Carte de Visite
Albumen-print portraits on small card mounts — the calling-card photo of the Civil War era.
CDV Circa 1870s J. Mann Gorgeous Lady In Dress Norwich UK
CDV Circa 1870s H. Fischer Gorgeous Lady In Dress Manchester UK
CDV Circa 1870s J. Horsburgh Handsome Man In Suit Edinburgh
CDV Circa 1870s J.D. Hannah Old Lady In Dress Shrewsbury
CDV Circa 1870s Chas. J. Thompson Young Girl In Dress Norwich England
CDV Circa 1870s A.& G. Taylor Handsome Man In Suit London
CDV Circa 1870s J. Marshall Young Lady In Dress Alnwick
CDV Circa 1870s Vandyke Brown Old Bearded Man in Suit Liverpool
CDV Circa 1870s The London Stereoscopic Gorgeous Lady In Dress London UK
CDV Circa 1870s V. Heath Handsome Man with Mustache London UK
CDV Circa 1870s David Hains Young Lady In Dress London
CDV Circa 1870s A.W. Wilson Handsome Man with Mustache in Suit Unmarked
CDV Circa 1870s G.E. Alder Old Man Croydon England
CDV Circa 1870s A.W. Wilson Old Lady In Dress Kingsland UK
CDV Circa 1880s H.Y. Spink Gorgeous Lady In Dress Brighton UK
CDV Circa 1880s M. Batiste Son Young Lady In Striped Dress London UK
CDV Circa 1880s Brown Barnes Bell Gorgeous Lady In Dress London UK
CDV Circa 1880s Thos. A. Huggins Gorgeous Lady In Dress York
CDV Circa 1880s Fredk. C. Mills Lady In Dress Bath England
CDV Circa 1880s Barnes Lady In Elegant Dress London
CDV Circa 1880s C.J. Gearing Young Lady In Dress London England
CDV Circa 1880s John White 3 Cute Children Ipswich UK
CDV Circa 1880s Robinson & Thompson Man with Mustache Liverpool
CDV Circa 1880s Hellis & Sons Handsome Man With Mustache London UK
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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