The case is in the form of a book, with a decorative binding. A spray of ornate flowers is stamped in gold on back and front.

T Wharton case maker registered his ‘Design for a Miniature picture frame back’ with the certificate of registration on 23rd August 1841. This object is dated June 3rd , 1851 but on the backing the metal is embossed with 4 August 1841.

See: 1920, 4 June, ‘Death of the Oldest Amateur Photographer‘, BJP, vol. 67, p. 350.

Daguerreotype of John Avery stranded in rapids above Niagara Falls, 1853 by Platt D. Babbitt

Full length portrait of a seated woman her body facing her right. She wears a white cap with lace trim, broad white lappets, a dark dress, long lace cuffs, black lace fingerless gloves, a profusion of lace at the front of the chest.Her right arm rests on a book on a table. There are two other books on the table and an ornate ewer. Her right hand holds a blossom (looks like a rosebud with leaf). Her jewellery includes a brooch at the neck, a long beaded gold chain (gold highlights) around the neck, gold bracelets, a ring. She sits on an upholstered seat. The table has a decorative dark cloth. A curtain is behind. The stereo is in a case with built in stereo viewer.