancaster OH
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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