Carte de Visite
Albumen-print portraits on small card mounts — the calling-card photo of the Civil War era.
Antique CDV Circa 1860s Gorgeous Black Young Lady In Elegant Striped Dress
Antique CDV Circa 1890s Touranchet Cute Baby In White Dress & Bonne Paris France
Antique CDV Circa 1890s Cute Young Boy in Sailor Suit Anchor Emblem
Antique CDV Circa 1890s Masters Two Young Gorgeous Ladies In Dress Princeton Il
Antique CDV Circa 1890s Scenic Landscape River Bridge Trees Christmas Wishes
Antique CDV Circa 1890s J. Heef Husband And Wife Romantic Couple Worms Germany
Antique CDV Circa 1890s Three Gorgeous Young Women Fancy Ruffled Dress Unmarked
Antique CDV Circa 1890s A. H. Fell. Two Young Women Nora & Stella Muir Unmarked
Antique CDV Circa 1890s Lady Wearing Hat In Dress Standing By Fence Unmarked
Antique CDV Circa 1890s Rob. Rauschenbach Mother And Cute Child Glauchau Germany
Antique CDV C. 1890s Young Gorgeous Lady Curly Hair Bow Floral Dress Hunchback
Antique CDV Circa 1890s J.B. Platt Handsome Bearded Preist Liverpool England
Antique CDV Circa 1890s Byrne & Co Cute Baby In Lace Dress With Doll Richmond UK
Antique CDV Circa 1890s Lady In Window Of Victorian Brick House & Fence Unmarked
Antique CDV Circa 1890s Handsome Young Man In Suit Bowtie Happy New Years
Antique CDV Circa 1890s C. Myland Handsome Young Man Philadelphia Pennsylvania
Antique CDV Circa 1890s Man with Mustache & Dog Young Girl with Cat
Antique CDV Circa 1870s Robert Handsome Man Mustache In Uniform Paris France
Antique Hand Tinted CDV 1890s Paris Co. Gorgeous Young Lady Boston Floral
Antique CDV Circa 1880s T. H. Carpenter Cute Baby In Fancy Lace Dress Sherman Tx
Antique CDV Circa 1880s Cute Young Girl In Dress Holding Doll Eastport Maine
Antique CDV Circa 1880s Hotchkiss Cute Young Girl In Lace Collar Doll Norwich Ny
Antique CDV Circa 1880s Cute Young Boy Wearing Striped Cap & Dark Coat Unmarked
Antique CDV Circa 1870s Cute Baby In Dress Mother on Back Freeport Illinois
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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