Carte de Visite
Albumen-print portraits on small card mounts — the calling-card photo of the Civil War era.
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s Lady Wearing Hat Holding Baby Seated Mother & Harold
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s Franz Zech Young Gorgeous Lady In Dress Steinschonau Cz
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s Arthur Winter Young Girl In Ruffled Dress Preston Eng.
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s Gorgeous Lady In High Collar Dress Holding Rose Unmarked
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s Rise & Gates Young Girl Cute In Dress Lebanon Pa
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s American Photo Co. Handsome Man In Suit Salford England
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s Tucker Young Handsome Man In Suit W/ Star San Jose Ca
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s A. Brown & Co Cute Young Child In Dress Lanark Scotland
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s Tucker Young Handsome Man In Suit San Jose California
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s Tucker Young Handsome Man In Suit San Jose California
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s Davidson & Sons Gorgeous Lady In Dress Lanark Scotland
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s Allan Neild Young Gorgeous Lady In Coat Leeds England
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s Rise & Gates Gorgeous Lady High Neck Dress Lebanon Pa
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s Wilhelm Hess Handsome Man In Suit Standing Pocket Watch
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s Cute Young Boy In Suit Wearing Boutonniere Lebanon Pa
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s Gartside Gorgeous Lady High Collar Dress Oldham England
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s W. Crooke Old Gorgeous Lady Wearing Cap Edinburgh Uk
Antique Cdv Circa 1890s F. Scrimshaw Young Lady In Dress With Fur Leeds England
Antique Cdv Circa 1870s R. Cary Gorgeous Lady Braided Hair Earrings Rockport Ma
Antique Cdv Circa 1870s Warren Gorgeous Lady High Collar Dress W/ Bow Boston Ma
Antique Cdv Circa 1870s Biddle Gorgeous Lady In Dress Braided Hair Xenia Oh
Antique Cdv Circa 1870s B. W. Johnson Gorgeous Lady With Braided Hair Nashua Nh
Antique Cdv Circa 1870s J.h.c. Schaefer Cute Young Girl In Dress Baltimore Md
Antique Cdv Circa 1870s L.w. Cook Gorgeous Lady With Braided Hair Boston Ma
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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