Carte de Visite
Albumen-print portraits on small card mounts — the calling-card photo of the Civil War era.
CDV Circa 1870s R. Dighton Man with Mustache Cheltenham
CDV Circa 1880s W.H. Prestwich Gorgeous Lady in Dress London
CDV Circa 1880s E. Smorthwaite Gorgeous Lady In Dress London UK
CDV Circa 1880s Ball & Co. Handsome Man with Mustache Peterborough
CDV Circa 1880s Alf Freke Lady In Dress Cardiff UK
CDV Circa 1880s S. Long Lady in Dress Woolwich London
CDV Circa 1880s Ward Lady In Lace Dress London UK
CDV Circa 1880s F. Heiler Lady In Dress Osnabrück
CDV Circa 1880s C.J.A. Davis Gorgeous Lady In Dress Brighton UK
CDV Circa 1880s C.J. Gearing Young Lady In Striped Dress London UK
CDV Circa 1880s C.J. Gearing Gorgeous Lady In Dress London UK
CDV Circa 1880s C.H. Laws Young Lady In Dress Bury
CDV Circa 1880s A. G. Taylor Bearded Man In Suit Leeds England
CDV Circa 1880s London Stereoscopic Co. Bearded Man London UK
CDV Circa 1880s London & Bristol Photo Co Bearded Man Bristol UK
CDV Circa 1880s W.F. Maltby Gorgeous Lady In Dress Islington London
CDV Circa 1880s (Photographer Unknown) Family Outdoors Unmarked
CDV Circa 1880s T. Gilbertson Handsome Man with Mustache Edinburgh
CDV Circa 1880s W.V. Amey Bearded Man In Suit Landport
CDV Circa 1880s Stilliard Young Handsome Man In Suit Oxford
CDV Circa 1880s W.S. Bradshaw Gorgeous Lady In Dress London UK
CDV Circa 1880s James Pitt Bearded Man in Suit London
CDV Circa 1880s W.S. Wyles Lady In Dress Wearing Hat Reading UK
CDV Circa 1880s M. Bowness Gorgeous Lady Fancy Dress Ambleside
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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